Ebay Main Street

[MM78]

Did anyone get this email?

Dear Aspkin Stealth User,

We're writing today to encourage you to consider joining eBay Main Street, a grassroots organization of eBay members taking action to promote smart government policy and protect the rights and interests of ecommerce sellers like you.

Right now, eBay Main Street is working to protect an entrepreneurial eBay seller who will be at the center of a case in front of the US Supreme Court later this month. This eBay seller, a student putting himself through college by selling authentic books that he legally purchased, was challenged by a publisher clinging to an old business model that relies on restricting trade to geographic borders. The outcome of this case could have significant implications for your rights as a seller. Learn more and join other eBay sellers on eBay Main Street and make your voice heard.

Sincerely,
eBay Government Relations Team

[TGMT²]

Originally Posted by MM78

Dear Aspkin Stealth User

LOVE it when I find some humor on the forum!

And Yes, all my accounts received this email.

[slim jim]

i got this on all of mine, maybe just a US thing?

[MM78]

Weird, I actually only got it on 1 of my accounts, why I asked if anyone else had gotten it. Maybe they just like 1 of my stealth accounts!

[LoopHole]

So why is eb*y emailing us about this???? i got this on all of my accounts too.

[jeffweico]

Actually, this IS an important case.

Textbook publishers are claiming that copyright law allows them to sell the same textbooks in different countries and prohibit their sales outside the intended countries.

Why?

Because they want to sell in other countries far cheaper than they do here in the USA, but they do NOT want anyone buying them for less and re-selling at a modest profit in the USA, thereby undercutting their ENOURMOUS profits from selling at the highest prices in the world here in the USA.

If their legal theory is upheld, then you will no longer have the right to re-sell any copyrighted items manufactured outside the USA as used, even though they are completely legitimate. And that would not be limited to textbooks. Movie studios could move production offshore in order to prohibit the resale of DVD's. Wanna sell your old Monopoly game? SORRY! It could apply to almost anything.

In other words, the market for used goods would be effectively stopped, in order to protect, defend and expand the profits of the large manufacturers.

[GreenBean]

Originally Posted by jeffweico

Actually, this IS an important case.

Textbook publishers are claiming that copyright law allows them to sell the same textbooks in different countries and prohibit their sales outside the intended countries.


In other words, the market for used goods would be effectively stopped, in order to protect, defend and expand the profits of the large manufacturers.

ebay had a hostile time over the past 8 months by allowing take-downs associated with literature to happen.

[slim jim]

Originally Posted by jeffweico

Actually, this IS an important case.

Textbook publishers are claiming that copyright law allows them to sell the same textbooks in different countries and prohibit their sales outside the intended countries.

Why?

Because they want to sell in other countries far cheaper than they do here in the USA, but they do NOT want anyone buying them for less and re-selling at a modest profit in the USA, thereby undercutting their ENOURMOUS profits from selling at the highest prices in the world here in the USA.

If their legal theory is upheld, then you will no longer have the right to re-sell any copyrighted items manufactured outside the USA as used, even though they are completely legitimate. And that would not be limited to textbooks. Movie studios could move production offshore in order to prohibit the resale of DVD's. Wanna sell your old Monopoly game? SORRY! It could apply to almost anything.

In other words, the market for used goods would be effectively stopped, in order to protect, defend and expand the profits of the large manufacturers.

yes this is very scary. it is crazy that they actually have won this case initially although i do not think it will hold up in the supreme court. it will essentially give a company MORE of a reason to produce overseas and as soon as you know it, nothing used will be able to be sold anymore, NOTHING!

[yotano211]

I got this email on only 1 of my accounts.

This would mean that the companies that make books for schools, including uni will make more profits. Schools books are already one of the most expensive things that students buy. Every year they go up more than double the inflation rate. I always try to buy my school books used rather than new. I get a book for less than half the price of a new one, then at the end I resell it back to who wants buys it.

This is big business so of course they will fight it hard and fight it to the end. If the supreme court goes with the book companies, than you can kiss the "first resell doctrine" good bye because everything in the US is made overseas. I guess the courts forgot when they ruled against the accuser when they threw out the "first resell doctrine" out. It seems it only applies to goods made in the US, haha, good luck with finding anything that is produced in the US at this time.

I am reading more and more reports of overseas companies bringing back manufacturing jobs back into the US, but who knows might kind of products those companies make. I dont think those kinds of jobs are in the book making industry.

Making books is labor intensive and most robotic machines can't make them. US manufacturing workers are 3.2x more productive than a Chinese worker but that calculation includes using robots to make products. China does not have many robots in their manufacturing plants yet.

So if the Supreme court goes against the accuser, I feel that more companies will start hiring more lawyers. So this is bad, very bad for US ebay sellers. I don't sell anything that is made in the US. All of it says, made in Mexico, Japan, China, and Taiwan.

OH BOY....I will follow this until they rule, with or against the college student.


I think we can kiss lots of ebays sellers good bye with this one. Maybe some of us on here.

[AmazonStealth]

I find this very scary as I could see it happen (as dumber things have happened), but at the same time, selling used items you own are 100% yours. I feel like if the seller does not win, then many more companies will follow this, and could really kill the resale world (hence why ebay is helping out).

[mercurial333]

Signed the petition once. Did my job.