Any way to stop these reprint sales on eBay?
Ahmanfan
Posts: 4,389 ✭✭✭✭
I was wondering if anyone had any ideas how we can stop these sellers. They hide the reprint info in the bottom of their descriptions to technically comply with the T&C's, but it's still obviously preying on the uninformed. Additionally, having all of these out in the wild only makes our lives harder and harder moving forward. Look at all their listings and you'll see a ton of these reprints of various cards.
Collecting
HOF SIGNED FOOTBALL RCS
HOF SIGNED FOOTBALL RCS
1
Comments
Harass the card manufacturers into enforcing their copyrights.
ETA: "Reprint" should only be used for copies that are at least authorized by the original manufacturer (i.e. Topps "Cards Your Mom Threw Out"). These should be described with a word of greater stigma, "counterfeit" or "forgery".
I hate sleazy sellers as much as the next guy, but this guy has RP it in his title, and his mentioning that it is not real is not hidden; it actually takes up 33% of his description.
"RP" could mean anything. And labeling it as "Topps" in the auction title is fraud.
Tabe is right. That is not a TOPPS card. Blatant lie.
Evening,
Funny thing, when you mention the Subject and we use the link to look at it and there's like 50 different Sales of Bogus cards all over the same E-Bay page! Ahmanfan I agree with you, but if E-Bay won't do anything, then nothing will get done!
YeeHaw!
Neil
This is a bunch of BS for sure
"This card is an ACEO reprint Art piece. Not to be confused with the original card or a fake rendition. This is NOT a replica"
For starters, I am fairly certain that this does not meet the definition of an ACEO. I guess one could argue, but it certainly is counter to the original concept for an ACEO.
"Art Cards, Editions & Originals - ACEO
aceo.org
ACEOs are miniature pieces of art that measure 2-1/2" x 3-1/2". If a small piece of art has different measurements than this, it does not qualify as an ACEO. The acronym "ACEO" stands for Art Cards, Editions and Originals. They can be original art, print editions or photographs."
"This is NOT a replica". How do you figure this is NOT a replica, when it is IN FACT an exact REPLICA of the original Topps card, front & Back!
"Not to be confused with the original card", but how are you making sure that this will not be mistaken as the original? Is it a matte finish? Is it on high gloss paper? Is it marked in anyway to lead anyone to believe it is anything but an original? Hopefully side by side with an original or even for those in the know, it is easy to spot, but there are enough uneducated, naive buyers who could fall for this trickery.
This is clearly an unauthorized reproduction.reprint of an original Topps card. Nothing but illegal garbage that if any fool actually buys, is lining this POS's pocket with a $20 each time.
trying to stop reprint sellers on eBay is like trying to get rid of mosquitoes, it’s impossible.
trying to stop reprint sellers on eBay is like trying to--I'd rather not type the rest of it.
I hate that everytime i look at brady rookies i have to weed through all the RPs
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
@craig44 I hate that everytime i look at brady rookies i have to weed through all the RPs
TYPE IN -REPRINT, -RP and it will clean up your search results to remove those key words
Buyer beware, make sure you look closely.
Ebay will do nothing, they make money doing the wrong thing.
always buyer beware for sure, but at least clear out the ones that are not pretending to be real
I suppose you could start new eBay accounts, bid and not pay. Frustrate them to no end. Hardly seems worth it. Maybe, send replica money, wait no, the US Treasury would likely not find it as funny...hmmm, local pick up? Idk. Would be fun to come up with something creative.
Kirby Puckett Master Set
Here's one where you can add your own autograph. The seller also has "autographed" cards for sale and even is selling kits to add your own autograph to any card! If any scammers need stopped it's this one.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1986-Fleer-Michael-Jordan-Sticker-8-Reprint-with-early-AUTOGRAPH-read-details/203298342353?hash=item2f558685d1:g:IBYAAOSw6PRgItUX
Any way to stop these reprint sales on eBay?
By contacting eBay? I can say 100% no.
