ebay and the latest ...............................................MEDIA REPORTS

[Liisa-Sx]

eBay UK rolls out automatic unpaid item disputes


http://tamebay.com/2010/04/ebay-uk-rolls-out-automatic-unpaid-item-disputes.html

"eBay UK has announced that the Unpaid Item Assistant is now available for UK sellers. This allows sellers to specify a period of time (between 4 and 32 days) after which, if the buyer hasn’t paid, an unpaid item dispute will be automatically opened for them by eBay. If the buyer doesn’t pay within 4 days of the dispute opening, it will be automatically closed, the buyer given an unpaid item strike and the seller refunded their FVFs.

Buyers will not be able to leave feedback while a dispute is open: if they pay, the dispute will close and they’ll be able to leave feedback as normal. If the case closes with the item still unpaid, any feedback they left prior to the case being opened will be removed.

There are a few conditions. Sellers can only use the Unpaid Item Assistant on items that *only* accept PayPal as a payment method. Items that offer collection, or paper payments (cheques and POs) are not eligible. "

What about bank deposit for example? How can PayPal be mandatory, is that not steering yet again? What differentiates between non paying bidders irrespective of the payment method in the listing.
The only good i see in this is that they [The non paying bidder] will not be permitted to leave feedback if they don't pay.

[*Brum6y*]

My understanding that using the automated UPI process gives you automatic protection from feedback.  The manual UPI will still be available, but any feedback left will stay.

[golden]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/ebay-to-pay-duped-gold-buyer-damages/story-e6frf7ko-1225851169039

[bnwt]

eBay Fraud Charge


http://www.nj.com/messenger-gazette/index.ssf/2010/04/ebay_fraud_charge_and_other_somerville_police_news.html

[bnwt]

eBay Offers Intelligent Customer Support


http://www.ecommerce-guide.com/essentials/ebay/article.php/3875256

[bnwt]

Tiffany considers a Supreme Court appeal in eBay counterfeiting case


http://www.internetretailer.com/dailyNews.asp?id=34321

[Philip.Cohen]

@ Liisa-Sx,

“… on items that *only* accept PayPal.”

How could eBay ever be sure (in any simple computerized sense) that payment has or has not been made except by their linked PayPal process? They certainly can’t prove the negative in any other way.

My God, I’m agreeing with eBay; I must be losing my mind …

Having said that, eBay, becoming ever more desperate of late, won’t ever pass up an opportunity to attempt to monopolize …

But, let’s face it, PayPal is very convenient for buyers; if you are a scrupulous seller you should (hopefully) not have a problem with PayPal, and if you can’t afford to pay the payments processor’s “cut” you probably should not be trying to sell online.

My God, I’m agreeing with eBay, again; I am losing my mind …

Only another 12 days to go to the announcement of the first quarter results. The Don’s latest tap dace routine will be interesting to watch: I wonder who he will blame this time for the disastrous results of his own stupid policies.


“eBay Offers Intelligent Customer Support”

Without bothering to read this article, one can only say that this heading would have to be a classic oxymoron and would have to be straight from the eBay Dept of Spin.

[shyer]

My God, I’m agreeing with eBay; I must be losing my mind …

But, let’s face it, PayPal is very convenient for buyers; if you are a scrupulous seller you should (hopefully) not have a problem with PayPal, and if you can’t afford to pay the payments processor’s “cut” you probably should not be trying to sell online.

My God, I’m agreeing with eBay, again; I am losing my mind …

Phillip the "cost " of PAY$puss is more than 3% P$P takes it takes about 3% in currency conversion as well. P$P often holds funds for months as "insurance" money also once released can take weeks to clear in a bank account.

The worst thing about P$P is buyers can rort the system. The seller never knows if item credit card funded if goods posted to credit card name or address. So for instance watching the credit card and recording the numbers of the person behind or in front of you at the supermarket / anywhere gives  a crook a P$P account sellers lose payment from.

The real cost of P$P is about 15% and in many sectors the profit margin before ebay takes a cut is only 10% .

Notice how all big internet selling firms do not use ebay! The fees are too high plain and simple, and paypal with ebay is a monster. P$P on its own can be made compeditive.

