eBay

happy_pigeon · ‎01-31-2018

Hi all,

Hopefully, you've seen Wednesday's announcement about eBay's plans to intermediate payments in the near future.

In plain language, this means that instead of PayPal processing all payments as they currently do (even if you don't choose PayPal as your payment option), we'll be transitioning over the next few years to a centralized system. You don't need to do anything right now, and PayPal will continue to be an option for sending and accepting payments.

I'll move any related posts/threads here so that we can condense the discussion. I'll probably be signing off for the night shortly, but I'll be back tomorrow morning to answer any questions you may have!

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

Thank you for that reassurance.

Did I miss the part where ebay shared copious amounts of information about who and what this new company might be, what specific services they will offer, and how it's supposed to make easier and less costly the lives of ebay sellers?

None of that was in the message I received to my email.

I will look again in the Announcements.

If I were ebay and this was my Big Idea of Something Great, I would be selling it like it's the next best thing since sliced bread. Not just dumping in on the table like a stack of soggy toast and saying,"Here, dig in."

Make this sound like a tasty treat that I want, please!

The name of the payment processing company is found in the "master" post about it on the eBay Inc. blog -- it's linked from the bottom of the AB. You can read more here.

[Edit] Whoops! I see you found it right away I'll hijack my own post then, to address some of the other feedback I'm hearing. Let me know if I've missed anything.

One major point of feedback I'm hearing: the language we used in the announcement. Yes, it is very different from how we would usually address our seller community. From what I'm seeing, people have (mostly) a pretty good understanding, but I'm here to clarify anything if you need me to.

Another thing I've heard is concerns that this is a "money grab" for eBay. It's an understandable concern, but we're actually expecting to reduce costs for sellers. Most sellers can expect their costs for payment processing to be reduced after they transition to eBay's new payment model.

@esclyons: PayPal will not be phased out after 5 years! It will still remain a payment option after the transition.

Thanks everyone for airing your concerns in here, and please keep doing so if there's anything to be cleared up. For the time being, don't sweat it -- there's nothing for you to do right now, or for quite a while. And while I'm waaaaay too low on the totem pole to know exactly what the end game will look like, my best guess is that it's going to affect your day-to-day business very little. With lower payment processing fees, it's likely to have a positive impact, if anything.

ricarmic · ‎02-01-2018

I am interested to understand how this works on the back end.

Today when a buyer uses PAYPAL, the $$$ go into my PAYPAL account, which is like another "bank account" to me. To get the $$$ to "my" bank account I have to transfer the $$ from PAYPAL to "my" bank account.

I do not see or yet understand how the back end of the Adyen system works. Do the funds go into an Adyen account similar in style to how PAYPAL works, or do the funds simply get passed through to "my" bank account that I link to the payment system?

The old timers have survived multiple payment systems like billpoint etc in the past, I am hopeful that this transition reduces book keeping paperwork instead of the opposite.

brettjet38 · ‎02-01-2018

Read these for a better understanding about this "Announcement"

https://venturebeat.com/2018/02/01/ebay-ditches-paypal-for-dutch-payment-provider-adyen/

https://www.recode.net/2018/1/31/16957212/ebay-adyen-paypal-payments-agreement

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/31/ebay-in-split-from-paypal-will-start-using-adyen.html

https://qz.com/1195416/ebay-is-replacing-paypal-with-adyen-as-the-main-way-to-pay/

Paypal will only be accepted on eBay until 2023 after that.....

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

I am interested to understand how this works on the back end.

Today when a buyer uses PAYPAL, the $$$ go into my PAYPAL account, which is like another "bank account" to me. To get the $$$ to "my" bank account I have to transfer the $$ from PAYPAL to "my" bank account.

I do not see or yet understand how the back end of the Adyen system works. Do the funds go into an Adyen account similar in style to how PAYPAL works, or do the funds simply get passed through to "my" bank account that I link to the payment system?

The old timers have survived multiple payment systems like billpoint etc in the past, I am hopeful that this transition reduces book keeping paperwork instead of the opposite.

