7 February 2008
eBay has angered some of its loyal users by banning negative feedback about buyers and demanding that anyone selling above their set quota from the UK must register as a business.
Higher sellers, better known as "PowerSellers" will be targeted first and must register business accounts by the end of the month. eBay will also be emailing anyone with "high levels of sales" not registered as a business. eBay has not stated how high the quota is, but it will be determined by the number of items sold in the last three months and by gross merchandise volume.
The changes have upset some users, because there is no way to remain a PowerSeller unless you register a business account. This requires sellers to provide a physical address, to inform customers that they are a business and to offer a cooling-off period if selling items at a fixed price. The changes are required by European Union e-commerce law.
Some sellers are worried by the security implications of showing their address on eBay's View Item page, so eBay is increasing options by giving a wider choice of pages where the address can be displayed. However, it warns users that business sellers must display a proper address and not a PO Box.
Feedback is also set to change from May 2008 when sellers will not be able to leave negative or neutral comments about buyers. The changes are designed to make life easier for sellers. Negative feedback can have a major impact on sales on eBay. It can also spark retaliation, with both buyers and sellers leaving tit-for-tat negative comments if a sale goes wrong.
eBay is also closing its eBay Express service which offered fixed price items for sale. The company said the decision was based on buyer and seller feedback.
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