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@motorcitytoyz wrote:....Just want a final answer on this from eBay.
Here is eBay's policy (watermarks are not allowed):
https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-policies/picture-policy?id=4370
Based on eBay's policy, your own experience, and what you currently see in listings, you can see there is still a spectrum of compliance out there.
Here is a bit of the history of the rules. These rules only apply to photos hosted by eBay, not photos down in the description.
Beginning early 2013:
- Photos uploaded to eBay hosting must be at least 500 pixels on the long side.
- Colored borders may not be applied to photos uploaded to eBay hosting.
- Ownership watermarks must be unobtrusive and must not include advertising.
- Other text applied to photos will not be allowed.
Beginning Fall 2017:
- Watermarks are no longer permitted on images uploaded with eBay listings. Policy.
- Sellers who continue to include watermarks in images will have their listings removed from search if not corrected by March 1, 2018.
- eBay recommends using photo best practices on eBay.
eBay made the watermark announcement back in 2017, along with the active content changes. However, there was such a backlash -- from the major listing services (who managed millions of client listings) protesting that sellers with hundreds of thousands of listings could not go through their inventory and reshoot all of those photos at the same time that they were coping with a major active content overhaul -- that the 2018 policy deadline went unenforced, although the policy remained.
The intent of postponing enforcement was that new listings with new photos should not have watermarks, while old listings could persist a while longer. The listing services all dropped their watermarking features as a result of that compromise. I have an online watermarking tool based on the picture policies of 2012, when ownership watermarks were allowed if they met specific guidelines (no more than 5% coverage, no more than 50% opacity, not obscuring important details), so I was keeping track of the policies at the time.
The ban was actually based on behind-the-scenes consequences that sellers may not understand. Google bans watermarked photos from their shopping venue. When eBay submitted listings to Google, those with text, watermarks, and borders were rejected. This negatively impacts all of eBay's Google listings if fewer shoppers are sent to eBay.
@motorcitytoyz wrote:....Just want a final answer on this from eBay.
Here is eBay's policy (watermarks are not allowed):
https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-policies/picture-policy?id=4370
Based on eBay's policy, your own experience, and what you currently see in listings, you can see there is still a spectrum of compliance out there.
Here is a bit of the history of the rules. These rules only apply to photos hosted by eBay, not photos down in the description.
Beginning early 2013:
- Photos uploaded to eBay hosting must be at least 500 pixels on the long side.
- Colored borders may not be applied to photos uploaded to eBay hosting.
- Ownership watermarks must be unobtrusive and must not include advertising.
- Other text applied to photos will not be allowed.
Beginning Fall 2017:
- Watermarks are no longer permitted on images uploaded with eBay listings. Policy.
- Sellers who continue to include watermarks in images will have their listings removed from search if not corrected by March 1, 2018.
- eBay recommends using photo best practices on eBay.
eBay made the watermark announcement back in 2017, along with the active content changes. However, there was such a backlash -- from the major listing services (who managed millions of client listings) protesting that sellers with hundreds of thousands of listings could not go through their inventory and reshoot all of those photos at the same time that they were coping with a major active content overhaul -- that the 2018 policy deadline went unenforced, although the policy remained.
The intent of postponing enforcement was that new listings with new photos should not have watermarks, while old listings could persist a while longer. The listing services all dropped their watermarking features as a result of that compromise. I have an online watermarking tool based on the picture policies of 2012, when ownership watermarks were allowed if they met specific guidelines (no more than 5% coverage, no more than 50% opacity, not obscuring important details), so I was keeping track of the policies at the time.
The ban was actually based on behind-the-scenes consequences that sellers may not understand. Google bans watermarked photos from their shopping venue. When eBay submitted listings to Google, those with text, watermarks, and borders were rejected. This negatively impacts all of eBay's Google listings if fewer shoppers are sent to eBay.
