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TAGnotes Fri 20 Apr 2001 Vol 3 Number 52 Issue 313

The Auction Guild Notes for Fri 20 Apr 2001
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$$$$$ PLEASE NOTE $$$$$
eBay.ca is having a Free Listing Day on Sunday, 22 April 2001. All
items that are listed on ebaY.ca in Canadian Dollars between
12:00:01AM ET and 11:59:59PM ET on 22April will be free to list.
Anyone in any country can list for free on ebaY Canada, as long as
you are willing to take Canadian dollars and ship (at a minimum)to
Canada. http://pages.ca.ebay.com/promos/freelist.html
Currency conversion chart is at
http://finance.yahoo.com/m5?a=1&s=USD&t=CAD

On 19 Apr at 18:47:56 PT users reported receiving error messages,
when trying to access auctions and search. At 19:00, clicking on a
completed auction yielded "The item you requested is invalid or no
longer in our database. Please check the number and try again. If
this message persists, the item has expired and is no longer available"
Problems with seller search, My ebaY and completed items persisted until
19:07:28 PT. At 19:17:31 PT ebaY posted that seller search and My ebaY
were intermittently down from approx 18:20 to 19:00 PT. ebaY took the
site down for extended maintenance at approx. 22:58:27 PT.

Since in TAGs opinion ebaY has made My ebaY a critical feature
for buyers to access saved favorite sellers and auctions, we recommend
that any seller who feels their auctions were negatively impacted by the
outages, request refunds from ebaY for all listing, special feature and
final value fees. For links and information on requesting ebaY refunds
go to
http://www.auctionguild.com/generic.html?pid=33

On 20 Apr ebaY came back from its planned extended maintenance
at approx 03:39:51. Users immediately reported inability to bid on
items, and network errors. At 05:25:57 PT ebaY posted that ebaY
Motors listings were down after the ebaY maintenance, which ended
at 0400. ebaY reported them back up at 06:59:42 PT, after an outage
of nearly three hours. Users continued to report Motors listings down
as of 07:04:37 PT.

TAG recommends all sellers who had listings end during the
unscheduled outage, request all listing, special feature and final value
fees be refunded. For links and information on requesting ebaY refunds
go to http://www.auctionguild.com/generic.html?pid=33

Pink Quote of the Day, from the 1st Quarter Financial Statement ebaY
said, " eBay added over 7.2 million users during the quarter to end Q1
with 29.7 million registered users." and " Quarterly site availability
exceeded 99%."   TAG wonders what else ebaY is prevaricating about, as
it so readily does about these two important facts. ebaY MAY have 29.7
mil registered ID's on ebaY world wide, but that is not the same as 29.7
mil unique USERS. Their up time is much closer to 90%, and 99% is the
industry STANDARD (average). Even if you counted nothing but the ebaY
scheduled maintenance, it takes their up time down below 97%. Add in
all their constant glitches outages and malfunctions, and you can
rapidly see how quickly that number deteriorates. If ebaY is using
creative math to come up with these two numbers, irregardless of truth
or ethics, we wonder what other areas they use creative math in.

ebaY Motors search, no longer includes the automotive items on the
main ebaY site. If you search from ebaY Motors you only get items
on ebaY Motors. If you search from the main ebaY site, you will also
bring up all the items on ebaY Motors, but not vice versa. TAG finds
this a very hypocritical move on ebaYs part since one of their major
justifications for their relationship with AutoTrader and the creation
of ebaY Motors, was to attract more people to the main ebaY site.   They
have now severed the link that made it a symbiotic relationship, and
ebaY Motors is now a parasite on the main site.

ebaY picture services has some problems with their new picture pack.
The gallery feature is not working for listings with the picture pack
selected.   To fix the problem go to
http://cgi3.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?DisplayGalleryImagePage
A message that should appear to alert picture pack users when none of
their pictures qualify for the supersize feature is not working.
Pictures must be at least 440wx330h in order to qualify for the
supersize feature. To see if any of your pictures qualify for supersize
go to the "Sell Your Item" form page after you have added your photos.
Pictures eligible for supersize will say "Supersize Picture" underneath
them, while those not eligible will say
"Standard Picture." By using the back button on your browser, you have
the option of either adding a new picture that is at least 440w x 330h
or adding the same picture and selecting a different layout option.

