posted on July 23, 2001 06:30:56 PM new
From today's announcements:
User: [email protected]
Date: 07/23/2001
Time: 12:19:18 PDT
***Changes in Selecting User IDs***
eBay has long encouraged the use of a nickname (rather than an email address) for a User ID. Not only is it shorter and easier to remember, it also helps to prevent unwanted email contact (i.e., spam).
We have recently implemented some features intended to reduce spam both in the form of generally unwanted email contact and solicitation for sales outside of eBay (which are not covered by eBay services). To further align with our objectives of helping to protect member privacy and to help reduce trade outside of eBay, we will not be permitting new members to register an email address or URL as their User ID or to change their ID to an email address or URL. This change will be in effect immediately. Members who already have an email address or URL as their User ID will be allowed to keep it.
There are currently certain characters and symbols not permitted when choosing or changing a User ID. We have summarized below what can and can not be included within a User ID moving forward.
Your User ID may contain letters, numbers and the symbols below:
When selecting a User ID via the registration process or when changing your User ID, you may not choose the following:
**A Web site address (for example, www.xzy.com).
**The "@" sign.
**The letter "e" followed by numbers. This is to prevent confusion, since eBay assigns each user an account number beginning with an "e" followed by numbers (e.g. e12345).
**The "< >" symbols.
**Consecutive underscores "__".
**An ID that begins or ends with an underscore "_", dash "-", period or dot ".".
**The word "eBay".
**Obscenities, profanity or hateful language.
**Spaces or tabs.
Remember that eBay reserves the right to modify, alter or suspend any User ID at any time (at our sole discretion and without notice) for any reason whatsoever. Please note also that members who already have an email address or URL as their User ID will be allowed to keep it.
posted on July 23, 2001 06:37:22 PM newRemember that eBay reserves the right to modify, alter or suspend any User ID at any time (at our sole discretion and without notice) for any reason whatsoever.
I wonder what they mean by "modify" or "alter"? They can just mess around with our ID without notice?
posted on July 23, 2001 06:46:40 PM new
kiara .... It's just legal beagle talk. I've seen someone register with an almost identical ID of a long time user, just to screw with them. eBay nuked the newbies [not that they were new] ID after the long time seller complained. I imagine eBay would also nuke ID's such as f-u.com if someone lodged a complaint.
This latest announcement shouldn't come as any big surprise.
Also, in the VERY near future eBay will also be implementing a Spam monitoring & control mechanism to the online contact forms.
posted on July 23, 2001 07:15:50 PM new
Okay, that makes sense.
I just had visions of someone having an ID like "bigseller" and some other guy who will make tons of money for ebay starts whining that he wants your ID. So you wake up some morning and there is an email from ebay.
Dear Member
This is to inform you that we have changed your user ID from "bigseller" to "littleloser".
posted on July 23, 2001 08:37:46 PM new
Ah, the first shoe drops. I'll be waiting for the second shoe to drop when they ban the existing ones & make everyone move over to nicknames.
posted on July 23, 2001 08:53:16 PM newI'll be waiting for the second shoe to drop when they ban the existing ones & make everyone move over to nicknames.
Not a question of if, but just a question of when.
Personally I think those with email or URL IDs have an advantage. It would be silly to lose that advantage voluntarily.
posted on July 23, 2001 11:09:59 PM new
This is somewhat true, but eBay does allow a means to contact any registered user on their site. They also allow direct email links in the auction description, which most sellers are now using.
If eBay was planning on playing serious hardball with regards to customer contact, I would imagine they would not have direct email links showing next to each user ID on the feedback pages. As long as their "Ask a Seller a Question" email server is always working 100%, I have no problem with the new system.
Then again, I never could stand scum sucking bottom feeders, so perhaps I'm a bit biased?
posted on July 23, 2001 11:56:10 PM new
I use my e-mail address as my Username, but in the last 6 months, the ONLY questions I have recieved on an item have been thru the eBay system....Do people just not look, or is it just easier to click "Ask the Buyer..."
Keith
I assume full responsibility for my actions, except
the ones that are someone else's fault.
posted on July 24, 2001 03:12:17 AM newTo further align with our objectives of helping to protect member privacy and to help reduce trade outside of eBay, we will not be permitting new members to register an email address or URL as their User ID or to change their ID to an email address or URL. This change will be in effect immediately.
So if your company name is mycompanyname.com, then you cannot call yourself that?!!? That is ridiculous...
posted on July 24, 2001 03:47:18 AM newDo people just not look, or is it just easier to click "Ask the Buyer..."
It is much easier to use the "ask the buyer" link. To use a direct email, you have to enter a subject, and type the item info into a blank email. Using the ebay system all you have to type is your actual question as all the info is already there.
I have my direct email address in my listings but no one ever uses it. Which is fine with me. I used to get the emailed questions with a subject of "question" and questions like "how much is shipping" without any reference to the item.
Personally, I think the ask seller a question format is one of the better changes eBay has made in the past year.
Gerald
"Oh but it's so hard to live by the rules/I never could and still never do."
posted on July 24, 2001 08:35:10 AM new
"Also, in the VERY near future eBay will also be implementing a Spam monitoring & control mechanism to the online contact forms."