I'll explain. I (and many others) were in a program from eBay called the EMR (Enhanced Member Reporting) program. I was asked to join years ago. Basically it gave us more options when reporting listings such as unlimited listing numbers to report at one time instead of having to report 1 at a time. It also meant that our reports were priority over all others. In fact one of the internal team members confirmed that EMR reports were basically all that they would look at and that regular folks who thought they were getting things removed by reporting were in fact not (odds are an EMR member had reported but regular user thought it was his/her report that did the trick).
The key to removal in the sports card listings was simple. If a seller was breaking a policy it would get removed within minutes of an EMR member reporting an item.
Easiest policy example:
"Restricted
You can list the following trading cards only if they've been professionally graded by a reputable grading company
During the heyday of the program if one listed any of those cards raw they would get pulled very fast once reported.
Second was Counterfeit item policy:
"We don't allow counterfeit items or unauthorized copies to be listed on eBay.
Items that bear a company's official brand name or logo can be listed, as long as the products were lawfully made by, for, or with the consent of that company.
Unauthorized copies may include items that are bootlegged, illegally duplicated, or pirated. These items may infringe on someone's copyright or trademark.
What is the policy?
Counterfeit products are illegal and not allowed on eBay. Examples include: Fakes, copies, or replicas of brand name items"
That above policy is certainly what is going on with the seller mentioned by the OP. One of the things people started doing early on was list As a reprint. This wording back in the day was confirmed from an inside source at eBay to be a violation and was enough to get a listing removed. It would be used like "as I don't know if this item is real I must list it as a reprint according to eBay policy". There never was such a policy and to the best of my knowledge there still is no such policy.
Around 2013 things started to change. Items that had been pulled before were suddenly not being removed. An example was one seller had had multiple listings removed of a 1985 Star Co Michael Jordan which was described as a reprint when it was a counterfeit.
Response given for allowing the listing (and all other counterfeits of this card after this date was)
"However, regarding item XXXXXXXXXXXX we won't be taking action as the Star Jordan card has been counterfeited so much that they no longer maintain the value they once had".
Makes sense, doesn't it? Counterfeit policy was (and is still) crystal clear that being fake it wasn't allowed and yet an eBay employee stating no longer would it get pulled and that going forward would be allowed to be sold (thus eBay knowingly was profiting off of fake goods).
An EMR re-org took place in or around Feb 2013. Lots of changes started with listings not being removed where previously the same things would be removed and the individual I had been dealing with had been promoted out of the inner workings of the EMR program. The new person started throwing around words such as "limited staff" being the reason especially on weekends. Sellers of fake garbage started figuring this out and many times these items would get listed to run only for a couple days during the weekends.
This started the phase of eBay "educating" the sellers of these things as to why they can't be listed. They would "educate" a seller over and over and over and over. Listing pulled, educating email sent, listing back up, wash, rinse and repeat.
In 2014 I and many other members received the following email:
"In regards to your participation in the Enhanced Member Reporting Program, we’d like to thank you for your active involvement and contributions to the program.
We have undergone a recent strategy shift. Effective April 1st, 2014 your participation in the EMR program expired. As a result, you will no longer have access to the EMR reporting tool and your account will be routed to the standard reporting flow, available to all eBay members.
Once again, thank you for your efforts in improving the marketplace and being a valuable member of the eBay community. Have a wonderful time shopping and selling on eBay!
Best Regards,
The EMR Team"
Don't know if any of that answers the original question but shows when eBay basically gave up on these types of cards being listed and did away with the many members that devoted hundreds and hundreds of hours of their time (without any form of compensation) to try and keep the hobby which they loved as free as possible from fake junk.
Jeff
Miscut Museum
My Mess
I chose not to read the small book he wrote above, but it is great to see @Barfvader (Jeff) out of retirement. Welcome back sir.
1st like recorded
Buyer beware I guess. I hate all the reprints as much as the next guy as to me it just spoils the hobby. There are honest people and swindlers, I guess the key is find the honest dealers you can rely on to give buyers a fair shake. I never put things in small print, nor do I buy or sell reprints.
