You might have read or seen media articles about false claims from JK Rowling representatives. We wish our members to know that eBay India strongly refutes the false claims of JK Rowling representatives in the media about a purported injunction by the Delhi High Court against eBay India (formerly Baazee.com).

In fact, in November 2004, the Delhi High Court DENIED Rowling’s request for an injunction against eBay and found that eBay had fulfilled all of its legal obligations by removing all the offending listings of Harry Potter e-books by 4 Baazee.com sellers. The new development in January 2007 is that the Delhi High Court affirmed the 2004 injunction against the 4 offending sellers who had been selling ebooks. This has no impact on eBay itself or other eBay sellers.

We will like to re-iterate that eBay is committed to protecting legal rights of Right Owners and works closely with them under the VeRo program. We will also encourage our members to be aware about the Downloadable Media Policy and Copyright Policy. For any questions or clarifications, please feel free to use our Customer Support Resource.

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Hi,

I just wanted to remind you about the Open House Discussion on Wednesday, February 28th, 2007 at 4:00 PM. Please join me for an Open House discussion on Trust & Safety and Seller Development & Growth on eBay.

You can submit your question now by clicking on this Thread

Hope to see you tomorrow!

Sincerely,

Sharat Digumarti
Senior Manager
Marketplace Health Team

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	***Original: Open House Discussion on 'Seller Growth' and 'Trust and Safety' with Sharat Digumarti on 28th Feb (4-5 PM)***
	20 February, 2007 | 12:58 PM IST Hi, I am Sharat Digumarti and I have recently taken charge of a very challenging role as Senior Manager - Marketplace Health for eBay India. Under this role, my team and I are responsible for enhancing both Trust and Safety and Seller Development and Growth. Trust and Safety I will like to take this opportunity to have a look at the various TnS initiatives in the year gone by. Last year, we undertook various initiatives based on your feedback and requirements. Some of the key initiatives were: Reduction in Genuine Seller Suspensions: Last year we introduced Enhanced Consequences Guidelines which, depending on the nature of a violation, warned sellers adequately before suspending them. This helped genuine sellers who were unintentionally violating policies to correct their mistakes. In addition, we also made it easier for good sellers to get a faster reinstatement. The introduction of ODR India on the eBay India site further helped sellers in resolving disputes. These initiatives helped us reduce unwarranted suspensions of genuine sellers. Reduction in Unpaid items: Based on seller feedback, we took various initiatives to reduce unpaid items on eBay. In certain categories which are prone to a high UPI rate, we also initiated controlled buyer verification. This and other similar efforts helped us bring down UPI rates to some extent. However, we have a long way to go to achieve what we desire in this field. Enhancing Buyer Experience: Our buyers often expressed their displeasure at excessive shipping charges charged by some sellers and bad browsing experience due to multiple listing of same product. We clamped down on high shipping charges and saw good results on the same. While the problem of excessive shipping charges is not yet eliminated, it has reduced significantly. Unfortunately, we were not able to replicate this success in reducing unnecessary multiple listings across the site. However, listing fees in Mobiles and Accessories category brought a significant improvement in improving finding and buying experience for buyers. Proactive Action against Counterfeit and Infringing Items: In order to remove counterfeit listings from eBay, in addition to co-operating with Right Owners, we recently put stricter measures in place. For items reportedly favoured by counterfeiters, we’ve started requiring additional seller verification. We will continue to keep an eye on products which are prone to counterfeit and will take proactive action against those sellers Success in Law Enforcement cases: Last year we did extensive outreach to law enforcement agencies and worked closely with them to solve cases against fraudsters who targeted eBay buyers which led to bad buying experiences. Though these buyers have been fully covered under our Buyer Protection Program we still actively supported and worked with various agencies to nab the fraudsters. Learning from these cases further helped us strengthen our filters to catch bad elements at the initial stages itself. Increasing Transparency via Feedback System: The eBay Feedback system had pioneered the trust levels between complete strangers who transact on the Internet. With evolving times, we enhanced the transparency of the feedback system such that it will help buyers take more informed buying decisions and help identify good sellers. Some initiatives in this regard were the restriction in use of Private feedback by sellers, limitation in using Pre-approved bidder functionality, proactive action against feedback manipulation. The introduction of granular seller feedback will be another step in this direction. All of the above will tell you about the change in Trust and Safety approach over the past. As my colleague Rob Chestnut mentioned in his message, TnS will be taking a proactive approach to increase trust on the site. I will like to discuss more on the next steps for TnS in my next Open house discussion on 28th February 2007. Seller Development Program Last year we also saw an encouraging increase in Power Sellers on the site. My congratulations to all the sellers who worked hard to achieve the status! Meanwhile, the Power Seller team worked on various initiatives to increase the value of the Power Seller Program. Some such efforts were the Power Seller Recognition program, Power Seller interaction events in Delhi and Mumbai, Free Packaging Material for Power Sellers, dedicated marketing links for Power Seller products etc. While I will be taking up this role, my focus will be on enhancing the seller development program to ensure that our sellers grow their eBay business. As we finalise the program details, I will request your inputs on how you think we can help you increase your eBay business. The suggestions could be in area of, but not necessarily restricted to, business development support, customer support, increased interaction with eBay team required by you. Your inputs on the above will help us build a robust program that would benefit everyone. I will be present on the Community Boards for an Open house discussion and encourage you to post your thoughts, comments and suggestion on this thread. I am looking forward towards this meeting and I hope to gather lot of useful feedback on the new role which encompasses both Trust and Safety and Seller Development. See you on 28th for Open house discussion at 4-5 PM! Regards, Sharat Digumarti Senior Manager Marketplace Health Team
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Offer Free Shipping and get Subtitle and Gallery Plus Free! Enhance the conversion potential of your listing.

