eBay removed my video game listing for price gouging

[usgamecollector]

This is a rare video game that is no longer made. I had it as $100 which is the going price on ebay, there are lots of other sellers selling it for $130+

. We are aware that this is a video game, but it is obvious that you are taking advantage of the current situation. If you choose to relist this item, please be reasonable with your price. If you do not follow this policy in the future, this may result in the removal of your listings and the suspension of your account.

eBay price gouging policy states: "Items that are considered essential must be offered at a reasonable price"

how is a video game an essential item? Am I no longer allowed to sell rare video games and risk my account being banned for price gouging? My price was fair, and it was the same price as before the virus.

eBay is getting a little ridiculous

[go-bad-chicken]

---

@coolections wrote:

@go-bad-chicken 

They can report those all they want buy I believe they are wasting their time. You have to use a little common sense about this. Explain the difference to your kids to they will understand a crises situation and not just haphazardly run around reporting anything and everything.

---

My apologies I forgot to use the sarcasm font in my previous post. post #55 😉

[dhbookds]

---

@coolections wrote:

@dhbookds 

There was no world crises when Cabbage Patch dolls where being sold. Use common sense.

---

Do you REMEMBER the angst?  To some parents not getting that doll for a child was REAL failure........of course it doesn't compare to today's problems.........but the idea one of millions of video games is important enough to label the price as gouging is ludicrous to me........but just my opinion........

[coolections]

@go-bad-chicken 

OK, got it. The OP has not returned to mention what the game was and the normal retail price of the item is to determine the situation. I would think video games are a hot seller with stay at home families right now. Gouging would be bad for parents trying to purchase items for their kids to keep them sane at this time.

[gracieallen01]

---

@coolections wrote:

@dhbookds 

There was no world crises when Cabbage Patch dolls where being sold. Use common sense.

---

Soooo, common sense would mean that something that is a fad-popular, unnecessary bling nowadays should be priced at give-away prices so that the real money can be spent on essentials?

[cynthealee2]

---

@coolections wrote:

@go-bad-chicken 

OK, got it. The OP has not returned to mention what the game was and the normal retail price of the item is to determine the situation. I would think video games are a hot seller with stay at home families right now. Gouging would be bad for parents trying to purchase items for their kids to keep them sane at this time.

---

He stated that the current normal price was around 100.  There is no normal retail price for the game since it is no longer in production... kinda what made it rare to start with.

This is a rare video game that is no longer made. I had it as $100 which is the going price on ebay, there are lots of other sellers selling it for $130+

[yuzuha]

---

@coolections wrote:

@go-bad-chicken 

OK, got it. The OP has not returned to mention what the game was and the normal retail price of the item is to determine the situation. I would think video games are a hot seller with stay at home families right now. Gouging would be bad for parents trying to purchase items for their kids to keep them sane at this time.

---

So what's stopping the parents from taking advantage of the thousands of FREE games available online?

[coolections]

@gracieallen01 

NO. We are talking about a new thing no one has ever experienced in our lives here. There is a crises going on right now if you have not heard.

[coolections]

We would still need to know the name of the game and the retail price. If it is truly a rare collectable put it on the shelf for now.

[coolections]

@yuzuha  Nothing.

[pokemoncatches]

No we don't. The item is not essential. Period.

[cynthealee2]

---

@coolections wrote:

We would still need to know the name of the game and the retail price. If it is truly a rare collectable put it on the shelf for now.

---

So if I had an original Atari game that retailed in the 70's for 25  I can't sell it now for 100 because it was 25.00 40 years ago?

His business is selling the rare games. Why do we need to know what the game is? It was pulled for "price gouging" last time most of us checked VIDEO GAMES aren't on ANY state's list of essential items...

The game currently goes for 100 on eBay (and did before Covid started), other sellers have it higher some probably have it lower... average price was and is 100.00.

Retail price when the item was in production and on the shelves has absolutely no bearing on the item NOW.

From the Original Post:

This is a rare video game that is no longer made. I had it as $100 which is the going price on ebay, there are lots of other sellers selling it for $130+

Am I no longer allowed to sell rare video games and risk my account being banned for price gouging? My price was fair, and it was the same price as before the virus.

