Has the Ebay bubble finally burst?.

Has Ebay's bubble finally burst ?.
According to their latest TV ad campaign, they have 30 million new/used items. This is down from 65 million 2 years ago. Compare this to their biggest rivals eBid, whose listing-count has increased over the same period from 3 million to 5 million.

The fall in listings can be accredited to several factors including increased final value fees, postage price caps (now lifted) and giving 'Diamond Powerseller' status to the big brands such as Argos and HP just for signing-up and they have managed the impossible, reduction of listings and alienation of the very core of their business - the small seller.

There are a lot of problems with Ebay which are causing people to leave in droves. Allowing sellers to list multiples of the same item instead of insisting on a single multi-quantity listing really spoil the whole search experience, with many users getting bored of wading through page after page of like-for-like splings (multiple listings from the same seller for the same item) in an attempt to find a particular item.
This is where Ebid wins-out, with a block on such practices, which in turn, leads to a more pleasent browsing experience which in turn, leads to higher sales.

Another thing that is beginning to get up the noses of those of us who have been with ebay for 10+ years is the increase in scammers on the site. I find it incredible just how many news stories appear about people being ripped-off by dodgy ebayers.