Every listing which offers free shipping within India gets Subtitle and Gallery Plus Free i.e. you just need to offer free shipping to all domestic buyers and get Subtitle and Gallery Plus free. There is no limit to the number of listings that a seller can make during the offer period with the above combination of features.

All other charges, FVF, and other Feature fees on the listings will be charged as applicable.

When is it?

The promotion starts on Monday, 26th Feb, 2007 between 00:00:01 IST (12:00 AM plus 1 second) and ending 23:59:59 IST on Monday, 2 March, 2007 (11:59 PM plus 59 seconds).

Who is eligible?

- Sellers who list items on eBay.in during the offer period.
- Sellers who offer free domestic/local shipping.

The following are also included under the promotion:

- The Online Auction and Fixed Price formats
- All categories
- Listing in 2 categories
- Listings created before the offer period and going live during the offer period
- Multiple quantity listings are also included in the promotion

What do you need to do?

Offer Free Shipping and select Subtitle and Gallery Plus for your listing.

What is excluded?

- Classified Ads and Shop Format Listings
- Listings created during the promotion period and going live after the promotion period
- Listings that are revised during the promotion period
- All Listings that do not offer free shipping for all domestic/local options

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Every listing with Subtitle gets Gallery free i.e. buy 1 Subtitle and Get Gallery (Gallery Plus in Mobiles and Accessories) for the same listing absolutely free. There is no limit to the number of listings that a seller can make during the offer period with the above combination of features.

All other charges, FVF, and other Feature fees on the listings will be charged as applicable.

When is it?
The promotion starts on Monday, 26th February, 2007 between 00:00:01 IST (12:00 AM plus 1 second) and ending 23:59:59 IST on Friday, 2nd March, 2007 (11:59 PM plus 59 seconds).

Who is eligible?
- Sellers who list items on eBay.in during the offer period are eligible for the promotion.

The following are also included under the promotion:
- The Online Auction and Fixed Price formats.
- All categories
- Listing in 2 categories
- Listings created before the offer period and going live during the offer period
- Multiple quantity listings are also included in the promotion

What do you need to do?
Choose Subtitle with your listing.

What is excluded?
▪ Shop Format and Ad formats Listings
▪ Listings created during the promotion period and going live after the promotion period
▪ Listings that are revised during the promotion period

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eBay strives to improve the user experience for both buyers or for sellers. Towards this effort we are glad to announce the launch of seller side attributes in the Jewellery Category.

Attributes are fields which help sellers specify & describe their items better. This also helps buyers to narrow down their search thus enabling faster purchase decisions. Buyers see these as Product Finders.