[gr8-expectations]

eBay UK rolls out automatic unpaid item disputes


http://tamebay.com/2010/04/ebay-uk-rolls-out-automatic-unpaid-item-disputes.html

"eBay UK has announced that the Unpaid Item Assistant is now available for UK sellers. This allows sellers to specify a period of time (between 4 and 32 days) after which, if the buyer hasn’t paid, an unpaid item dispute will be automatically opened for them by eBay. If the buyer doesn’t pay within 4 days of the dispute opening, it will be automatically closed, the buyer given an unpaid item strike and the seller refunded their FVFs.

Buyers will not be able to leave feedback while a dispute is open: if they pay, the dispute will close and they’ll be able to leave feedback as normal. If the case closes with the item still unpaid, any feedback they left prior to the case being opened will be removed.

There are a few conditions. Sellers can only use the Unpaid Item Assistant on items that *only* accept PayPal as a payment method. Items that offer collection, or paper payments (cheques and POs) are not eligible. "

What about bank deposit for example? How can PayPal be mandatory, is that not steering yet again? What differentiates between non paying bidders irrespective of the payment method in the listing.
The only good i see in this is that they [The non paying bidder] will not be permitted to leave feedback if they don't pay.

exactly liisa its steering again and if it happens here should be something the ACCC should protect us against, since it regards feedback it should apply to all transaction regardless of the payment method, its all part of the giant "funnel" leading down to one narrow outcome, MORE people use paypal to bebfit ebay and Paypal because it becomes the only way to get (what appears to be) a fairer deal, when in fact fairness and equality is not something to be bargained with

[lady rose]

Interesting

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/ebay-to-pay-duped-gold-buyer-damages/story-e6frf7ko-1225851169039

[Philip.Cohen]

@ shyer,

Agreed. I am no PayPal supporter. But the credit card coys will peel between 0.9% and 2.9% off merchants too (+ FX fee, if applicable) depending on volume, risk, etc.

All I am saying is that there is a cost involved in payments processing and merchants usually bear that cost. If you cannot afford to absorb those costs then you are in the wrong business.

PayPal is convenient for buyers—that is a simple fact; and until “the banks” introduce a like system to complement their card system (we can only hope), PayPal is not going to go away. Get used to it.

If you are old enough you may recall the initial resistance by very many merchants to the original credit card in Australia, “Bankcard”, when it was introduced some 20+ odd years ago …

[shyer]

@ shyer,
Agreed. I am no PayPal supporter. But the credit card coys will peel between 0.9% and 2.9% off merchants too (+ FX fee, if applicable) depending on volume, risk, etc. ..... Get used to it.

Phillip, Most retailers are not earning lawyer fees, a 2% fee for banking sevices OK 15% is not on . Let alone P$P is not a bank nor has it signed the EFT fund transfer code. P$P is a swiss money broker with no ethics or laws to guide it. Look at diners club it had the credit card market sew up, too gready now a 2 cent player.

I think it is buyers who are going to have to get used to payimg for P$P. I use P$P to buy with but know P$P has to change or die. It is already on the nose.

[bnwt]

Super Bowl tickets create PayPal problem


http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/problemsolver/ct-biz-0408-problem-fedinec-20100408,0,3097330.column

[bnwt]

eBay Found Negligent after Failing to Heed User Warnings


http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y10/m04/i08/s01

[Philip.Cohen]

Shyer, I agree with everything you say. But, both PayPal and eBay are going to charge as much as the market will bear: that is how the “for profit” world of commerce works.

In eBay’s case, considering that the seller does all the work (unlike a traditional auctioneer who actually does the work of listing, albeit for an even higher commission fee), eBay’s fee is undoubtedly becoming excessive; but that is their prerogative, and they are now desperate to make up for the revenue that has been lost due to the reducing number of sellers and sales and this revenue has to be extracted from the remaining lesser number of sellers, and that is undoubtedly why the eBay marketplace is continuing its slide into the abyss.

But the fact is, nothing buyers or sellers can say is going to change the direction that this fool Donahoe has chosen to take, and as many others are now saying, come to terms with that fact and plan accordingly.