[andypa_81]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@southern*sweet*tea wrote:

brian@ebay 

@Anonymous 

Ebay is now price fixing? Or does CS just need some re-education?

Video games are not necessary for life and health, therefore should not be subject to a maximum price.

---

Hi @southern*sweet*tea, concerns related to price gouging are not limited to items related to life and health - any attempt to profit from tragic events is in violation of our listing policies. More information can be found here regarding our disaster and tragedy policy. Many families are struggling to balance sudden changes that not only have them working from home, but also teaching their children and trying to keep them occupied. Though a video game may seem like a luxury compared to other items, I'm sure there are many over-burdened parents who would disagree.

Either way, while I cannot speak about the specifics of the OP's listing removal, I can confirm that collectible items, such as video games that are no longer in production, could reasonably be sold with a high markup from the initial listing price due to the nature of the product. Listing a video game that is still in production at a price that is significantly higher than retail price, but may simply be experiencing high demand and low supply due to recent events, would be seen as an attempt to profit from the suffering and hardship of others, and be actioned appropriately as price gouging. Price gouging is not simply a violation of eBay policy, but something that is against the law in most areas. As such, we will take action where appropriate. If someone has a listing removed and has questions, they are welcome to contact Customer Service to discuss this further.

---

Video games are not a necessity.   If parents need video games to entertain their children then they're not creative enough to find better ways.

If this policy is allowed to be broad and sweeping the nothing will be able to be sold on this site. Asking $200 for a vintage board game? GOUGING!

Selling a signed first edition antique DH Lawrence book, for $800? GOUGING!

[usgamecollector]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@usgamecollector wrote:

This is a rare video game that is no longer made. I had it as $100 which is the going price on ebay, there are lots of other sellers selling it for $130+

. We are aware that this is a video game, but it is obvious that you are taking advantage of the current situation. If you choose to relist this item, please be reasonable with your price. If you do not follow this policy in the future, this may result in the removal of your listings and the suspension of your account.

eBay price gouging policy states: "Items that are considered essential must be offered at a reasonable price"

how is a video game an essential item? Am I no longer allowed to sell rare video games and risk my account being banned for price gouging? My price was fair, and it was the same price as before the virus.

eBay is getting a little ridiculous

---

Hi @usgamecollector, though I cannot go into specific details here, I can encourage you to review the communication you received from eBay and suggest that you research the item in question further. Based on what has been shared here, I believe there has been a misunderstanding regarding the rarity of the item or there may have been errors made with the item details provided to us.

---

I don't think there are any errors in my opinion. Doom switch was made in 2017, 3 year ago, and is no longer being made. I had it listed for $100 back around December 2019 which was before the virus scare. If you look at the camelcamelcamel graph on amazon the price is frequently near $80+ for 3rd party new going back to last year.

After their initial prints most games do not get reprinted unless they get another special edition, game of the year, selects etc and if they do get reprinted they usually get a different variation of the cover printed, which makes the original game "rare". There are lots of switch games from 1 or 2 years ago that are no longer being printed and are considered "rare" and sell for $100+ even before the virus.

This for a brand new sealed game. If a buyer really needed this to actually "play" they could just buy it used for half the price. A brand new sealed game is most likely going to be purchased by a collector and not played, especially when the used prices are half off.

THE MOST IMPORTANT POINT. This item is $59.99 on the Nintendo digital store. If someone REALLY needed to play this game all they would have to do is download it. Buying it physical means you want to collect it and it is NOT a necessity. eBay can not reasonably say that a game that can be purchased digitally by anyone at any time is "susceptible to price gouging". If a family is "struggling" then they don't have to purchase it on eBay, they can download it at retail price at any time. This is a luxury item, not a necessity.

If eBay is going to arbitrarily going to decide what is a rare game and what is a game subject to price gouging  then they need to send out a list which items are affected and I will remove them if I can't afford that price or lower my price. I have over 5k listings that are automatically priced based on other seller listings. After emailing eBay I can not determine what they consider a "necessity game" or not. Even then, for this game what is the price that wouldn't be considered price gouging?

They also mention in the email that "Because this item is susceptible to price gouging, it may only be sold by authorized sellers."

