eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

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AuctionBytes Blog
News and insight focusing on
ecommerce and the online auction industry
by Ina Steiner, Editor of AuctionBytes.com

February 11, 2008

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

By: Ina Steiner

Mon Feb 11 2008 15:26:34

eBay lowered insertion fees on eBay.com in the Media category, now it will cost less to list a book or DVD than other items. (See AuctionBytes Newsflash article, "eBay Lowers Insertion Fees for Media Category.") What do you think?

Comments (56) | Permalink

Readers Comments

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Carol

Mon Feb 11 15:44:11 2008

I understood that one of eBay's new policies was that every auction had to start at $1.00. There would be no more under $1.00 opening bids. How can they lower fees for any auction that begins under a dollar if no auction can begin at under $1.00?

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Randy Smythe

Mon Feb 11 16:06:15 2008

Ina, I nearly fell out of my chair when I read that announcement. This something that has been needed since 2004. and it is a sign that they are breaking down a lot of the walls that previous management put up.

First the "Level playing field" and then Feedback and now category pricing.
It is a signal that everything is on the table.

Most change is not pleasant but this one did bring a smile to my face but it is just a first step in fine-tuneing each vertical market/category for the benefit of both buyer and seller.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Mark

Mon Feb 11 17:07:23 2008

Ebay is making a last ditch effort to stop the boycott!

It's not going to work, 20 to 30 thousand sellers have signed on to boycott in the US alone.

Can't wait to see the numbers from the UK, and other areas.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Mark

Mon Feb 11 17:11:27 2008

I encourage all those Ebay members who are outraged by what is going on to join this group-

http://www.concerneduser.proboards105.com

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Laura

Mon Feb 11 17:29:51 2008

Ummmm.....Do you really think it's eBay way of helping the sellers?

I interpreted it as a strategic move to be more competitive against Amazon. Period. It just has the side effect of helping media sellers. But I highly doubt that the sellers’ best interest were in mind when making this change.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: bill

Mon Feb 11 17:45:55 2008

I sell vinyl records so that is a bit of good news. But I am still not going to list till I see what's gonna happen with this one sided feedback fiasco. Time will tell......

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Randy Smythe

Mon Feb 11 18:25:51 2008

Laura, I talk to eBay farely regularly and this move was specifically made by the new management team because they saw a need.

New management is goig to have to live with the way past mangers ran the business. It may take time for them to make their mark. This move is a good sign. I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Matt

Mon Feb 11 18:43:23 2008

Well if this is a sign of what the 'new' management has planned, Ebay is in serious trouble. Any idiot who would take away a seller's right to leave a negative for a buyer who doesn't pay, deserves to sink like the titanic!

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Jeff

Mon Feb 11 18:49:25 2008

''Apparently it had already planned to make changes''

Yea, right...

Talk about throwing sellers a bone to try to reduce the ''noise''.

While I appreciate any reduction of fees, This is a sign of trouble folks. Flip-flop. ''Oops, maybe we pissed them off this time a little too much.''

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: pajamadeen

Mon Feb 11 18:56:32 2008

This is hiliarious! Raise the fees one week (when we all thought it was just about eBay's last chance to gain credibility with sellers by lowering fees) and take away negative fb so that buyers can bully us - and then turn around a week or so later and reduce fees in some categories. "Planned?" I think not. Hopefully, eBay is beginning to get the message that most sellers are not just angry with eBay's 'tude, "customer service," nickel-and-diming us to death, etc. - We're beyond angry. We've grown weary of the place and have left. Time for some humble pie out there in California.

And why on earth lower fees in some categories only?

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: hayduke

Mon Feb 11 19:13:17 2008

eBay has no credibility anymore. After announcing the one-sided feedback disaster as ''an improvement'', then told the bald faced lie that ''sellers wanted this'', whatever they say must be viewed as dubious at best.

They are shuffling the deck chairs on the Titanic.

No small seller can make it with the new rules. eBay now has a vested interest in having buyers leave bad feedback for sellers with their sneaky new bad-feedback rate hikes, freezing of Paypal accounts for 21 days, etc.