[bnwt]

Germantown eBay user pleads guilty to wire fraud


http://www.daytondailynews.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/dayton/daytoncourts/entries/2010/04/08/germantown_ebay_user_pleads_gu.html

[bnwt]

eBay Search Button Breaks for Some Users


http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y10/m04/i08/s04

[bnwt]

Online Retailers Voice Concerns About Proposed EU Law


http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100407-704229.html?mod=WSJ_latestheadlines

[bnwt]

US appeals court: Hosting auctions of fakes doesn't infringe


http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/04/09/ebay_trade_mark_ruling/

[bnwt]

Court Says eBay Not to Blame for Tiffany Counterfeits



fantastic video presentation

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/court-ebay-fake-tiffany-jewelry/story?id=10310025

[*Yibida*]

Court Says eBay Not to Blame for Tiffany Counterfeits



fantastic video presentation

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/court-ebay-fake-tiffany-jewelry/story?id=10310025

The judge must secretly be a power seller to let em off.....

[*smee*]

all 12 members of the jury were eBay employees .... just ask Phil ....we are everywhere us stooges  !!!


just like V's but we are E's

[bnwt]

Paypal Application for iPhone gets 1Million downloads in 3 weeks


http://www.unlock-iphone.org/blog/2010/04/paypal-application-for-iphone-gets-1mil-downloads-in-3-weeks/

[bnwt]

Hidden Messaging System on eBay



http://letters.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2010/4/1270773526.html

[bnwt]

Tomb Raider, Dinosaur Thief Sentenced


http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/04/09/tomb-raider-dinosaur-thief-sentenced/

[bnwt]

eBay iPad App


http://www.letsgodigital.org/en/25801/ebay-ipad-app/

[Philip.Cohen]

"5 DAYS STRAIGHT, NOT 1 SALE. SELLING FOR 10 YRS. WHAT THE IS GOING ON HERE?"
http://forums.ebay.com/thread.jspa?forumID=143&threadID=520194234

Has anyone yet noticed that US sellers are squeeling like stuck pigs on the eBay US seller central board about no, or intermittent, sales ...

I guess it will be a case of server overload now (with all those “extra” listings) requiring “rolling blackouts”; you know, when the utility can’t supply electricity to everyone and some consumers have to miss out for a period (but at least you don’t pay for what you don’t get); only with an electricity blackout you know what is going on because there you are sitting in the dark; with eBay you will never be told that you are not getting the service that they contracted with you to supply because they are a totally unscrupulous, gutless, white-collar criminal organization (aka “the eBafia”) and they have every intention of, in effect, defrauding you of those fees that you will nevertheless be charged for something that you never got (after all eBay is becoming desperate for revenue of late). Gee, they sound just like one of those unscrupulous sellers that they claim to be always trying to detect and banish from their marketplace. Now pull the other leg eBay …

[bnwt]

Fla. woman accused of online iPhone, ID theft scam


http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/04/10/1572975/fla-woman-accused-of-online-iphone.html

[bnwt]

Fla. man sued for $15k over negative eBay remark


http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/04/11/1574322/fla-man-sued-for-15k-over-negative.html

[bnwt]

Ringo Starr blames eBay for autograph ban


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8614359.stm

[bnwt]

Strong Australian dollar boosts travel and online shopping


http://www.news.com.au/money/money-matters/strong-australian-dollar-boosts-travel-and-online-shopping/story-e6frfmd9-1225852524070

[bnwt]

Leaving Feedback on eBay? Get a Lawyer!


http://blog.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2010/4/1271086641.html

[bnwt]

eBay UK Fashion Outlet launched


http://tamebay.com/2010/04/ebay-uk-fashion-outlet-launched.html

[bnwt]

eBay Store Inventory Not Always Showing in Core


http://letters.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2010/4/1271043911.html

[Liisa-Sx]

PayPal Removal of minimum withdrawal limit and associated withdrawal fee.

Effective Date: May 25, 2010


Currently there is a minimum withdraw amount of $15.00 AUD and there is a fee of $1.00 AUD to withdraw between $15.00 AUD to $149.99 AUD to an Australian bank account.