ebaY is starting an Artisan Showcase page, sponsored by
OneMade.com. This is still in the early stages of development.
http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/onemade.com_for_sellers
To view the showcase go to
http://pages.ebay.com/artisanshowcase/index.html
Qualifying requirements are not fully developed, but you will need
to carry at least 25 different items (average) on a weekly basis and
have a retail value (average) greater than $85.00 to qualify. For
information on the OneMade site go to
http://www.imakenews.com/onemade/e_article000017849.cfm
TAG has heard from users that OneMade is incompatible with
WebTV for either buying or selling, but that should not effect
items listed on ebaY, but might prevent WebTV users from
participating as sellers.

WebTV users are having problems using Billpoint. In response
to a query to Billpoint about the malfunction, TAG received a quick
response with a work around for WebTV users to try. Billpoint is
aware of the problem and say they are "working on a resolution".
To remit payment for a Billpoint invoice on Web TV,
1. Log in to pay for the Billpoint invoice.
2. Tab down to the Place Order Button.
3. SIMULTANEOUSLY hit the TAB and RETURN keys on your keyboard.

*** REMINDER ***
The default setting on the ebaY listing form for ESCROW is now
ON. If you do not want to offer escrow service (ebaYs tradenable)
you must remember to set escrow to OFF when you list an auction.

ebaY University is in Newport Beach, CA 21-22 Apr, Charlotte, NC
28-29 Apr, Salt Lake City, UT 5-6 May, Minneapolis, MN 19-20 May
Cincinnati, OH 2-3 June, San Diego, CA 9-10 June and New Orleans,
LA 23-24 June. To register go to http://pages.ebay.com/university/

On 19 Apr ebaY posted a preview to their Jewelry, Gemstones, &
Watches new subcategorization proposal. ebaY is requesting user
input on the proposed new structure for the category.
-Aggregate all Fine Jewelry categories and all Costume Jewelry
categories under two distinct headings for easier location of items
-Aggregate all Watches categories and listings under one heading
-Bring Vintage Costume Jewelry Categories up one level and create
a new subcategory for Antique Costume Jewelry
-Subcategorize Contemporary Costume Body Jewelry by item type
-Subcategorize Vintage Rhinestone Jewelry by item type
-Subcategorize Fine Gemstone Jewelry by gem type
-Subcategorize Fine Diamond Rings by stone shape
-Subcategorize Vintage Designer, Signed Costume Jewelry by designer
name;
-Subcategorize Fine Gold and Silver Necklaces by chain length
-Subcategorize Fine Antique Jewelry by era
The proposal can be viewed at
http://pages.ebay.com/help/basics/cat_jewelry.html
Send comments and suggestions to jewe-@ebay.com by 1 May.

There is also an advertisement on the MAB for IGI. ebaY users
get 5% off IGI’s diamond, gemstone, and jewelry grading services.
http://www.e-igi.com/ebay/

ebaY is also proposing to change the consumer electronics category.
**"Car Audio" becomes "Car Audio & Electronics" to include items
such as Car Alarms, Radar Detectors, and Video & Navigation.
**"Audio" becomes "Home Audio" to differentiate it from "Car Audio
and Electronics". Speakers are broken out by their home theater
function.
**"Gadgets & Other Electronics" is new and will include items such
as GPS devices, Laser Pointers, Metal Detectors, and Voice Recorders.
**"Portable Audio & Video" is new and has items such as Portable
CD, DVD, MiniDisc, and MP3 Players.
**"Telephone", "Wireless Phones", and "Radio Equipment" combine into
"Phones/Communication Devices" and new breakouts are added.
**ebaY is renaming several categories adding new breakouts.
To see the proposal go to
http://pages.ebay.com/preview/chg-electronics.html
Send comments or suggestions to electr-@ebay.com by 1 May.

