eBay sucks in more ways then one , you have no way of knowing if you even get what you bid on and I got scammed out of $13,000 on good old eBay. They won't even talk to me about it and no one knows what to do about it. You can't call them they don't have phone numbers for anyone but the police.

It's amazing how many buyers get hosed, like Bill. Ebay is doing something finally because they realize that buyers are losing thousands like bill - but what does one irrelevant neg fb do to a seller with thousands of positives - or even a few hundred? Also how come nobody talks about the fact that the reason Ebay can raise it's prices is because there is no viable alternative. Why doesn't amazon allow for auction style listings? Where's google? Oh wait I can go to Ubid? -yeah I'll get a mass market of buyers there - no thanks. It sucks that no-body has been a real serious threat to Ebay - I think that has contributed to their laid-back approach in bringing changes, no doubt it makes it easy for them to raise prices. Perhaps it's a little too late - I doubt it - because...there is no real well-known alternative with auction style listings. None that can pass the "has the average baby-boomer generation mother heard of this site?" test. C'mmon Google - you're pwning paypal with your checkout - do the same and make some auction marketplace. Until then, this does give Ebay a chance to bring in a lot of new buyers and clear up their rep as place that makes it easy for fraudulent sellers to thrive. I can't wait to see all the new buyers coming in over the next year for all my auctions - ones that were previously afraid of getting hosed by Ebay fraud sellers. Hey Gary - let's have a look at the auction that had four deadbeat buyers. post the auction number so we can judge for ourselves. Not saying it's not true - but a lot of posts like to exaggerate the effect it will have on them.

# Few things: Buyer once he has paid money is automatically given his trust and his positive feedback to seller by choosing him rather than some other seller. Once he gives money he has the right to get the item in same condition he expected.
# What is the use of seller giving a negative feedback to a buyer who spent money and trusted him initially?
# Yes this will make sellers force to describe the items and clear those things like higher shipping fees
# For there categories the fees has been reduced already which come in under 25$ category or are cheap.
# With good buyers what will sellers do in market place? Its a nice move a will bring results by increasing the volume of sales of sellers

I agree with monekywrench. These moves are confidence building excerices for buyers and biggest gift to sellers are confident buyers and not fraud hit buyers who like to buy at 20% higher price rather than take risk at ebay

As An eBay Buyer..I Really Hate to see that eBay.com is ruining the lively hood of so many Honest and Disabled and Veteran Sellers!!!!... Many Of The Smaller Sellers Who Helped Build eBay Have No Other Way To Make A Living!!....I Think Sellers Are Right To Take Control!...And,This Strike Is Most Definitely In Order!!!!!...If most of the Sellers abandoned their listings for a Week or MORE!! and Buyers "Don't Bid Or Browse"..It May bring eBay Management to their Senses!!...My Favorite Business Management Professor at GA. TECH always said "If It Ain't Broke...Don't Try to Fix It" ...In My Humble Opinion....The Proposed Feedback Change and the 21 Day Paypal.com Holding Period may be "Unconstitutional" & "Very Illegal"...."One Sided Feedback" may be a violation of the "Equal Protection Clauses" in the the various State and the Federal Constitutions!!.....Additionally....Both The New "Unequal Feedback Policy" and the "21 Day Holding Period" may require that eBay act as a "Law Enforcement Agency" and a "Court Of Law " in order to settle contractual disputes between Buyers and Sellers!!..Both Of These Actions May Be Extremely Illegal!!.... We Need To Help Ebay Save Itself!!....If One Strike doesn't work, Sellers may need to do it Again and Again--->Until it Does Work!! .... Hopefully!!, Persistent Sellers Will Convince eBay Management to Withdraw these proposed changes and return to Business As Normal Before The Law Enforcement Agencies and The Federal/State Courts Bring Them DOWN!! I have heard that One Of The Best Civil Trial Lawyers in Atlanta imay be waiting until the proposed changes take place before filing a multi billion dollar Class Action Lawsuit (On Behalf Of "ALL" SELLERS) against eBay, Paypal and their new cohort General Motors for Violation of the "Equal Protection and Numerous Other Clauses" Of The US Constitution!....Additionally....He may be requesting that US Magistrates and the Attorney General issue Felony Criminal Warrants requesting immediate arrest of all eBay Management and all employees involved in making feedback decisions(in which they act as a Law Enforcement Agency...AND... A Court Of Law!!) I Am Afraid That "Good Attorneys" and the almost Trillion Dollor "Class Action Suit" may Bankrupt eBay, Paypal and General Motors!! It will be Interesting to see how much it may cost eBay, Paypal and Genral Motors to reimburse all of the Sellers that are being be forced to leave eBay and give up their only source of income because of these New Feedback and Paypal Rules!!!! .....Probably Trillions!! ....My Professor Also Said..."Nothing Is "Forever"...Except Death And Taxes!!....STRIKE VICTOROUSLY!!

