eBay Users Up in Arms Over Billing System

eBay (EBAY Quote) wants a piece of the action, but its loyal users have a message: Leave us alone.

Sellers on the online auction site are turning up their noses at a new feature that streamlines the payment process for the large customers eBay seeks to attract more of. The feature, dubbed Checkout, presents sellers with the option of settling transactions through Billpoint, a payment-clearing joint venture of eBay and Wells Fargo (WFC Quote); in most cases, sellers pay a small fee based on the transaction's value.

Ordinarily, buyers and sellers on eBay arrange payment by mutual agreement, whether by credit card, check or 3 a.m. meeting at the Hempstead, N.Y., Long Island Rail Road station. eBay stresses that those options, which allow users to avoid paying a transaction fee altogether, remain open. But some eBay users, furious about the company's supposed intrusion into their community, are claiming they'll leave for Yahoo! (YHOO Quote) auctions. The scrum raises questions about eBay's famous customer loyalty as the online auctioneer seeks to expand its business. The stock rose 89 cents Tuesday to $53.41.

Confusion?

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