What does that mean in simple English?
Bill
[ edited by cdnbooks on Jul 24, 2001 08:35 AM ]
posted on July 24, 2001 09:06:19 AM new
Keith, I don't know if you've ever tested this, but if your user name is the only place you have your email in your ad, when a user clicks on it, they go to the ask seller a question form.
I have a link in my ad, and I get about 50% from that and 50% in the ask seller a question.
My guess to the "controls" would be searching emails sent through ask seller a question for things like "end auction early," "offer," "eBay's becoming a fascist entity," etc.
[ edited by sadie999 on Jul 24, 2001 09:08 AM ]
posted on July 24, 2001 10:05:13 AM new
Ebay is doing this to reduce the sellers ability to sell additional items to the buyer. This is Ebay's further desire to collect fees from every purchase made.
Ebay recently purchased half.com and that business model is the buyer/seller is NEVER given an email address or way to contact the other party except the seller is given the shipping address, no telephone number, no email address. Ebay/Half collects 15% fee. If there is a problem, tough, you cannot contact the other party. That's why I quit selling on Half.
Ebay used to tout itself as a community, it should now tout itself as just another business out to make $$$ and leave no room for it's base (sellers) as it furthers marches on to continue to find ways to squeeze every nickel out of the sellers.
Can someone help me down from my soapbox... I've been wounded and crippled by ebay's over-restrictive policies.
posted on July 24, 2001 12:06:30 PM new
90% of the so called SPAM comes from buyers asking sellers if they have "such and such". I get asked for non ebay items all the time thru ebay's mail system (ask seller a question). If they start "reading the mail", or even searching it for certain text strings (easy to do.) there will be a lot of buyers in trouble. Not because sellers turned them in, but because they violate eBays policies, and are silly enough to use eBays own mail system to do it.
This is about off site sales, not spam.
Who Need's a stink'n Sig. File?
posted on July 24, 2001 12:44:14 PM new
Bill & Microbes
No, eBay will not be "reading the mail".
What has been designed [and not yet released] is a functionality [their word, not mine] that allows recipients of eBay forwarded messages to easily report Spam complaints to eBay, via the online form itself.
The system will track the complaints and provide senders with feedback and, in cases of system abuse, prevent the sender from using the system. The message will also provide members with information on the Spam policy.
It actually appears to be designed rather well, and it also appears there will be a number of warnings issued before anyone is locked out from the eBay forwarded messages system.
According to my inside sources, Spam concerns are one of the major complaints received by Customer Support. That department receives numerous Spam complaints per day. In addition, a few hundred "unregister me" requests per month are received as a result of Spam.
These complaints are related to both member to memeber email, and solicitations from 3rd parties. The latter are being attributed to email harvesting activities. To date [according to eBay] 200 harvesters have been identified and the harvest rate is 1 million addresses per day.
AND, of course it has to do with OFFLINE Transactions. [big surprise huh?]
I do understand eBay's concern over offline transactions because:
1. It's a huge revenue loss
2. When something goes wrong with the sale, the first place the pizzed off buyer runs to is .... momma eBay.
3. It contributes to buyers being pulled from similar listed items, so fellow sellers lose as well. [have I mentioned that I hate scum sucking bottom feeders?]
posted on July 24, 2001 01:36:49 PM newThese complaints are related to both member to memeber email, and solicitations from 3rd parties. The latter are being attributed to email harvesting activities. To date [according to eBay] 200 harvesters have been identified and the harvest rate is 1 million addresses per day.
any idea how email addresses are being harvested? one would have to have an ebay id, type in id and password, and then only be able to get one address per listing. worth the time of a harvester? or perhaps there's some other way i'm not familiar with.
i was concerned when ebay first started the 'ask seller a question' method, but have to say it is very handy having all the info in the email. if they go to the half.com method where there's *no* direct contact between seller and buyer, i'll lose interest - as both buyer and seller.
posted on July 24, 2001 02:04:04 PM new
There is documented proof that a soon to be online auction site did indeed hire someone to harvest emails from ebay. It probably occured just before ebay changed their pages around.
So don't be surprised if you get an email about a big green monster in your mailbox soon.
posted on July 24, 2001 03:30:15 PM new
kiawok: I came across this thread and was distressed to see your post regarding the automated spam counter.
While it's true that such a 'feature' was designed at eBay a while back (about the time they rolled out the eBay eMail forwarding tool), the SPAM counter feature was not developed further (I asked specifically about this TODAY after seeing it mentioned in this thread) and AT THIS TIME, there are NO PLANS to roll it out.
So if it's not even on the road map internally at this time... it won't be rolling anywhere "soon".
This came to me via a reliable source at eBay... and I believe it.
posted on July 24, 2001 03:45:35 PM new
Hi Dottie,
I'm not sure why you would be distressed to read my comments?
IMHO I'm distressed to hear that eBay has decided against implementing the Spam reporting feature.
I guess they really don't give a rat's azz about Spam, and this really is just about the loss in revenue? What a shock!