Research shows that using attributes could positively impact the conversion rate by upto 400%. Thus listings with attributes have a distinct advantage over non-attribute listings.

The following illustration will help us explain the same better:

Example If you are selling a Diamond Studded Gold Ring, you can specify it using attributes as follows

These fields will be visible in seller’s SYI when you are listing in the Jewellery Category. Sellers are also request to update their Turbo Lister. To update the same: Turbo Lister > Click on “Tools” > Click on “Check for Program Updates”

The buy side 'Product Finders' will be launched in two weeks time. We will encourage all Jewellery sellers to revise their listings as soonas possible for maximum benefit.

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For every two listings with Feature Plus, the seller will receive the third Feature Plus absolutely free. There is no limit to the number of listings that a seller can make during the offer period with the promoted features.

All other charges, FVF, and other Feature fees on the listings will be charged as applicable.

When is it?
The promotion starts on Monday, 19th February, 2007 between 00:00:01 IST (12:00 AM plus 1 second) and ending 23:59:59 IST on Friday, 23rd February, 2007 (11:59 PM plus 59 seconds).

Who is eligible?
- Sellers who list items on eBay.in during the offer period are eligible for the promotion.
- Sellers whose country of residence is IN

The following are also included under the promotion:
- The Online Auction and Fixed Price formats.
- All categories.
- Listing in 2 categories.
- Listings created before the offer period and going live during the offer period.
- Multiple quantity listings are also included in the promotion.

What do you need to do?
Choose Feature Plus with your listing.

What is excluded?
▪ Shop Format and Ad Format Listings
▪ Listings created during the promotion period and going live after the promotion period
▪ Listings that are revised during the promotion period

Important!
Users whose items qualify under the promotion will see that they are charged at the time of listing and they will be credited for qualified listings by 15th April 2007. The memo on the qualifying items will read “Buy 2 Feature Plus Get One Feature Plus Free February promotion credit”.

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We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to you. We will keep you updated on the progress.

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We have had an excellent response from buyers as well as sellers on the “1 Paisa Auction with Free Shipping” promotion block which is live on the eBay Home Page over the last 3 weeks. We have been closely monitoring the performance of the block and based on the learnings we are making certain additions in the participation criteria for the same.

Additional Criteria:

· All sellers with Feedback Score of 10 or more will be able to showcase their products under this promotion. This will help ensure a better buyer experience.

· Title of the listing should be in Standard Case only. Titles with CAPITAL case shall not be accepted. This is to ensure that Buyers are able to view maximum portion of listing title on the Home Page itself.
o For example - “TAJ MAHAL - Valentine gift” is Not Acceptable
- “Taj Mahal - VALENTINE gift” is Not Acceptable
- “Taj Mahal - A Tribute to Love or Valentine” is Acceptable
o For maximum benefit, we advise our sellers to ensure that the ‘key’ words of the title are mentioned within the first 25 characters.

The Complete list of Criteria (Revised) for participation is as follows

- Starting price of Re 1/- or less
- Free National Shipping
- 10-day listing duration
- No reserve price
- Gallery image
- Seller Feedback Score greater than 10
- Listing Title should NOT have any words completely in CAPITAL case

The changes will be applicable to new listings from 15th February 2007. Listings which are live on 14th February will continue to be promoted as per the earlier criteria till they are closed.

"1 Paisa Auctions with Free shipping" promotion give sellers multiple benefits, such as:

- Prominent promotion on Home Page
- Increase in traffic (Many buyers prefer to experience the thrill of auctions)
- Increase in buyer interest (Even if buyers do not bid immediately, they keenly monitor such auctions)
- Leading to increase in sales

Listings from the following categories will be focused on during this promotion: Apparel & Accessories; Cameras & Optics; Computers & Peripherals; Consumer Electronics; Fitness & Sports; Health & Beauty; Home Decor & Furnishings; Jewellery; Kitchen & Home Appliances; Mobiles & Accessories; Tools & Hardware; Toys, Games & Baby; Watches.

For any questions or clarifications, please send us a mail on roadtosuccess@ebay.com.