There is an advertisement for Half.Com on the MAB detailing ebaY's
expansion of Half.Com into other categories. ebaY has added product
categories in four main areas: computers, electronics, sporting goods
and trading cards. For more info go to
http://www.half.com/announcement/index.cfm
TAG has heard from several WebTV users that they no longer have
access to their Half.Com accounts. Some of the latest plus versions
can get in, but the early box top WebTVs cannot.
EDITORIAL COMMENT
TAG finds it of interests that ebaY signs a major agreement with
Microsoft, owner of WebTV, and within a few months, all the major
changes ebaY makes to their sites are no longer compatible with
the older Web TV systems. This would force anyone who currently
uses ebaY or Half.Com on an older system, to purchase a new system.
Is this sudden change coincidence or collusion?

ebaY posted their first quarter earnings report on 19 April. Meg
posted a short message on the MAB about it with a link to the
SEC filings. For more information go to
http://www.shareholder.com/ebay/releases-earnings.cfm
For all ebaY stock info, filings etc go to
http://www.shareholder.com/ebay/stock.cfm

Name.................    Shares Owned ....... Percent of company
Pierre M. Omidyar....... 69,198,342 ..........25.7%
Jeffrey S. Skol ....... 39,868,830...........14.8
Janus Capital Corp ..... 14,549,255 ...........5.4
Margaret C. Whitman .... 11,251,329 .......... 4.2
Maynard G. Webb, Jr. ....   427,500 ........... *
Jeffrey D. Jordan ......... 159,062 .......... *
Matthew J. Bannick.......... 94,430 ........... *
Michael R. Jacobson....... 716,924 .............*
Philippe Bourguignon....... 71,250 ............*
Scott D. Cook .......... 1,006,666 ............ *
Robert C. Kagle ........ 2,213,943 .............*
Dawn G. Lepore ............ 71,250 .............*
Howard D. Schultz ........ 520,913 ............*
All directors and executive officers as a group of 16 owns
129,412,277 shares or 47.4% of the company.     
* = Less than one percent.

For sellers who feel they have not had their refunds or other situations
dealt with to your satisfaction, you can file reports
with The Attorney General of California and also in your home state
http://caag.state.ca.us/piu/mailform.htm
The Better Business Bureau
http://www.bbbonline.com
The Federal Trade Commission
http://www.ftc.gov
The Office of Consumer Affair, US Department of Commerce
send email to - Caff-@doc.gov
The FBI's Internet Fraud Units
http://www.nipc.gov/contact.htm#arrow,
National Fraud Information Center
http://www.fraud.org
eComplaints http://www.ecomplaints.com/

TAG strongly recommends ALL users read the new User and
Privacy Policy Agreements (UA/PP).   Effective 15 May. Links
can be found at the bottom of nearly every ebaY page and on the
site map under community. For a summary of the revisions to the
UA and Privacy Policy, go to:
User Agreement: http://pages.ebay.com/help\basics\uarevision1-faq.html
Privacy Policy: http://pages.ebay.com/help/basics/pprevision1-faq.html
To view the entire revised User Agreement, go to:
http://pages.ebay.com/help/community/png-user.html
To view the enter revised Privacy Policy, go to:
http://pages.ebay.com/help/community/png-priv.html
We have heard from many WebTV users that they can not view
the user agreement. We contacted ebaY about this but have still
not heard from them about it.

Announcement Board Marketing - (MAB)
http://www2.ebay.com/aw/marketing.shtml
Announcement Board Status (SAB)
http://www2.ebay.com/aw/announce.shtml

ebaY Contact Information, analog mail and email addresses and
phone numbers, regular and toll free, refund info and insider
trading info go to http://www.auctionguild.com/generic.html?pid=17
* * * * *
Amazon Auctions, zShops and Marketplace

Amazon Outage Policy -
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/537786//102-
8796943-5722526

Amazon User chat board
http://amazon.remarq.com/amazon/threads.asp?g=discuss%2
Eamazon%2Eseller%2Econnection&nav=LAST

