I'm sure the world's population is starting to wake up to the fact that e**y has become too much of a big corporate monster that bullies it's primary bloodline, the seller, to the point of the ridiculous, and has done as much harm to the world, as it has good. Well, e**y, take heed....

In the U.K., prior to the internet exploding into our public lives during the 90's, there was only one real classifieds media platform worth the time of day, and that was Loot. It started off small, but by the early to mid 90's it had become the be all and end all of classified ads, much like what e**y is today. It got so big for it's boots, it even ventured stateside and had a NY issue, among others. In the early days it was fantastic, just like e**y used to be, but then came the onslaught of bureaucracy and red tape, and slowly Loot became an evil corporate monster that everybody started to hate, much like e**y today... I used to use Loot all the time, and can't tell you how many Ibanez guitars alone I bought, sold, traded through that paper. Then one day I received a phone call from a Loot employee telling me my ads have been canceled and that I have been banned from placing ads unless I pay for a business advert. I was furious... I told him I was not a "dealer" and when he wouldn't budge on the issue, promptly told him where to go. That was around 1994-ish

Thankfully, the rise of e**y pretty much killed off Loot and although it still exists as a few regional thin issues, it's not even a shadow of it's former self. I can't even remember the last time I picked one up, and even then, the musical instrument section was only about 1 column, compared to the multi pages of columns it used to be. It's a dead media patform. They tried the online angle too, but failed miserably.

So, today, January 2009, I get a phone call on my mobile/cell phone, and low and behold it's a Loot sale person, who, after obviously lifting my number from a local newspaper that I advertise guitar tuition in, (how desperate must they be? it's not even a local paper to them), tried talking me into advertising with them. Obviously I took great pleasure in telling the sales person exactly why I won't be placing any ads with them, and after I hung up and took a few minutes to reflect, I thought it was uncanny how the tables had turned.

TAKE NOTE, E**Y!! because you and your other evil twin paypal are sucking ass with all your red tape and pathetic policies. You're so busy sucking up to buyers that you forget where the buck comes from.

I listed my simul-class 2:90 on there after xmas, and after having it deleted by e**y 3 times for stupid things like "not accepting paypal" "local cash on collection only" mentioning Marshall in the description where I stated that I had used a JMP-1 in conjunction with the amp... etc etc, I gave up and sold it through a forum elsewhere. That's a far cry from when e**y started up the .co.uk domain and were sucking up to anything that moved. They even gave me 12 months free listings to encourage me off the .com domain.

Now? I hardly use e**y at all.... and if that trend spreads, best of luck to that sales person calling in the near future.... etc.

Right, just thought I'd share that with ya'll lol

There are people I know of in Australia that are happy to use forums instead of evilbay to sell there items even if they mean they take a $100 - $150 lose.

Jemsite is the perfect example. There are many specialist forums where they are the first port of call when selling or looking for something in particular. It's a trend that's been growing for a long time and long may they prosper. However, like most things in life, there's a point where something becomes too successful and it all starts going wrong.

i hear ya. i know many many people who used to use **** a lot, including me, but that was in the mid 90s. they are filled with greed now. i relisted something recently 3 times, that still hasn't sold, and they charged me full price, 3 times! the bill was something like $65 for something that didn't sell. their resolution....relist it again! we will credit you once it sells. i was in touch with an online chat person and they confirmed i will be charged 10 times if i relist 10 times! ..... but will credit you for the last insertion. OH THANKS! so i'm paying 9 times then. i hate them and don't use them unless i have to. the guy did credit me...he was nice.

i used to work for a newspaper that sold everything, in the chicago area, called tradin' times. remember them you illinois guys?! that was a great paper. there were columns and columns of gear. everything from guitars to amps to boats to cars to jewelry. being that i worked there, i knew what was going to be in the paper before it hit the streets. i had first dibs on great gear...and took advantage of a few sales...hehe. unfortunately they have not been around since the mid-90's. they were going strong in the early 90s when i worked there.