Is Ebay right to ban negative feedback?

Ebay’s phenonmenal success is based on many factors, one of which is trust between buyer and seller. Until now, both buyers and sellers were allowed to leave feedback on the transactional process between two parties. However, things are about to change, much to the annoyance of Ebay sellers.

Ebay has announced that, from May 2008, it will ban them from leaving negative feedback about buyers. The reason? Ebay said the feedback function was ‘slowing down trade’, when sellers retaliated after buyers left negative comments about them.

“The problem we’re addressing is that a significant proportion of negative feedback left by sellers is retaliatory in nature, ie. the buyer has done nothing wrong other than honestly rate a poor transaction,” according to an Ebay spokesperson.

“The buyer is punished for doing so by the seller, and as a consequence is less likely to shop on the site altogether – which is clearly bad news for all sellers.”

Sellers have been angered by the move, saying it will leave them unprotected and open to manipulation from problem buyers. On the face of it, the change shifts the balance of power towards buyers - who can still provide adverse comments about the service they receive.

Is there anything that Ebay sellers can do about the change? There is talk of a boycott of the site. But so many Ebay sellers rely on a regular trade to generate a living, it is hard to see them abandoning what is such a successful distribution channel.