Results 11 to 20 of 28
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02-17-2008, 09:25 PM #11
As soon as Ebay announced the new fee structure I started the boycott !!! They increase fees and at the same time tell me my items may never even be seen because my dsr's are slightly lesss than someone else's ?? TOTAL BS !!!!!!!
I agree, the boycott may not work, but how will we know unless people give it a shot. And just like how ebay grew what it is today a boycott could take on a life of it's own. Let's say listing drop from the typical 13 million down to say 9 million ? and ebay doesn't respond ? It could spur people to continue and more to join. Then listings go from 9 million to 7 ? Critical mass could quickly be achieved and bring ebay to it's knees.
If you've ever wondered why monopolies are illegal all you have to do is look at the way ebay is run. The cost of computer hardware has steadily declined for the past decade, as have software and bandwidth, but ebay's percentage they take has continually increased (PERCENTAGE is much different thing than a fixed price like insertion fees). Why ? Because they have committees on top of committees, boards on top of boards, and teams upon teams upon teams. Why ? Because they can. If there was two or maybe even one viable alternative to ebay there's no way in hell they would ever consider raising the first tier final value fees by 66%. If there was any kind of competition they would more than likely be streamlining their operation and lowering fees, NOT increasing them.
The ultimate insult started when they radically changed their user agreement so they could start sharing your information with other companies and put banner ads anywhere and everywhere. The insult was they said "if you don't like it don't sign the agreememnt".
This newest batch of changes they're telling people "we appreciate your business but if you don't like the changes you are free to sell elsewhere". That may not be an exact quote but they have said as much and that bluntly in emails to many many people. And, yes, I know that's the old axiom, "if you don't like it you're free to leave", but have you ever heard of company actually coming out and saying that to their customers ? Of course not ! I'd like to see McD's do a price hike like that and then say "go eat somewhere else if you don't like it". LOL, they'd be out of business in a week.
Last fall, Thanks to Ebay's continual and constantly telling my potential customers that I'm less than safe if I don't accept paypal, I started accepting paypal. I saw no increase in sale prices but my costs to sell were increased by basically 50%. NOW, thanks to the "adjustment" to final value fees and giving me "free" gallery my total ebay fees will again increase by approximately 50% (paypal not included).
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02-18-2008, 12:55 AM #12
hilarious.
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02-18-2008, 01:59 AM #13
Need to learn to keep my big mouth shut, lol.
I want to here the take of an economy major (if any are on the boards). Is there a plausible chance that, if this were to carry on, the digital economy could take a hit?
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02-18-2008, 03:02 AM #14
"economy major" ? WHY ?
Whatever happens to ebay in the short term really makes no difference. "Economic diversity" is king ! Just like in every other venue, there's a constant rise and fall of giants. At the moment ebay looks like an undefeatable giant (monopoly), but so did the dinosaurs, the Roman empire, France, Britain, the USA, microsoft, and on and on infinitum.
digital economy ? Has nothing to do with ebay.
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02-18-2008, 03:11 AM #15
Well... If you do any sort of dealings on this site, you'll notice that ebay prices dominate trades/sales. In addition, as stated, many people make their livings from selling, buying, and selling again.
Mike, I direct the question to you. Assuming the boycott has the numbers, can those who do not deal directly with or on ebay feel a rippled effect?
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02-18-2008, 05:59 AM #16
haha i really got a kick out of mintman2 comparing ebay to the dinosaours and roman empire...
i beleive if it has any effect in ebays profit they would atleast listen to the complaints and maybe make small changes. i could see them changing the feedback system back to the way it was.
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02-18-2008, 07:53 AM #17
I think that the impact will be that Ebay will farm out customer service to India and Pakistan instead of using the stateside teenage illegal aliens they chain in the basement.
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02-21-2008, 10:38 AM #18
I don't think a boycott affects them much. I did some searching and (if I read it correctly) eBay is knocking down somewhere between $1.7 and $2.1 million in total revenue every 3 months which puts them in the area of $7-8.5 million per year. Operation costs run around $450-600k per quarter making their gross profits between $5 and $6.5 mill per year.
In order for a boycott to have any affect it will have to cost them several hundred thousand over a period of months and as we all know, boycotts rarely last more than a few days.
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02-21-2008, 11:10 AM #19
I've never liked this "cheap" way of ebay.
They lower the listing fee and make it look nice but in return, raising the final value fee which hurts the sellers more.
Also, if I understood the new rule correctly, the sellers can leave a negative feedback if a dispute is created?
And about ebay monopoly, didn't google said they will create an auction site soon?
Maybe I just heard it wrong somewhere.
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02-21-2008, 12:36 PM #20
Although I'm not an economy major I have watched things carefully in my 4 months off. Even if the boycott is a complete success it will not hurt anybody $$ wise other then Ebay. Sure we may see the whole "Ebay value" go away, but something will be there to replace it, just like other sellers who want to go away from ebay. They can't afford not to sell and therefore will find a new auction site to sell on. The way gas prices are going these days people would rather buy stuff online then make a drive to purchase the item/s that are not perishable.
The fact that we have a response out of Ebay though says SOMETHING. It is just a matter of what that something is.
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Originally Posted by Yanksfan396 