Amazon live telephone customer service 16 hours a day Toll-free
in U.S. and Canada: (800)201-7575
http://auctions.amazon.com
* * * * *
Yahoo now has hired another person to head their Auction Section.
This is the third person in as many years. Norman Hullinger, is the
new General Manager.   Quoted from the Yahoo newsletter, "My
name is Norman Hullinger, and I'm very excited to serve as the new
head of Yahoo! Auctions! I look forward to working with the talented
staff here at Yahoo! Auctions to even further improve our product
and provide you with the best auction venue on the Internet. Please
feel free to touch base with questions or comments about our auction
services." Send email to auctions--@yahoo-inc.com

The 13 April decision to remove all adult-related products in Shopping,
Classifieds, and Auctions has had some strange implementation on the
auction side. Instead of ending, it is being phased out due to the auto
relist feature on auctions.   They are not accepting new submissions to
adult categories, but any auction item that was submitted on or before
12:00pm ET on April 13, 2001, will remain listed until the auction
closes. Auctions submitted before the deadline with the "auto-resubmit"
feature enabled will have their "resubmit" selection honored. Yahoo is
monitoring all auction areas to remove adult items that have been
submitted improperly to non-adult areas.

Yahoo announcement board
http://auctions.yahoo.com/phtml/auc/us/promo/announcements.html

Yahoo site map.
http://auctions.yahoo.com/phtml/auc/us/promo/sitemap.html
http://auctions.yahoo.com/

Yahoo Contact Information
http://www.auctionguild.com/generic.html?pid=38
Yahoo PayDirect phone number
1-877-521-1458

http://list.auctions.yahoo.com/
* * * * *
Andale/Honesty Starting 1 May 2001 Honesty will no longer offer free
image hosting. Fees vary with 3 MB costing $3.00/month - each
additional MB 1.75/month. Full pricing chart can be found at
http://www.honesty.com/info/imagehosting.html
* * * * *
AuctionWatch (AW) It appears that those using AW for their auction
management software, who let AW put in the PayPal link for them, was
inadvertently and unknowingly allowing AW to get the credit for any
PayPal referral fees garnered through their auction links. AW claims
this crediting to AW was an error and that they are working with PayPal
to correct it. There is a thread on AW about this problem
http://www.auctionwatch.com/mesg/read.html?num=15&thread=48861
* * * * *
Online Auction Users Association
Interested in volunteering and serving the Online Auction Community?
Check out http://www.auctionusers.org/volunteerop.shtml
http://www.auctionusers.org
* * * * *
Online Auction & Trading Site Co-op
Interested in an OAT Site Co-op?
Interested in getting involved?
Information on co-ops -
http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/pub/cir55/cir55rpt.htm
http://www.wisc.edu/uwcc/

Ideas for co-ops continue to develop
Go to http://www.auctionpie.com
They host live chats every Sunday night at 8:00PM EST

Vintage Items Co-Op info can be found at
http://www.ali-baba.org./ and
http://pages.zdnet.com/juststuff/vintmarket/
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***PLEASE NOTE: Many long links we post in TAGnotes must be
copy/pasted into your browsers URL/Address box in pieces, with no
extra spaces, to get them to work due to HTML limitations****
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If you would like an Auction House or Service Provider added to
this list, please email us at ta-@theauctionguild.com
Have any information for us? email us at ta-@theauctionguild.com
TAG Subscribers have often contributed to information reported on in
TAGnotes. Visit their auctions.
         TAGassist Contributors -
http://www.drexelantiques.com

http://cgi6.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?MfcISAPICommand=
ViewListedItems&ro-@ix.netcom.com&since=-
1&sort=2

http://cgi6.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?MfcISAPICommand=
ViewListedItems&u-@aol.com+&include=0&since
=-1&sort=3&rows=200

http://www.angelfire.com/extreme2/backintimetreasures/

http://www.dandelionfarms.com

http://cgi6.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?MfcISAPICommand=
ViewListedItems&userid=bllamb&include=0&since=-1&sort=3&rows=200
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