I can't comment on how the back-end will work (because I don't know ), but I've done some very light selling on Etsy after they switched to Adyen, and it was still an option for me to be paid into my PayPal account. I can't speculate as to exactly how it will work with us, but I know it is an option with Adyen in general.

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

Read these for a better understanding about this "Announcement"

https://venturebeat.com/2018/02/01/ebay-ditches-paypal-for-dutch-payment-provider-adyen/

https://www.recode.net/2018/1/31/16957212/ebay-adyen-paypal-payments-agreement

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/31/ebay-in-split-from-paypal-will-start-using-adyen.html

https://qz.com/1195416/ebay-is-replacing-paypal-with-adyen-as-the-main-way-to-pay/

Paypal will only be accepted on eBay until 2023 after that.....

Thanks for posting this @brettjet38. Unfortunately, a lot of the interpretations in these articles leave something to be desired. The 2023 date that you see in a lot of the articles refers to the end date of our current agreement with PayPal, and it does not mean that our relationship with PayPal will end after that point. These sorts of agreements are usually re-negotiated every couple of years.

esclyons · ‎02-01-2018

Paypal payments, are immediately available to us, will this be exactly the same with Adyen.??

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

Paypal payments, are immediately available to us, will this be exactly the same with Adyen.??

A good question, but I can't do anything more than speculate at this point. I truly don't know how it will work yet -- it's a long way away.

I will point out that not all PayPal payments are immediately released, however; only if you've sold past a certain level. Until then, your funds are either held for a certain amount of time, and/or they only release enough to pay for shipping. So all payment processors are going to have checks and balances.

maybepossible · ‎02-01-2018

In plain language, it says a lot about the senior employees of eBay.ca who, at the very start of a message sent to all registered eBayers, employ the word "intermediating". What planet are they from? Maybe they have degrees in Philology and are frustrated about their daily inability to use such arcane words like "intermediating". Even eBay's own spellchecker is underlining the word in red because it doesn't recognise it.

Please, someone at Head Office get rid of these unworldly beings and employ people who have not only used eBay as both sellers and buyers, but also have their feet planted firmly on the ground and don't have their heads in the clouds. From my long experience, the majority of eBay users are every-day people of reasonable education, and they reasonably expect to be treated with both respect and rewarded with clarity when it comes to important changes which may affect the way they buy and sell.

ypdc_dennis · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:
... What worries me is that if this is such a probably-not-a-big-deal and we are so close to the Spring Seller Update, why not simply make this a single point of that? Is the coming Seller Update so immense and far-reaching on its own that there was no room for this?

Simple.

To deal with the firestorm of questions/comments when this deal between eBay and Ayden is seen elsewhere this month. The information would have leaked out even if they wanted to keep it hidden until the Spring update. And it probably will get mentioned in the Spring Update with some detail tweaking based on comments received now.

...

mrdutch1001 · ‎02-01-2018

This does sound very much like Etsy, except that eBay is giving its sellers a much greater length of time to adjust and transition into a new payment system...

I "was" a seller on Etsy for many years - until 2017...

Spring of 2017, it was announced that sellers would have to sign up with their "Etsy Payments" system if they were to continue as sellers on that venue. June 1st, 2017, sellers who did not sign up with "Etsy Payments" had their shops suspended, and could no longer sell there unless they signed up for the new payment system and submitted their banking info to Etsy management, if they did not already have their bank account associated with selling on that platform. Yes, sellers were still able to have PayPal, BUT sellers also had to sign up for "Etsy Payments" to continue selling on that venue.

I am a contented PayPal seller, chose not to accept the new payment system and as a result, I am no longer a seller on that venue.

I expect to see the same process for eBay. Sellers will still be able to have PayPal, BUT will have to signup for Adyen payments, have a bank account and submit the necessary banking info to eBay, if they do not already have a bank account associated with their eBay selling.

For myself, I hope that I am done with eBay by the time eBay tells its sellers that they "must" sign up for Adyen payments or surrender their rights to sell on eBay.

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

wrote:

... What worries me is that if this is such a probably-not-a-big-deal and we are so close to the Spring Seller Update, why not simply make this a single point of that? Is the coming Seller Update so immense and far-reaching on its own that there was no room for this?

