Description Theft

[Vroomfunkel]

I am never quite sure whether to be pleased or annoyed when someone steals one of my item descriptions. For example:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3077271054&category=3644

This is a direct word for word copy of the text for my auction for the same item, which is due to finish tomorrow. Now, I do take time to write glowing descriptions of the games I sell. And I am sure it helps some of my games sell very well. In a sense I am flattered when someone else chooses to use my words. But I am also somewhat annoyed, because that is my time and effort there. All my auction descriptions are my own unique effort. Why should someone else sell their stuff on the back of my work?

I have found this to happen quite a lot with descriptions I write. Perhaps I should set up a service, whereby people can pay me a small fee to write their descriptions for them. Because quite a lot of them are rubbish!

Hmm, well. That's my rant over. Perhaps I am just in a bad mood today. Hmm ... I love the smell of rejection in the morning. Especially just before Valentine's Day. Lovely.

Vroomfunkel

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

This stuff has happened to me before too. I usually write to the seller and tell them that I'd like them to ask permission before leeching stuff off my web site next time. The responses to that.......vary.

There's one seller who's still on there after all these years, who's made a habit of ripping off my marquee/side art scans and making cheap-ass lighters and keychains with them. For a long time, he was doing Dig Dug lighters and was linking to a Dig Dug animation from my review of the original arcade game - the bastard wasn't just stealing my work, he was stealing my bandwidth too. I moved the animation to a different location on my server and changed my page accordingly; in its original place I put a new animation that informed buyers that the person had stolen the graphics for his unauthorized wares from my site, and that the buyer might also want to check the fellow's rather spotty feedback record as well. I got a very angry e-mail - actually, not just angry, but threatening - from the seller, which I then turned around and forwarded right back to eBay. Despite my best efforts, the bastard's still there.

Ya gotta love these guys. Like you love an unsightly rash. Which is to say...not at all. :P

[§ Gideon §]

... the bastard wasn't just stealing my work, he was stealing my bandwidth too. I moved the animation to a different location on my server and changed my page accordingly; in its original place I put a new animation that informed buyers that the person had stolen the graphics for his unauthorized wares from my site, and that the buyer might also want to check the fellow's rather spotty feedback record as well.
Heehee. I like how you responded.

[punkoffgirl]

Jeeze.. took me long enough to find this. I even typed "description theft" in the search bar, lotta good that did.

http://pages.ebay.com/help/confidence/vero-image-text-theft.html

It IS against eBay policy for someone to copy your description.

[Kejoriv]

thats happened to me a few times. I hate when people do that. :angry:

[Ed Oscuro]

Jeeze.. took me long enough to find this. I even typed "description theft" in the search bar, lotta good that did.

Hey, at least you found SOMETHING. eBay's policy seems to be "Ignore everything until it's too late, and never, never, never give quick access to answers they care about.

Still, might be able to do something with that...problem would just be proving that your item description was first, and that theirs wasn't.

[SegaAges]

maybe i am just being naive, but what the hell is so hard about describing what you are selling?

if it has instructions, say so. if you are selling things such as shining force for mega cd, 99.9% of the people that read the description will be reading it because they know what it is, they know the value, and they want to buy it.

now taking pictures, i can see that. i am not sure if i would do it, just because i wouldn't need to, but text is different.

send him an e-mail calling him dumb. it is always fun to do that.

[Achika]

Yup, it's happened to me with both descriptions and images. And I get *pissed*. Since I usually don't use the images in an eBay auction, I doubt eBay would do anything to remove the auctions that are stealing my images that aren't on their site. I'm afraid that one day, someone will use an image that looks spotless to sell a dingy ass system, while leaving the copyright in the image. Later *I* get the bitching email.

They say: "I found it in a google search"

Ah ha, and you just had to photoshop out that nice little copyright symbol I had on their right?

Thanks and MEGA kudos for those who've PM'ed me with eBay offenders.

[Vroomfunkel]

Well, I decided to send the guy a message ... many thanks to punkoffgirl for finding the appropriate regulation!! We'll see what response (if any ..) I receive ..


As much as I am flattered by your decision to use my description for your auction, I feel obliged to point out that this is against eBay regulations :

http://pages.ebay.com/help/confidence/vero-image-text-theft.html

Seriously, it does not take very much time or effort to write your own description, and it will make your auction more unique, which is what attracts a lot of people to bid. In this case I have not reported your action, but in future please use your own words to sell your goods. Thankyou!

Vroomfunkel

[Rev. Link]

But don't you think eBay will pretty much not care? It seems to me lately that eBay is willing to let people violate as many of their "rules" as they want, 'cuz actually enforcing the rules would mean having to get rid of a lot of accounts, which in turn would result in eBay losing money.

And after all, what does eBay care about people getting screwed when it means they make more money? x_x

[Vroomfunkel]

They probably won't care. But he doesn't know that :D

Anyway, here is the reply I got ..


fair point :D

sorry, won't happen again.

Probably meaning, "I'll just copy somebody else's next time ..." - or am I being cynical?

Vroomfunkel

[sisko]

And then after reading this topic, I decide to see if someone did the same thing to me....

sure enough....

:angry:

[punkoffgirl]

They probably won't care. But he doesn't know that :D

Anyway, here is the reply I got ..


fair point :D

sorry, won't happen again.

Probably meaning, "I'll just copy somebody else's next time ..." - or am I being cynical?

Vroomfunkel

I'm glad it helped your situation.. It used to be a LOT easier to find the link to report it, but then eBay changed all of their SafeHarbor pages.

[Dire 51]

That's happened to me a couple of times - ebay sellers have ripped complete sections of my reviews from West Mansion to sell Splatterhouse games. There's none up there right now that use my reviews, but I've definitely seen them on eBay before.

...although, after reading what few SH auctions had descriptions with them now, I almost wish they would use my reviews just to get the damn stories straight.