I received an email summarizing some of the changes that ebay has and will be making. IMO I think this shows the direction towards eliminating the small seller and doing away with auctions to become more of a “buy it now” for big retailers.

Over the last few months, eBay has announced a number of major changes to its site that all sellers need to be aware of. From a new fee structure to sweeping changes in listing policies, eBay’s latest rule revisions—and their varied timetable for rollout—are causing waves of angst among sellers. Keeping it all straight can be a bit overwhelming, so here are some helpful links to bring you up-to-date on what changes are already in effect, and what’s coming down the pipe:

General Overview of all the changes: http://pages.ebay.com/sell/August2008Update/Overview/

• Paperless payments only—effective late October, 2008—checks/money orders will no longer be allowed as a form of payment (with the exception of “Payment on Pick-up.”) http://pages.ebay.com/sell/August2008Update/Payments/
• Fee changes—effective 9/16/08—lower insertion fees for fixed-price listings; increases in final-value fees for fixed-price listings (with the exception of items in certain media categories, where the FVFs actually decrease.) http://pages.ebay.com/sell/August2008Update/BasicFees/
• eBay Motors fee changes—effective 9/02/08—eBay is eliminating the insertion fees on the first four vehicles you list in a 12-month period. Insertion fees on the fifth and any subsequent vehicle listing during that period is reduced 50% to $20 per listing. On the flip side, successful vehicle listings will pay a much larger “Successful Listing” fee—as much as 150% higher than the old fee. http://pages.ebay.com/sell/August2008Update/FeatureFees/
• Specified shipping in listings—effective 8/25/08—all listings must now have the shipping cost/service specified. http://pages.ebay.com/sell/june2008Update/faq/index.html#39
• Limits on shipping/handling charges in media categories (Books, DVDs & Movies, Music and Video Games)—effective 10/05/08. http://pages.ebay.com/sell/August2008Update/MaxShipping/
• Specified return policy/handling time required—effective late October 2008—specify a return policy (even if you don’t accept returns, you still have to state that) and enter a handling time for shipping. http://pages.ebay.com/sell/june2008Update/faq/index.html#37
• Special incentives for free shipping—effective October thru December 2008—sellers who offer free shipping during the holiday season will get a free subtitle upgrade and PowerSellers will get double their FVF discounts. http://pages.ebay.com/sell/August2008Update/OtherFAQ/index.html#2
• New item page—effective late 2008 or early 2009—a new revamped Item Page with larger photos, real-time countdown timer, tabs to organize shipping and payment information, and much more. For a preview click here: http://pages.ebay.com/newitempage/
• ebay.uk/ebay.ie changes: http://www2.ebay.com/aw/uk/200808.shtml#2008-08-20110529
• Recent sales history a factor in “Best Match” search results—effective mid-September—recent sales of an individual item will now be a factor in Best Match search results. http://pages.ebay.com/sell/August2008Update/OtherFAQ/#5

Auctiva Staff