The Ebay Blacklist
Author: David Riewe

eBay can be most likened to an online flea market. But, as with
most flea markets, there is always the possibility that
questionable hawkers lurk around the corners. Therefore, there
must be rules in place to insure that the auctions and
transactions formed through eBay are legal. Only then can a
market – online or not – flourish.

Certain types of items are prohibited or regulated on eBay.
eBay reserves the right to terminate auctions that violate its
specifications for allowed items on listing. In the case of
such, eBay emails the bidder and the seller to notify them of
the violation and to explain the need to terminate the auction.


eBay's policies describe items that may not be posted for
auction. They fall under three categories: Prohibited
Questionable, and Potentially Infringing.

Prohibited
This describes items that are not permitted on eBay. This list
includes alcohol, tobacco, drugs, animals, human parts or
remains, government properties, lottery tickets, and others.
eBay contains a complete list of such in their policy
statement.

Questionable
Items listed as questionable can be posted provided they follow
certain conditions. For example, some adult material may be
listed for auctioning only if they are posted in the Mature
Audiences section of eBay. Event tickets may be sold provided
that the auction closes before the actual event itself. The
list also includes batteries, artifacts, food, used items,
event tickets, weapons and knives, police related equipment,
Freon, hazardous chemicals, offensive material, mature
audiences material, international selling, and international
buying among others.

Potentially Infringing
Items listed under this heading may be legal. However, they
almost always violate copyright, trademark, and other rights.
Some examples of such are: academic software, beta software,
bootleg recordings, contracts and tickets, downloadable media,
movie prints, OEM software, Replica and counterfeit items, and
unauthorized copies.

This list is updated periodically and is incorporated into the
User Agreement of eBay. These guidelines do not represent legal
advice. It would do well to check with law enforcement agencies,
a lawyer, or other legal outlets to verify the legality of a
questionable item to be posted.

This policy applies even if you offer to give your item away
for free. As long as it is posted on eBay, it is subject to the
abovementioned policy.

As a final note, it is stressed that the buyer if subject to
liability if he or she purchases an illegal item. It is still
the responsibility of the buyers and sellers to monitor the
legality of their transactions since eBay is merely a
facilitator in the market process.


About The Author: David Riewe is a Publisher and Online
Marketer. Visit his eBay Blog to Discover 101 Ebay Auction Tips
in this FREE ebook
http://www.push-button-online-income.com/ebayblog