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For every two listings with ILF, you will receive the third ILF feature absolutely free. There is no limit to the number of listings that a seller can make during the offer period with the promoted features.

When is it?
The promotion starts on Monday, 5th February, 2007 between 00:00:01 IST (12:00 AM plus 1 second) and ending 23:59:59 IST on Friday, 9th February, 2007 (11:59 PM plus 59 seconds).

Who is eligible?
- Sellers who list items on eBay.in during the offer period are eligible for the promotion.

The following are also included under the promotion:
- The Online Auction and Fixed Price formats.
- All Categories.
- Listing in 2 categories.
- Listings created before the offer period and going live during the offer period.
- Multiple quantity listings are also included in the promotion.

What do you need to do?
Choose ILF with your listing and choose to ship your products worldwide.

What is excluded?
▪ Shop Format and Ad Format Listings
▪ Listings created during the promotion period and going live after the promotion period
▪ Listings that are revised during the promotion period

Important! Sellers whose items qualify under the promotion will see that they are charged at the time of listing and they will be credited for qualified listings by 15th April 2007. The memo on the qualifying items will read “Buy 2 ILF Get 1 Free February promotion credit”.

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When is it?
All listings going live to the site between Monday, February 5th, 2007 12:01:01 and Friday February 9th, 2007 11:59:59.

What is it?
Listings created in the Mobiles & Accessories category with a start price of less than or equal to Rs. 2500/- will now pay a listing fee of Re. 1/- only instead of Rs. 3/-, on all items. The listing fees for the other slabs remain the same.

Item Selling Price (Rs.)	Current Listing Fee on  Start Price/ BIN Price	Promotion Listing Fee	Gallery Fees
<=2,500	Rs. 3	1	Free
2,501 – 10,000	Rs. 4	4	Free
> 10,000	Rs. 5	5	Free

Who is eligible?
- Sellers who are registered on eBay.in
- Sellers who list items on eBay.in during the offer period are eligible for the promotion
- Listing fees continue to remain free for all sellers who have created less than 20 listings in the Mobiles and Accessories category since the time of registration on the site.

The following are also included under the promotion:
- Shops Inventory format
- The Online Auction and Fixed Price formats
- Multiple Quantity listings are also included in the promotion.

What is excluded?
Listings created during the promotion period and going live after the promotion period are excluded from the promotion.

What do you need to do?
Create listings with Start Price less than or equal to Rs. 2500 in the Mobiles and Accessories category (# 15032) during the promotion period.

Promotion Fees – The discounted fee will be applicable immediately at the time of listing. Turbo Lister will calculate the fees as Rs. 3 per listing however once the listing is uploaded to eBay the Discounted Fee of Re. 1 will be charged.

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Valentines Day is just around the corner! Over the years, it has proved to be one of the biggest buying festivals online. This year too, we will present our buyers with the "iPods & Mp3 players @ 1 Paisa Promotion" promotion - an opportunity to buy iPod and MP3 players at great prices.

This promotion will be on the lines of the very successful "Mobiles @ 1 Paisa” promotions. All these promos have been backed by a co-coordinated splash of merchandising on the Home Page, mailers, and Portals and Alliance websites.

Details of the Promotion

Q) What is the promotion?
A) iPods & Mp3 players @ 1 Paisa Promotion

Q) When is the promotion?
A) The Promotion starts on Tuesday 6th Feb and ends on Saturday 17th Feb.

Q) Who is eligible?
A) All sellers who have a feedback score above 10 are eligible to participate.

Q) What type of listings are included in the promotion?
A)All listings need to be:
--‘No Reserve’ Listings starting below or at Re 1, with "ZERO" shipping charges.
--All the listings must have a Gallery image.

Q) What product lines are included in the promotion?
A) Following product lines will be included in the promotion:
--iPod Nano / Shuffle / Video
--Mp3 & Mp4 Players

Q) How to sign up for the promotion?
A) Create you listings and send the item ids to roadtosuccess@ebay.com on or before 2 pm on 5th February. Kindly ensure that your listings are live by 2pm on 5th February.

For any question on the promotion, please send an email to roadtosuccess@ebay.com.

Happy Selling!

Regards,
The eBay Team

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