Simple.

To deal with the firestorm of questions/comments when this deal between eBay and Ayden is seen elsewhere this month. The information would have leaked out even if they wanted to keep it hidden until the Spring update. And it probably will get mentioned in the Spring Update with some detail tweaking based on comments received now.

...

Only certain countries have Seller Releases, and this is a global eBay change. So if it were to be included in an SR, the countries who don't have them would miss out.

Additionally, this is a change that effects buyers and sellers, so it's not appropriate for a communication method specifically targeted at sellers.

momcqueen · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:
wrote:
Paypal payments, are immediately available to us, will this be exactly the same with Adyen.??
A good question, but I can't do anything more than speculate at this point. I truly don't know how it will work yet -- it's a long way away.

I will point out that not all PayPal payments are immediately released, however; only if you've sold past a certain level. Until then, your funds are either held for a certain amount of time, and/or they only release enough to pay for shipping. So all payment processors are going to have checks and balances.

Yes, for 'new' sellers there is a standard 21-day paypal hold that seems to last an eternity, and if you sell on ebay.ca as a new seller, you never get that 'early access' to funds to cover the purchase of postage.

I can see that ebay might want to ease some of that pain for new sellers as well as tighten the grip on veteran 'bad' sellers who're causing more than their fair share of pain for buyers. However, this is not 85 per cent of sellers (I would guess) who are here just doing our jobs and minding our own business.

None of us asked for this, I would venture to say that, "Finally, ebay is stepping in to overtake the payment processing!" is something that no seller said ever.

We want fast, east access to our money from a company that we and our buyers already trust. In the 20 years that I've been using paypal as a buyer and seller, I've had maybe six actual issues with them. All resolved. Whereas with ebay.... well, this place is like an untended dogpark of glitches most weeks. We have to watch where we step at all times.

And my apologies to you, @happy_pigeon for taking the heat here. I fully expect this decision is made and there's nothing we can do about it as users, but I'll never understand the reason this corporate entity is determined to 'fix' things that were never broken while seemingly ignoring the plentiful examples of things that are.

If this announcement was not about a new 'intermediating' payment processing system no one wants but instead the hiring of new teams that we need of professional 'mediators' to overtake the work being done in offshore ebay Customer Service centres, for example, you'd be hearing nothing but hoorays and cheers.

rose-dee · ‎02-01-2018

Hah!! Just when you thought eBay had made enough changes for a while and you could relax. Wrong!

Here is what I found in my inbox today (I list on .com, so it may be this only applies to .com at the moment -- although they do say "North America"). I'm copying it verbatim in case there are sellers here who didn't get the memo. I think many of us suspected this was coming, but it will likely mean more complexity and inconvenience for sellers getting paid, and -- what remains to be seen -- higher cost, despite the reassurances here (my bold emphasis in the text).

Paypal already offers a pretty convenient set of options for payment, and a one-stop payment account for sellers. Will the buyers who already don't trust or want to use Paypal to pay via credit card have any more confidence in eBay handling their payments? Will eBay ultimately want to phase out Paypal entirely (or try to), as another site has attempted to do? Well, we're going to find out I suppose.

"eBay is happy to announce plans to further improve the customer experience by intermediating payments on our Marketplace platform. In doing so, eBay will manage the payments flow, simplifying the end-to-end experience for both buyers and sellers. We have signed an agreement with Adyen, a leading global payments processor, to become our primary payments processing partner. PayPal, a long-time eBay partner, will be a payments option at checkout for eBay buyers. You do not need to take any action at this time. The transition to full payments intermediation will be a multi-year journey.

Over the past three years, eBay has transformed its business to drive the best choice, most relevance and most powerful selling platform. Building out our payments capabilities is the next step in that strategy. Payments intermediation will bring significant benefits for eBay sellers. You can expect a simplified pricing structure, more predictable access to funds, and most sellers can expect their costs of payments processing to be reduced. We’re also working on ways to provide sellers a central place to track and manage their business, which can soon include payments information. By offering buyers more choice in how they pay and expanding payment options into more geographies, eBay believes sellers will be able to reach more buyers and improve conversion.

