Troubled online retailer is on the brink of becoming the latest dotcom disaster and only has enough money to survive until the end of March.

The virtual shop reported a fourth quarter loss of $85m and that it had burned through a massive $49m in an aggressive advertising campaign to win new customers.

The firm is already meeting with creditors on a restructuring plan that would shield it from court and enforced liquidation.

But the internet toy store may not have many cost-cutting measures left as it has already slashed 70% of its workforce and closed down its European operations.

Further woes

And to add to the firm's woes, a European art group has announced that it is to file for trademark infringement in the US courts.

The European group - also called etoys but all in lower-case letters - claims to have been an active online site in 1996 before the virtual toy store was launched.

The creditors of eToys have agreed not to collect their debts until after the end of the month, when the assets and marketing strategy of the firm will be examined.

eToys is relying on US bank Goldman Sachs to assess the prospects for a merger or a sale.

Shares in eToys stood at just $0.31 at the close of the US-based Nasdaq exchange on Thursday evening, valuing the firm at $41.3m.

The shares reached a closing peak of $84.25 in October 1999, giving the firm a stockmarket valuation of more than $10bn.