When is eBay going to do something about the reproduction and fantasy items that appear?

[justin67au]

I continue to see items sell for prices well beyond what they should because of either unscrupulous sellers or uneducated buyers.

Some sellers will inform the buyers that an item is reproduction.For example,a Golden Fleece oil bottle reproduced for approx. $70 sale price.

Currently,the same bottle is listed,and has reached $951 and not finished,and there is no mention that it is reproduction.

Surely this is something that needs to be resolved!

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/CONTEMPORARY-H-C-SLEIGH-GOLDEN-FLEECE-OIL-BOTTLE-WITH-METAL-POURER-AND-C...

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Golden-fleece-oil-bottle/263525483120?hash=item3d5b57c270:g:M44AAOSwXf5a...

[siddieswans]

There is a seller who sells photographs. He takes an old topographical photo – say a postcard – and reproduces it in a suitable size. All his listings state – “You are bidding on a large historical photo, the photo is in excellent condition, it is sized …. and has been professionally produced.” The titles all start “OLD LARGE HISTORIC PHOTO OF” and the condition is New (although occasionally no condition is shown). They sell 1000 a month, and every month 99% are very happy with their product, and 1% leave Negative Feedback “Incorrectly described ….” “Led to believe …” “Listed to make you believe …” “This is not an original photo…” It is amazing how consistent the % is over the course of a whole year. It’s all in the perception, isn’t it? Though to my mind New Condition is a bit of a give away.

[whiznumber6]

---

@siddieswanswrote:

There is a seller who sells photographs. He takes an old topographical photo – say a postcard – and reproduces it in a suitable size. All his listings state – “You are bidding on a large historical photo, the photo is in excellent condition, it is sized …. and has been professionally produced.” The titles all start “OLD LARGE HISTORIC PHOTO OF”...

---

Yep. Do a search on almost any topic, and the results are filled with his listings - to the point where my searches now all end in " -historic", just so I can avoid being spammed by his listings.

And he doesn't own rights to any of the photos he's using - all are lifted from various websites. Cheeky sod has even produced fake stamps using images lifted from my Flickr account.

As an example of his deceit, he's printed fake commemorative covers celebrating fifty years of Holden. One features a photo of a Holden ute (again, lifted from my Flickr account). I took the photo (with a camera, not a right-click and "Save As") in 2008. His fake cover is postmarked 1998. Physically impossible, yet there it is.

Reporting his infringements via eBay is useless: his items are on a three-day listing - by the time eBay have gotten their act together, the listing I've reported has ended, and I have to re-report the new listing. Which is gone again before they get around to to looking at it...

[shoppingbag*]

At the end of the day, you really have no power to police what buys and sells on eBay.  I have seen listings for the most ridiculous prices.  There is one seller that constantly lists items sometimes hundreds of dollars above what everyone else is selling the same item for, and I wonder if they ever get any suckers, and yes they do. I just shake my head and move on. It is all "buyer beware" and I would not even try to defend the idiot who buys these items, but feel sorry for them. I can't even feel annoyed at the seller, as it is his job to get as much as he can, and if he gets away with it, good luck to him. As for fakes, I would never go down that path  of buying or selling these, even experts can get it wrong, there are too many hassles here. I really am too interested in my own life and pursuits to be worried about eveyone else getting a fair deal, and giving myself a heart attack or ulcers in the process. When I was a mere teenager, I concluded that the world is full of idiots, and I still have that opinion these many decades later. Trying to look after the interests of these people is pointless and hopeless and you will never succeed, so why even try?

[justin67au]

I think they need to have something in place when listing an item,that the seller has to to tick a box that the item is genuine or reproduction.That way the seller is liable for what they are selling.

I find reporting an item is a waste of time,as you can't be specific in why it is a fraudulant listing

[collect247]

So that sign is an actual listing?

I have found that sign on ABC where the bloody hell are you advertising article about advertising in Australia in the 70's.

So I'm guessing it has been taken from that?

[whiznumber6]

It's an actual listing, been up for yoncks - I'd guess that's where the ABC got it from.