The transition to full payments intermediation will be a multi-year journey. eBay will begin intermediation on a small scale in North America starting in the second half of 2018, expanding in 2019 under the terms of the Operating Agreement with PayPal. In 2021, we expect to have transitioned a majority of Marketplace customers to the new payments experience. Again, you do not need to take any action at this time. As eBay gets closer to the initial phase of its intermediation efforts, we will share more details about this process and next steps for sellers.

In the meantime, please read the eBay Inc announcement for further information. For any immediate questions or to share feedback, please email paymentsinfo@ebay.com. We’re looking forward to what’s next, and to getting there with you.

As always, thank you for selling on eBay.

Bob Kupbens Laura Chambers VP, B2C Selling VP, C2C Selling"

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

@momcqueen It isn't too heated in here yet I'm just glad to have an avenue to discuss this with sellers, especially since the language in the announcement was maybe not as accessible as some might hope.

It's good practice for me before I host my first Seller Release discussion thread in the future...

femmefan1946 · ‎02-01-2018

Yes, for 'new' sellers there is a standard 21-day paypal hold that seems to last an eternity, and if you sell on ebay.ca as a new seller, you never get that 'early access' to funds to cover the purchase of postage.

@momcqueen

@happy_pigeon

What!!??

Is this true?

It was one of the ways I have reassured nervous newbies that their customer's payments had in fact cleared and were being Held.

Have I been wrong all this time?

femmefan1946 · ‎02-01-2018

@happy_pigeon has joined a thread on this. I expect this will be moved.

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

@happy_pigeon has joined a thread on this. I expect this will be moved.

Correct

happy_pigeon · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

Yes, for 'new' sellers there is a standard 21-day paypal hold that seems to last an eternity, and if you sell on ebay.ca as a new seller, you never get that 'early access' to funds to cover the purchase of postage.

@momcqueen

@happy_pigeon

What!!??

Is this true?

It was one of the ways I have reassured nervous newbies that their customer's payments had in fact cleared and were being Held.

Have I been wrong all this time?

Yep, that's correct. Here's a help page that talks more about it.

momcqueen · ‎02-01-2018

I promise you this never happened for me as a seller. I kept watching for it, waiting. All those postage labels that I purchased and printed...

... during the period of time I was proving myself to paypal to be honest -- every single one of them -- was withdrawn from my bank account. And only my bank account.

rose-dee · ‎02-01-2018

wrote:

I do not see or yet understand how the back end of the Adyen system works. Do the funds go into an Adyen account similar in style to how PAYPAL works, or do the funds simply get passed through to "my" bank account that I link to the payment system?

I expect it will end up being a similar arrangement to what I've been putting up with on Etsy for years. There, I've retained Paypal, but was obliged to also "sign up" for the site's own payment processing system. This means my funds from sales come through two different streams, and that I get them in two different ways, with different timelines. It's inconvenient, and sometimes confusing, but I've learned to cope with it. It does add another irritating level of accounting.

Like you, I was around here selling in the days before Paypal existed and I had to adjust when that was introduced. So I suppose if I want to continue here I'll have to do so again. The only thing is that Paypal has been just so efficient and reliable for everybody.

With Paypal payments, not only do I have access to those funds immediately (for example, if I need to purchase something elsewhere, which is often the case), but Paypal is quite fast in transferring money to my own bank account. With the "in-house" payment system, sellers were waiting up to a week for transfers to initiate, and then it would take 2 or 3 days for the funds to appear in my own bank account.

There have been improvements made in the timeline recently, i.e. more frequent payment initiations, but it can still often be 5 or 6 days before I have access to sales proceeds. Since I imagine eBay's payment processing is based in the U.S., Canadian sellers can expect at least a 2-day processing delay. That is in addition to the possibility of eBay inserting itself into the payment stream without the seller's involvement in situations of buyer claims or charge-backs. In other words, eBay will be in total control.

What I most dislike is the idea of giving my banking information to yet another foreign (U.S.) payment "intermediation" system. Yikes, whichever smart young cookie at eBay HQ thought up that word should be fired -- not only does it sound heavy-handed, interventionist and scary, but it's just plain incorrect English.