Effective 25 May 2010, PayPal will be removing the existing minimum withdrawal requirement and associated fee. This will be reflected in the following policies:

Fees Policy, Payments Policy, Product Disclosure Statement, User Agreement

https://cms.paypal.com/au/cgi-bin/marketingweb?cmd=_render-content&fli=true&content_ID=ua/upcoming_policies_full&locale.x=en_AU

[*CountessA*]

That's one of the BEST pieces of news I've encountered about PayPal.

The minimum withdrawal amount was something I found ludicrous. It's good to see a change in that policy.

[bnwt]

Businessman's phoney boots sale on eBay ends in prison


http://www.thisissouthwales.co.uk/southwalesnews/Businessman-s-phoney-boots-sale-eBay-ends-prison/article-2014038-detail/article.html

[bnwt]

“More Like This” – eBay Image Search just got clever


http://tamebay.com/2010/04/more-like-this-ebay-image-search-just-got-clever.html

[bnwt]

eBay hobby can be taxing


http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/fp/money/eBay+hobby+taxing/2785604/story.html

[bnwt]

eBay Buyers Not Allowed to Fix Feedback Mistakes


http://letters.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2010/4/1271213737.html

[bnwt]

Donahoe's 2-Year eBay Legacy: More Listings, Less Traffic


http://blog.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2010/4/1271300812.html

[bnwt]

PayPal boosts security



http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=32248:paypal-boosts-security&catid=234:security

[bnwt]

eBay Traffic at 6-Year Low for March Data


eBay CEO John Donahoe initiated a 3-year plan to turnaround the marketplaces business after taking the helm in 2008. But unless sales defy traffic trends, he may have a tough time convincing shareholders that the plan is working when he faces them at the company's annual meeting at the end of the month.

http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y10/m04/i15/s01

[*Yibida*]

eBay Traffic at 6-Year Low for March Data


eBay CEO John Donahoe initiated a 3-year plan to turnaround the marketplaces business after taking the helm in 2008. But unless sales defy traffic trends, he may have a tough time convincing shareholders that the plan is working when he faces them at the company's annual meeting at the end of the month.

http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y10/m04/i15/s01

eBay's traffic for the month of March was at a 6-year low compared to previous March numbers. Data provided by Nielsen show that eBay received 49.6 million unique visitors in March 2010, down over 18% from 61 million in March 2007, the peak year for March data.
It will be difficult for the CEO to blame the economy. Forrester Research pegged online retail sales as growing 11% in 2009. (It's forecasting similar growth rates for 2010.) And while Nielsen 2-year numbers reveal that eBay's traffic decreased 13% in March 2010 compared to March 2008, Amazon.com's traffic increased 17% for the same period.

DUMP Yer shares !.. she's going down.. sellers and children to the life boats ! .. NOT SO FAST Donahoe !...stay in ya wheel house ! you holed her now you go down with it !..

[*Yibida*]

Meanwhile, Amazon has been hell-bent on expanding the breadth of its products. Its strategy is an Amazon-eBay hybrid model. Get third-party sellers to front the inventory it can't get itself, letting the 3Ps take on all the risk (just like the eBay model), while twisting merchants' arms to use its FBA fulfillment service so it feels to customers as though they are getting the products from Amazon (including eligibility for the free-shipping deals Amazon.com offers).

Amazon's strategy appears to be working. Traffic to Amazon.com for the month of March was over 17% higher than in March 2008.

We'll learn next week how sales of both marketplaces were impacted by traffic trends when they release first-quarter earnings, and Donahoe will face investors the week after - eBay holds its annual shareholder's meeting on April 29.

[tellomon]

[Philip.Cohen]

The fun will be had even earlier on the 21st after the first quarter results have been announced.

Surely, it’s about time the turkey farmer took his axe to this gaggle; hang on, these turkeys are already headless—and, of course, is not that the problem …

And an evenings entertainment on the folly of it all at http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/viewtopic.php?p=6502877

[tellomon]

Hehe. I just posted that link to facebook...

[bnwt]

Double PayPal Payments and eBay Feedback Glitch


http://letters.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2010/4/1271386560.html

[bnwt]

Account suspended: getting the cold shoulder from eBay


http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/172346,account-suspended-getting-the-cold-shoulder-from-ebay.aspx