Any recourse when a seller steals your title and description to list same item?

[tide_redux]

This happens to me once in awhile...another seller will copy and paste my title and my description to sell the same item.  They even copied my standard verbiage that goes with all my listings (although at least cut out my logo).

Probably not technically a violation so doubt there's much I can do.  Just seems unethical and lazy.

[mizbaby]

 I did call Ebay about something similar...someone used my photograph to list a similar item. I can't remember if verbage was the same. In typical fashion, they shrugged and suggested I put a tag on my photos which I did after that. Not much you can do I don't think. Some people are lazy. 

[fashunu4eeuh]

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@tide_redux wrote:

This happens to me once in awhile...another seller will copy and paste my title and my description to sell the same item.  They even copied my standard verbiage that goes with all my listings (although at least cut out my logo).

Probably not technically a violation so doubt there's much I can do.  Just seems unethical and lazy.

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Hi, this used to be a reportable violation, but eBay changed the Images and Text policy recently. Now the rules say that users give permission to eBay to include their photos and verbiage in the product catalog. And other members are free to borrow information from there. 

If your text et al is not in the product catalog, then they recommend you contact the offending seller to request they cease using your original work. Here is the policy link below. I am afraid there isn't much to be done in your case, but check out the link to see what options you have. Good luck!

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-policies/images-text-policy?id=4240

[tdumonde2014]

When you hit the "Sell Similar" link, it copies your text word for word. Given that, I would think that there are no prohibitions against using others wording.

Andy

[tide_redux]

I just used "sell similar" on some random items and it copied the title but nothing else. Maybe it copies the description if it is from the the eBay catalog?

[tide_redux]

I did contact the seller to politely request that they not use verbatim my title and description.  Don't expect to hear anything back.  Don't expect the seller to make any changes.  But it felt good to call him/her out on it. 

[a_c_green]

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@tide_redux wrote:
I just used "sell similar" on some random items and it copied the title but nothing else. Maybe it copies the description if it is from the the eBay catalog?

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It depends on the ownership of the listing being copied with the Sell Similar operation. If you do a Sell Similar on someone else's listing, you get only the selected category(s), item specifics, and the listing title. If you do a Sell Similar on one of your own listings, you get everything brought forward into a new listing: text, photos, etc. Try it and see.

P.S. Titles are not considered copyright material; anyone is free to use anyone else's title. That's especially true here, where a title isn't really a creative effort, but a means of stuffing as many relevant search terms as possible into the title field.

[abfabvintage]

@tide_redux 

Hi, funny you started this thread because a few days ago I was on one of my own listings (not using My Ebay Seller Summary) and decided to click on the blue line "Have one to Sell? Sell Now" which appears right below my main picture. So I click on it (have never ever done that). Well, a listing page came up with my exact title, my personal  item specifics (which I take a good amount of time to create), my eBay ID, and countries I exclude. But not my pictures or narrative description. I was kind of shocked.

I do use ebay's required Item Specifics but also add a lot of my own Custom Specifics. So am using my time and brain power to create MY listing for use by others. Go figure...And I am not part of the ebay catalogue. I don't use any of ebay's listing tools (like sell similar, etc.), have my own 3rd party program, so guess that Sell Similar function I see on the tail end of my Account Summary allows the same thing to be able to copy.  

[abfabvintage]

@a_c_green 

Hi, AC. See my comment re: accessing your own listing re: copycatting. Now I used the "Have One? Sell Now" link under my picture. It did not include my narrative text or pictures. As I said, I am not that familiar with the ebay tools for listing since use my own program. I was just happy my narrative text wasn't copied or my pictures. 

[abfabvintage]

@tide_redux 

A few years ago I was selling a one off vintage planter, none were on ebay when I listed it...so after a few days I search Active items to see where it fell in search. Lo and behold there are my photos on another seller's listing. I open it up and she is using all my photos, everything. I don't bother going to look for ebay policies. I ebaymessaged her...nicely told her to please remove photos, against the rules. Seems she was a newbie and said ebay told her it was okay to do but would remove them. And she did. And that was before this ebay catalogue thing.

[ekmadonna]

I just encountered a seller that did the same thing. He is actually using my exact photos and title. He has 12 red negs and 11 neutrals in the past 30 days and half of them are for ITEM NOT MATCHING PHOTOS! There is no way possible that his item will match my photos based on the item being sold. He has 59,000 feed backs. And yes when I saw my photos of my item on his listing the first thought was LAZY and UNPROFESSIONAL. Hope he gets another red doughnut when he sells something he can't provide.

[ekmadonna]

using someones exact photos for something that is NOT NEW IN BOX and can't possibly be the same is a bit different then plagiarizing someones words.

[7606dennis]

Since eBay has granted themselves the non-exclusive rights to use any material uploaded to the site in a UA update there is really nothing one can do if another member uses what eBay includes in their catalog.   

[tide_redux]

@abfabvintage

I use sell similar all the time (instead of relist so I get a new item number) and when using it on one of your own listings it does carry everything forward and thank god for that.  When you try to "Sell One" from someone else's listing it doesn't carry everything forward except the title and categories.

[tide_redux]

@7606dennis

None of my items are in eBay's catalog which is limited to specific categories.  It still may be true that I don't have any "right" to my work, but I still think copying and pasting a description (which sometimes includes details from time-consuming research) is lazy and unethical.  It may not be illegal but that doesn't make it right.