Do not agree with Dave at all....

I am a seller and buyer on eBay. I sell on eBay for a living. I buy on eBay for the savings. I have nothing to hide, my eBay ID is RickJonesSales. I sell quality leather furniture. I am a power seller and was invited to the eBay e-commerce forum in Jan. 08 With all the changes in listing fees, final value fees, and feedback the only one that is really going to hurt is the feedback. I have over 2700 @ 100 % with a DSR of 4.9-5.0 Not being abel to leave a buyer anything but a negative feedback is a liitle disturbing but, EBAY TAKING AWAY ALL THE FEEDBACK I HAVE WORKED VERY HARD TO GAIN IS VERY UNFAIR. My customers tell me time and time again that they purchased from me due to the many satisfied customers I sell to. With a rollback each year of feedback things will go south in a hurry. I sell on ebay only, no website, no brick and mortar store. For 6 years I have been a totally dedicated seller. Looks like eBay does not care 1 bit about me. Even after a total of over 380,000.00 in fees I have paid them. I'll have job resumes available soon. Let me know if interested. http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZrickjonessales

Oh come on... do you really think ebay want to "turn its users on themselves?" Do you really think that they want a mall with only a few "power sellers"? Do you think they want to limit the amount of traffic to the site? Do you really think that they want to leave users out in the cold?

if you answered yes to any of these you probably havent run a business. Its a business for crying out loud. They have expenses, overhead...etc. and they cant take the hit from all of the community for fraud.

eBay has already successfully turned users against themselves. Buyer vs. Sellers. We all know that there are many bad of each. But not near as many as the good. Ebay should have taken care of the problem along time ago when both sides were screaming about it. Remember sellers are buyers also and have been scammed just like those who are buyers only. THEY DID NOTHING!! They are now using this as a scapegoat for their agenda. They are pitting the buyers against the sellers and the sellers against the buyers. It really is the end if the magic that once was so unique to only eBay.

Okay, assume that's just what they want to do, drive away all the smaller sellers and transform into this online mall. What is the final purpose of doing this? It's not going to improve the stock price or make them more money. They do realize that for every seller that leaves, buyers go too, right? A lot of sellers are also buyers. Alienate them and that becomes millions of people who'd sooner eat a turd sandwich than even say the word eBay. Except to trash the place.

Just where do they intend to ever replace the revenue or grow the site after that? They won't, or if they do not for a long time. Even large sellers are unhappy with these changes. If it becomes as stated, a place where even the large sellers have no recourse when buyers don't pay, they won't stay either. Look at bargainland - they went to their own site and make far more money for far less hassle.

One thing is for sure, alienating most of your customers is no way to increase market share or increase profits.

Interesting article! I watched Sears Roebuck & Montgomery Ward reinvent themselves; went from the foremost retailers in the country to virtual irrelevance by abandoning their customer base. WalMart was grateful, took over their market.
This will be the story with eBay also, but this Donahoe fellow seems to have his head in the sand~ listening to their actual customers ~ the millions of SMALL seller of unique items~ would be the smart approach for eBay.
There are other auction sites waiting happily for the "flea market" business!

