Begin forwarded message: From: "fm1234" Date: March 25, 2008 6:37:45 PM GMT-04:00 To: gold-silver-crypto@rayservers.com Subject: [gsc] eBay Sick of Whole "Internet" Thing More hilarity from the leaders in online commerce: eBay has banned the sale of digital goods in auction format. This includes _anything_ that can be digitally delivered, from ebooks to audio to websites and domains to transcriptions etc. "It's back to the post office for you, motherfuckers! Welcome to Web 3.0 -- It's like Web 2.0, with Stamps!" Not entirely a ban: you can list them in the classified section, which is a fixed $10 for a fixed 30 days at a fixed price (ie. utterly without value to anyone for any reason.) Some points from John Thornhill, probably the highest volume seller of digital books on eBay: http://planetsmsblog.com/digital-items-banned-on-ebay/ Like other powersellers who were unfazed by the last round of eBay/PP changes, John sees no point to worrying about the changes. But that's because every move eBay has made in the last few months have evidenced a desire to circle the wagons around its shrinking auction revenue*, by raising the barrier to entry for new and/or small participants. Wonder how long they can sustain such practices? I also wonder if this is a precursor to PayPal banning payments for digital goods and services. PP has followed most of the major eBay changes with some new policy related to the eB change. It would be interesting to see if PP has decided they just don't want to be involved with this new fangled "digital commerce" nonsense all the young punks are going on about. Frank /*shrinking as a % of profits, according to eBay's financials. I think the actual net number is still up and up and up, but that eBay obviously is no longer working on pushing the auction thing as its business model. They just can't cut it off any more than eg. Ford Motor Company could quit making cars, no matter how much they lose on cars relative to their other divisions. -- "When ignorance reigns in society and disorder in the minds of men, laws are multplied, legislation is expected to do everything, and each fresh law being a fresh miscalculation, men are continually led to demand from it what can proceed only from themselves, from their own education and their own morality." --Dalloy