EBay Updates User Agreement Policy
This week, eBay has made several changes to its User Agreement and Privacy Policy. In a public announcement, Scott Shipman, eBay's Legal Team Senior Counsel, said that the changes are minor and that eBay members will find their rights and responsibilities have changed very little. The reason prompting the changes, according to Shipman, is that they are part of a worldwide effort make the user agreements and privacy policies for eBay platforms more consistent.

The Content and Liability sections have been updated to accommodate eBay's pre-filled option, which makes catalogs of content and product descriptions available to sellers. Also, the Disclosure section of eBay's Privacy Policy has been updated to accurately reflect the ways in which eBay transfers information between companies within the eBay corporate family. the idea is to streamline the process when you use any of eBay sites or services.

EBay sellers will be required to accept the new User Agreement or Privacy Policy. In his post, Scott Shipman links to the help page on closing your account should any members not agree to the User Agreement and Privacy Policy changes.

International Site Visibility Upgrade For a Nickel
This week eBay says that sellers can use the International Site Visibility listing upgrade for just five cents per listing. This listing upgrade helps sellers to reach buyers in the UK by displaying your item in regular search results on eBay UK. The regular fee for using this update is ten cents for items that cost up to $9.99, twenty cents for items priced from $10 to $49.99 and forty cents for items that cost more than $50. All three tiers are currently set to five cents until July 4th only.

eBay Encourages TRUSTe Certification For eBay Developers Program
eBay and TRUSTe have recently partnered to raise awareness of best practices surrounding downloadable software. This means that eBay will adopt TRUSTe's Trusted Download Program certification for downloadable applications. The company will also provide incentives for members of the eBay Developers Program to do the same by offering discounts for members to obtain their Trusted Download Program certification. The partnership between eBay and TRUSTe is designed to ensure that downloadable software used in association with eBay is consistent with industry best practices for informed consumer choice, overall software behavior and responsible distribution and promotion practices.

Resources and Tools For Online Sellers
Flying Cart offers free basic storefronts, AuctionSound Offers New EBay Bulk Import Feature, RainWorx updates and discounts its auction site software and Interspire updates its shopping cart software.

Kitsch Klothing, a Toronto-based designer Web shop, uses Flying Cart for its online storefront. (Click for larger image).

Free Online Store For Sellers
Sellers looking to set-up their own free online store have an option that goes beyond listing at the smaller eBay alternative-auction Web sites. Flying Cart, created and developed by Rishi Shah, offers online sellers a way to customize a storefront and also manage their product inventory online. A free, basic Flying cart store lets you list five products (one image per product) and you get three free transactions per month. The free account also includes common storefront features such as Web hosting, PayPal integration, shipping, your own unique address on flyingcart.com, order tracking and more.

The Standard account is $14.99 per month and offers 50 product listings and unlimited transactions. The Pro account costs $29.99 per month for an unlimited number of products and transactions. Other features available in paid version of a Flying Cart storefront include a bulk uploader, inventory management, order tracking, custom CSS and also search engine submission.  Free stores really are free and you will not be required to run advertisements or pay transactions fees when you use the free storefront service. If you choose an upgraded storefront, sellers pay only the monthly subscription fee.

AuctionSound Offers New Bulk Import Feature
AuctionSound, a Web-based eBay drop-off store and auction-management system, has announced a new feature that will let eBay sellers import bulk inventory with a CSV file. For those creating their own inventory list or exporting it from a supplier, this new AuctionSound feature can generate eBay-ready listings in a single step. The AuctionSound platform can help sellers manage all aspects of their eBay business including consignor management, auction templates, image hosting, inventory management, shipping and financial reporting. A free, 30-day trial is available on the AuctionSound Web site.

New Version of rwAuction Pro Released
RainWorx Auction Software has released a new version of its auction site software. Version 6.0 includes improvements to several features including the invoicing system, a better way of organizing listings with a new US-based Zip code radius search and also regional options for international clients.  RainWorx says that the new version of rwAuction Pro also facilitates payment and fee collection with the integration of the PayPal PayFlow Pro merchant service, and it incorporates time-saving administrative functionality for tasks such as importing listings with CSV files and category management.

The new rwAuction Pro version 6.0 typically sells for $995 but, for a limited time, you can purchase the program for $795 on the RainWorx Web site. The company offers both end-user and admin demos on its site. If you're interested in starting your own auction Web site, you can see live examples of rwAuction Pro by visiting the Wensy and BullbayAuction sites.

Interspire Shopping Cart 3.5 Available
In other news this week Interspire has released version 3.5 of the Interspire Shopping Cart, a private label e-commerce software that combines both customizable store designs and marketing tools in one platform. Interspire says that new features in this release include single page checkout, QuickBooks store sync, shipping zones and cost estimates, LivePerson and live chat integration, multi-level category menus, wish lists, Google Checkout integration and more. Interspire Shopping Cart 3.5 is available in three editions with the Starter Edition available for $295. Once you purchase the software, you own it outright and do not pay any other fees to use it.