eBay permanently increasing number of free listings each month

It's rare to get some good news from eBay, but today there is some:

They are increasing the number of free listings you get each month.

All users go from 50->200 per month.
Basic Store users go from 100->250.

Higher level stores also get increases.

Insertion Fees Update

 

Also, once you go to managed payments (which eBay is going to require for everyone before the end of this year), then if you are Basic level store owner, you get 10,000 free music (and other categories) listings/month. That's probably the same as infinity to almost everyone here.

 

What is "managed payments?".

 

It must mean that they are raising fees again. They NEVER hand out anything good without taking a bigger cut of the action.

 

I guess to cover "managed payments".

 

"Managed payments" is what Discogs is doing to a certain extent (although it's still optional there for now), where what was previously a classified advertising service attempts to rebrand itself as an escrow company. The customer will pay eBay directly, and eBay will dole out the money to the seller later on when they feel like it.

 

Sounds like what Amazon does. eBay wants to be as classy as Amazon but they never will. They will always be the dirt floor flea marker to Amazon's cleaner warehouse strip mall.

 

Managed payments will insert eBay directly into payment processing. Instead of the seller interacting with PayPal, the money will now flow through eBay (buyers will be able to use PayPal or a credit card), and eBay will deposit the money into the seller's account.

It's not clear that it provides any real advantages for the seller, but it lets eBay get its mitts on the money train.

 

Even with low interest rates, you can make a lot of money holding others’ money for a week.

 

That's ridiculous. I don't need a banker.