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Mike Stanley wrote:
>
> Larry Pieniazek <lar@voyager.net> wrote:
> > An email to a bidder with the S@H phone number is bid siphoning under
> > eBay TOS.
> > And eBay TOS applies to you whether you are registered as a bidder or
> > seller or not.
> > (it applies as of the moment you view the first eBay page, your viewing
> > is
> > considered acceptance)
>
> I know you've said you feel constrained to abide by that ridiculous
> interpretation of the TOS, especially since you wish to continue to
> bid on things at eBay. But do you honestly think people who have no
> desire to register or use eBay are truly bound by their TOS simply
> by viewing the pages?
>
> What if I setup a TOS at BRICKS that includes something about
> sending me all gray macaroni bricks in your posession, and make it
> apply as of the first moment you view the front page? Maybe that's
> more ridiculous but it seems like the same thing to me.
There is a difference here. Your proposed TOS is saying that since
you've visited us, you must pay. It would be like a store saying that
now that you've come in the door, you must pay us. There is no
opportunity to read to the contract before being bound by it.
On the other hand, eBay is saying that if you want to use their service,
you need to abide by their contract. You may leave without accepting the
contract, but they ask you not to use the information which is their
property. Now their contract does not apply (to you) if someone
aproaches you and says "Hi Mike, I use eBay, do you think its worth
biding $15 on a 3438?" You may freely answer no, and tell that user the
shop at home phone number. Now it is possible that that person is
violating the TOS in approaching you, but that's between eBay and them,
and you are not obligated to do anything unless you are aware that
something illegal is going on.
I think that for the most part, eBays TOS are reasonable. They prevent
marketters from harvesting eBay for e-mail addresses. They prevent a
disgruntled buyer from torpedoing you.
It is unfortuanate that their TOS limits certain things. One bad thing
is that it does limit the ability to post on RTL and Lugnet about
fraudulent sellers (I did read the TOS carefully, and decided that it
doesn't prevent your contacting other people who have bought from a
seller to find out the extent of their fraud, it doesn't prevent you
from contacting the authorities about fraud, it may not even actually
prevent you from posting the name of the fraud, but that's not clear).
It's also too bad that it prevents people from pointing out other
sources of commonly available products, but there is a line that has to
be drawn somewhere. I don't think you should be able to contact bidders
with an offer to sell the item they are bidding on, though it does seem
reasonable to be able to tell people that the producer of the item sells
to the general public, but may not be reasonable to tell bidders that
the item is available in store XYZ.
--
Frank Filz
-----------------------------
Work: mailto:ffilz@us.ibm.com (business only please)
Home: mailto:ffilz@mindspring.com
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: Another ebay scammer
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| (...) I know you've said you feel constrained to abide by that ridiculous interpretation of the TOS, especially since you wish to continue to bid on things at eBay. But do you honestly think people who have no desire to register or use eBay are (...) (25 years ago, 5-Oct-99, to lugnet.market.auction)
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