So eBay gets to arbitrarily decide who item is susceptible to price gouging and who is an authorized seller? What determines if you're an authorized seller by eBay? What are the conditions to make an item "susceptible to price gouging"?

If ebay is going to include video games in their price gouging removals, then they need to change their policy to mention that. Video games are NOT "essentials" and I wouldn't believe any law would think that doom switch is an essential item. Especially brand new sealed ones when they are plenty of used ones or digital ones that people could buy.

[go-bad-chicken]

---

@usgamecollector wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@usgamecollector wrote:

This is a rare video game that is no longer made. I had it as $100 which is the going price on ebay, there are lots of other sellers selling it for $130+

. We are aware that this is a video game, but it is obvious that you are taking advantage of the current situation. If you choose to relist this item, please be reasonable with your price. If you do not follow this policy in the future, this may result in the removal of your listings and the suspension of your account.

eBay price gouging policy states: "Items that are considered essential must be offered at a reasonable price"

how is a video game an essential item? Am I no longer allowed to sell rare video games and risk my account being banned for price gouging? My price was fair, and it was the same price as before the virus.

eBay is getting a little ridiculous

---

Hi @usgamecollector, though I cannot go into specific details here, I can encourage you to review the communication you received from eBay and suggest that you research the item in question further. Based on what has been shared here, I believe there has been a misunderstanding regarding the rarity of the item or there may have been errors made with the item details provided to us.

---

I don't think there are any errors in my opinion. Doom switch was made in 2017, 3 year ago, and is no longer being made. I had it listed for $100 back around December 2019 which was before the virus scare. If you look at the camelcamelcamel graph on amazon the price is frequently near $80+ for 3rd party new going back to last year.

After their initial prints most games do not get reprinted unless they get another special edition, game of the year, selects etc and if they do get reprinted they usually get a different variation of the cover printed, which makes the original game "rare". There are lots of switch games from 1 or 2 years ago that are no longer being printed and are considered "rare" and sell for $100+ even before the virus.

This for a brand new sealed game. If a buyer really needed this to actually "play" they could just buy it used for half the price. A brand new sealed game is most likely going to be purchased by a collector and not played, especially when the used prices are half off.

THE MOST IMPORTANT POINT. This item is $59.99 on the Nintendo digital store. If someone REALLY needed to play this game all they would have to do is download it. Buying it physical means you want to collect it and it is NOT a necessity. eBay can not reasonably say that a game that can be purchased digitally by anyone at any time is "susceptible to price gouging". If a family is "struggling" then they don't have to purchase it on eBay, they can download it at retail price at any time. This is a luxury item, not a necessity.

If eBay is going to arbitrarily going to decide what is a rare game and what is a game subject to price gouging  then they need to send out a list which items are affected and I will remove them if I can't afford that price or lower my price. I have over 5k listings that are automatically priced based on other seller listings. After emailing eBay I can not determine what they consider a "necessity game" or not. Even then, for this game what is the price that wouldn't be considered price gouging?

They also mention in the email that "Because this item is susceptible to price gouging, it may only be sold by authorized sellers."

So eBay gets to arbitrarily decide who item is susceptible to price gouging and who is an authorized seller? What determines if you're an authorized seller by eBay? What are the conditions to make an item "susceptible to price gouging"?

If ebay is going to include video games in their price gouging removals, then they need to change their policy to mention that. Video games are NOT "essentials" and I wouldn't believe any law would think that doom switch is an essential item. Especially brand new sealed ones when they are plenty of used ones or digital ones that people could buy.

---

Thanks for posting your response. I am sorry that you have to be the first to encounter this new unannounced super secret eBay life essentials list. If eBay wants to pursue this type of gate keeping then IMO they need to produce a list of newly classified life essentials. Because now that this revelation has come to light it makes me wonder what other items are on this SUPER SECRET EBAY LIFE ESSENTIALS LIST? Clothing? Books? Board Games? DVDS? Gold Bullion?

[gracieallen01]

---

@coolections wrote:

@gracieallen01 

NO. We are talking about a new thing no one has ever experienced in our lives here. There is a crises going on right now if you have not heard.

---

Is there someone who said there wasn't something going on?  Just because there hasn't been anything like it since the Swine flu pandemic doesn't mean that all of us haven't forgotten everything about history.