This is not a rate hike. It's a complete change in what eBay even IS.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Don Davis

Mon Feb 11 19:38:27 2008

Well the word is getting out about the negative eBay changes. The national news and the local news here in Cleveland, Ohio is talking about it as well.
I think its a little to late for eBay to get things back on track.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Mark

Mon Feb 11 20:31:25 2008

Type 'Seller's boycott' into a google search, see what comes up.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: oh no

Mon Feb 11 20:33:26 2008

hey don davis, i'm in cleveland too. where did you see ebay news locally? i'd like to check it out. please post. thanks

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: uncle griff

Mon Feb 11 20:40:13 2008

don't you people understand. we need more profits. money money money!

i love to roll around in your cash!
ps listen to my radio show

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Kevin Harmon

Mon Feb 11 20:50:55 2008

Ina, this is a positive change for 3 reasons:

1) I'm a media seller! This is the first good news I've received in quite a while

2) eBay has finally acted on the idea that not all categories are created equal - this opens the door for lots of changes

3) eBay execs listened to us, huddled up, and made a quick change - another unprescedented move.

It's a good thing, people.

My full post about this is here:

http://startupnation.com/blog/category.asp?CATEGORY_ID=16

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Steve Grossberg

Mon Feb 11 20:51:16 2008

Randy Smythe

As a media seller (1busyman) and someone involved in assisting ebay with this new fee structure for ebay I am extremely happy. The new fee structure announced is almost identical to the one I proposed to the executive team during e-comm last Tuesday.

The more monumental thing that happened here was ebay’s swift and decisive action to make this change come about.

Last Tuesday night the evening of the fee change announcement I was approached by ebay executive management. They admitted to me that the media category was the only category as a whole to see a increase in fees and take rates with the proposed fee changes, before this new announcement of course. So we discussed the need to make changes and I proposed my solution.

The next morning I was approached again and was told ebay staff was crunching numbers all night and the solution I offered would work for them and also offered 2 alternatives, with both ebay executive management and I liking my proposal the best.

There are numerous other concerns I have with the recent changes, feedback being the biggest issue. I am afraid the new feedback changes will actually create more distrust in the market place and good sellers will soon be seeing 89-90 and bad sellers as low as 65%

Everything is work in progress and this is a huge first step though . Understand ebay/paypal take rate in media as a whole from my estimates was averaging around 19% in media if this latest move was not done. This was up from around 17%.

Also the take rate I am quoting above includes take rate with s+h and PayPal fees included. Without s+h take rate was over 25%. Not very completive when you look at ebay vs amazon who was cleaning their clock in media.

This will bring the take rate down to around 15.5% for the category by my estimates, and that is 15.5% including s+h and inclusive of paypal fees, so very much in line with amazon.

Ebay could not afford to lose more media to amazon and continue a 2 year trend. Best buy, Wal-Mart and others use media as a loss leader to get people engaged in there stores. They sell new release DVD’s at or below cost every Tuesday to get people in and engaged. Amazon sells hot new release books at or below cost to get people engaged. Inasmuch as ebay does not sell any products they cannot do this but they have levers to get folks to offer competitive pricing and list more.

So I ask non media sellers the questions, do you think your ebay sales and ASP’s would fare better or worse if no media was being sold on ebay?

Steve

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Mark

Mon Feb 11 20:59:09 2008

Good job rocket sceintist. If you helped Ebay with this new fee and feedback system, you just helped sink the titanic.

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Laura

Mon Feb 11 21:25:13 2008

Steve
Glad 4 you.
Now try to get them to work on the policy you were fired up about in the podcast. The fact that they make 100 million dollars off their policy of not refunding insertion fees to sellers when there is a non payers. That not only gives them a (by your calculation) 100 million dollars a year, but also makes it appear that they have a 15% better sell thru rate then they actually do.

answer to question...I feel that it doesn't effect my sales if media is offered or not. So I would say neither better or worse off.

The only way it could effect me is if I start listing my collectibles under media. Do my collectables help your media? If ANY traffic is good, then let's all get a fee reduction too!

eBay Introduces Category-Based Fees in Media

by: Randy Smythe

Mon Feb 11 22:29:59 2008

Steve,

It does appear this group, meaning Rajiv, Lorrie and Stephanie are receptive. That is a good thing.

Unfortunately, as you see by the comments here emotion rules the day.

Keep up the good work at IMA

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