E-bay is located in the US so the 16th is not until tomorrow. Wednesday Feb 16, 2005. I hope this answers your question about the clues. They will be available at midnight which is in 4hours and 20 minutes
As I understand it, the contest begins at 12:01 AM on Wednesday, February 16 Pacific Standard Time. It is currently 4:43 PST according to my clock here in L.A.