Yes, this is very sad, indeed. They need to put a stop to this BS, ASAP. For example, there's this one seller, risa_4117, who not only sells exact copies (literally scans), but I have seen some of them re-sold as 'unknown' for hundreds. This seller sent me an actual insert of hundreds of other fakes they offer, along with one of the fakes I bought. I even showed the seller the listing to show what they're spreading everywhere, that their cards are being sold like originals. They didn't care one bit. This idiot claims you can easily tell the difference between theirs and originals, which is really beside the point, but how the hell do you differentiate a literal scan? Come on now. This is like scanning money and printing it off, and eBay is allowing it. I wanted to see what it looked like, so I bought a '33 Goudey Ruth. I was already pissed off they were selling them, but to see that list of hundreds of other fakes they're willing to sell offline by email/PayPal, I realized this seller is either producing them, or is very close to the one producing them. Every time I ask these idiots where they get them, they're like, "at a card show...blah, blah". These people make me sick.
But yeah, like Barfvader said, I don't think eBay cares. I spoke with someone at eBay about it a few weeks ago, and she acted like she was concerned and took down all the info, but that seller is still selling the same stuff. It's BS.
People aren't buying these FAKES as a novelty piece or conversation piece. They're trying to pass them to naive buyers.
Let's just hope they're bad enough reprints not to get passed a rookie at PSA and I trust PSA has all the safeguards in place.
This is the very reason I only buy TPG cards from the top 3 companies
Here’s another seller trying to pawn off his custom cards as made on the year on back which is total BS, he’s trying to deceive some poor schmuck who doesn’t have a clue on what he’s buying.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1988-Michael-Jordan-Slam-Dunk-Contest-Gatorade-Mini-Card-GO-FLIGHT-Nike/333913686405?hash=item4dbece8185:g:HNMAAOSwc2NgRbv8
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1984-Michael-Jordan-Rookie-RC-Chicago-Bulls-8-Bit-NO-1986-Fleer/333913693965?hash=item4dbece9f0d:g:
These two he doesn’t even bother with any disclaimer.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2000-Tom-Brady-Rookie-RC-Tobacco-Michigan-Wolverines-MVP-GOAT-HOF/333888475008?hash=item4dbd4dcf80:g:6dYAAOSwb41gJ44Z
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Kobe-Bryant-Rookie-RC-Card-1996-Los-Angeles-Lakers-Rookie-Card/333888469696?hash=item4dbd4dbac0:g:aBMAAOSw3Y1gJ4zU
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Why do you call them "reprints"? Aren't they really forgeries? Counterfeits? Aren't "reprints" authorized by the copyright owner?
Sadly this is what the "hobby" has come down to. Dishonest cheats looking to take advantage of people. Great way to combat the problem:
Stop using eBay.
I just solidified my spot in that category.
As you may or may not have read on another thread, I recently had all my Mike Trout RCs graded by PSA in January for this exact reason. I wanted to sell and saw way to many misleading reprint and fakes. Thought I would do the right thing and grade them to take any doubt out fo the authenticity and slap a grade on it for added value.
A few sleepless nights later I got my PSA 9 Mike Trout Diamond Anniversary PSA 9 back after selling for $9300. Buyer claimed it was not as bright as my scans and not as described and he was looking for something more like a PSA 10. He filed a case against me that I lost despite those comments in why he filed case. eBay does not recognize a 3rd party grading company as a legitimate source for this type of thing.
If eBay will not recognize companies like PSA to ensure the authenticity of something like a card that why would it matter to shop on eBay or even try to pick a fight about them allowing the amount of fakes, reprints etc to be listed and sold?
I pulled all my listings off and done after 20 years of buying and selling. It has become a joke and while ebay will always be there, others will pop up and eventually a decent site that doesn't gauge you in fees and actually support you the seller with all those fees you pay.
Just my opinion.
Personally I wouldn’t buy a reprint card, but if people want to buy them, for whatever reason, what’s the harm?
It seems the makers of the original cards should make and license the reprints. As long as the card is clearly labeled as reprint, novelty, or otherwise not official, if a buyer wants to plunk down $ for it, let them.
Not all people who buy reprints are dupes. I believe there’s a market for this sort of thing; card companies would be wise to mine it.