To Chris,

What I can tell you as a seller about not wanting to leave positive feedback before the transaction is complete is this: Although I have never received a negative feedback, I have been threatened over 10 years by a few buyers who claimed something was not what they expected. I immediately offered them a full refund (including shipping both ways) and avoided negative feedback - even though one in particular let me know she was doing me a favor by not leaving me a negative. In every instance, I asked acquaintences in the antiques business to give me their opinions on my listings and the items, and they backed my descriptions and the items wholeheartedly. I relisted each time with confidence and found happy buyers. If I had not been willing to refund shipping both ways and had not given feedback until the transactions were complete, I 'm certain I would have negative feedbacks in my profile. Of course, that won't last much longer - I have every expectation that an unreasonable buyer will get a kick out of leaving me a negative knowing I will have no recourse.

Everyone knows that eBay may be the World's
Largest Fence of Stolen and Forged Merchandise!!.

Operating as a
Purveyor of Stolen Goods
Usually results in a Quick Arrest!!

I think the recent decision to make
the eBay Feedback System "One-Sided" may be Their Downfall.

In order for eBay employees to mediate
the up-coming new Feedback Complaints...
They will have to act as a "Law Enforcement Agency",
"Court Of Law", "Judge" and "Jury"....Are These Acts are Illegal??..

I Think It's time for the FBI and
The US Attorney General to Begin An Investigation!!

Why do eBay Employees operate under False Names
unless They know that the decisions they are making may be against the law??...

eBay may be in deep trouble as the legitimate brick and mortar
Major Retailers like Sears, Target, and Walmart demand that eBay
be held accountable for selling merchandise that has been stolen from Their Stores!!

One Side Feedback May Test The
Laws Of Equity and Equal Protection!!!

Crooked Buyers Worldwide will have a Field Day...
While Sellers continue to Boycott, Strike and Go Elsewhere!!

Unless the one sided
feedback decision is reversed
(or feedback is totally removed) immediately the
decline and fall of eBay may only take a Short Time!!

http://www.medved.net/cgi-bin/cal.exe?ESHMm022008

In My mind eBay stock may soon be worthless!!

This Comment has been made
by an eBay User of almost 10 Years!!

http://www.ioffer.com/info/parody_feepay

Its like a Pawn shop, if you sell a stolen Item, your busted!!. I buy and sell on ocassion, a couple of examples, you can by many items such as tools etc. from harborfreight, northertool and other franchise business's for less or the same as ebay, They are the same products. I have studied ebay for a while and it turning in the nothing more that a retail mall for big business, Maw & pap stores are being run out again by big business. find a Maw & pap hamburger some where, Good luck finding it.
your will soon be regualated on what you can buy or sell if everyone does not stand up for what is right. Strike as long as you can, and while doing so find other means of selling out side of Ebay.
They are turing into nothing more than a Greed minded business for larger fee's and boot you in the butt while doing it.

as a buyer and seller on ebay watching the changes they`re trying to make really sucks most of the people on here are right ebay doesnt really care what you think they have a way that they want to go. They ask for fb and I figure every body voiced their oppinion but to no good ebay really dont care so I hope somebody can help change their minds (good luck)

In response to the comment from woodykid:

Rather than track down the item numbers for those unpaid items, let's do this;

Our eBay user ID is bearsvaluebaby. We have about 540 positive feedbacks on a 100% rating. In getting those 540 positive feedbacks we dealt with 2 or 3 non-paying bidders. After the seller's strike of 2006, we basically shut down operations while my wife experimented with alternative site options.

In the last month, my wife begrudgingly began to list items again on eBay, just to move the stuff. Activity has been fair to good but average selling price has dropped significantly.

However, within that short time span she's already had four non-paying bidders which she's ready to file as NPB so she can get her listing fees back. The problem is that the way things are to change, if she files those NPB declarations she'll get negative feedback almost for certain... and that, without recourse.

So, her best option at this point is to simply ignore the failed sales altogether and re-list the items.

Damn! that means eBay will get paid twice for the benefit of hanging my wife out to dry on unsold items!

How cool is that?

In the mean time, those careless buyers are out there bidding on the merchandise of other sellers without fear of being identified.

I honestly hope they stay away from you, but if they don't, you'll never see 'em coming because soon we will no longer be able to warn you about their sloppy shopping habits.