No, not dying.. cycling. Everything has ebbs and flows.. Ride the tides. They come in, they go out.. It's life and UO has a life all it's own.

I don't know about dying, but I don't think its thriving either. Ebb and flow is a good way to describe it. People seem to come and go in equal amounts. Cats is a great example of leaving the wide open spaces of WBB to huddle together in Luna, I'm still not sure why, but on other shards I've been to you can find a healthy thriving and annoying amount of spam at WBB.

As for places like tradespot, I think its simple to say that there just aren't the same resources and items to trade as we had once. There are a few key high end items or resources people are after but nothing like there used to be. Money is so easily made gold isn't worth what it was once either so those that used to farm resources to sell don't make as much either. Its a phase of the game I think. We all just adapt as we go.

Tradespot shot itself in the foot with the soulstone fragment fiasco. Many many people will not deal with them.

If you buy a code you don't expect someone else to still have access to that code, nor do you expect them to use it for any purpose whatsoever.

A lot of the auction sites are failing because of player greed. The prices they set on the things they're trying to sell are far from realistic. Ask a fair price and you'll sell your items. Prices have escalated phenomenally over the last couple of years. Now reality is beginning to set in. Who decides that this arti or that arti is worth multiple millions of gp? Ask a fortune and some fool will pay it. A fool and his money are soon parted. Sadly for the greedy the fools are beginning to become wiser.

I think it's going through a small change and those who don't like change moan or leave but it will carry on, like the great lady say's Ebb and flow thats all it is.

Ther are more shards, facets, and tradeboards than there used to be. The community is more fragmented hence the appearance of less life. I personally don't miss the days of overcrowded hunting grounds. The age of what server you play on can also make a severe impact on the perception you have.

I dont think it is no,

ohhhh Thank you Legacyee.

You are more than Welcome

can't say for sure myself... hope not... but all good things...

I don't see it, while it may not grow by appeasing the eye candy crowd, I think it has enough of a hardcore following to remain profitable for at least a few more years.
In any case I highly doubt EA would let the 10th anniversary promo slip thru thier hands. It's a huge milestone and worth the fanfare.

IMHO