I have been a ebay user even before ebay came to india, though under another userid. I have sold and bought household and hobby items on ebay from 1997 while in the US and have followed all the changes in it's auction process since then.
For example, the user's e-mail id was openly posted on ebay at that time but later they have changed it to the closed-loop messaging system that's now in practice. I am sure it was introduced for a good reason.
But what is saddening to see is the trend ebay, especially it's Indian counterpart, has been following:
1.
Ebay has changed it's approach to be a "bazaar" instead of an auction house. Though it has kept it's outer shell to resemble an auction in a desperate attempt to sell thrill to the users, one can rarely find ANY item on it's entire list which does not have it's price preset either in the item's price or in it's ridiculously high "shipping charge". There are other dubious things practiced too, but as you are well aware about proxy-bidding et al, I better not get into it.
2.
Ebay is abandoning it's buyers by concentrating almost it's entire energy to the sellers only. For example, you already know about the almost infinite ways that you can filter and sort any list on ebay. But try this - "show only the sellers who have a feedback rating of 98% or above". You can't get it because ebay has somehow "missed" to give you that option. Try another one. Can you, as a buyer, earmark that foul-mouthed seller as an "un-favorite" one in My Ebay just as you can do for your "favorite" seller? Well, you just can't!
I have clamored for these but have faced only blankness. "Why?", you ask? Well, presumably they wouldn't lift a finger for anything that helps the buyers and not the sellers, even if they are the ones whose quality of service is questionable.
So calling all other buyers - Why don't you give it a try? Maybe they'll relent when they see a majority of the people, from whose pocket their fat profit is being sourced from, have started clamoring for these together...
