eBay Fees Push Merchants Away

eBayers are leaving the marketplace, citing fee hikes and sluggish sales.

Upset over recent fee hikes and slowing merchandise sales, hundreds of merchants say they plan to close their shops on eBay.

On her web site, eBay seller Melinda Burnett has tracked about 700 merchants who say they have closed, or intend to close, their virtual storefronts on the world’s largest auction site.

Analysts say the possible closures, which would represent a fraction of eBay’s 500,000 storefronts worldwide, were expected after the company on Monday raised the fees it charges merchants for listing items on its site. eBay now charges merchants $0.05 per item, up from $0.02, on items selling for less than $25. For items over $25, eBay is charging $0.10 per listing, compared with $0.02.

eBay also raised the commission it charges sellers for each item sold. The San Jose, California-based company now charges a 10 percent commission, up from 8 percent, on items that sold for $25 or less, and a 7 percent commission, up from 5 percent, on sales of up to $100. eBay, however, didn’t change the commission for items that sold for more than $100 on its site.

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