Buyer Sues eBay for Alleged Online Slander

Grojlach · 01-24-2003, 04:17 PM

Buyer Sues eBay for Alleged Online Slander

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A Los Angeles man who says he was libeled in eBay Inc.'s EBAY.O "feedback" section of its Web site has sued the online auction house for refusing to remove statements he says damaged his reputation.
Analysts say the case, sparked by an online sale of vintage Hollywood magazines, cuts to the heart of what makes eBay work: the power of buyers and sellers to keep an eye on each other.
Robert Grace, publisher of a Los Angeles legal newspaper, sued eBay and Hollywood memorabilia dealer Tim Neeley this week in a California Superior Court after the Web site refused to remove negative comments Neeley made after selling Grace six vintage entertainment magazines.
According to the lawsuit, Neeley said Grace "should be banned from eBay," and was "dishonest all the way" for alleging in the online forum that the magazines he bought had arrived late and in a worse condition than advertised.
In his lawsuit, Grace demands $2.5 million in punitive damages from eBay and $100,000 from Neeley.
A spokesman for eBay said the company would not comment on pending litigation. Neeley said Grace started the battle of words by complaining in eBay's signature feedback section about the condition of the "Radio TV Digest" magazines he bought. The magazines dated from the 1940s and 1950s, he said.
Grace said when he asked Neeley for a retraction, the memorabilia dealer replied: "Get a life, dude."
EBay warns its users they could be held responsible for fallout from libelous comments they make in "feedback," where buyers and sellers can rate each transaction.
"You are responsible for your own words," a warning on the site states, in part. "You should be careful about making comments that could be libelous or slanderous. You will not be able to retract or edit feedback you left."

SUIT ASKS FOR FILTERS
Grace, an attorney, said he would not have filed suit over the postings "except for the fact that eBay's policy needs to be revised."
"Once they are advised that something isn't true and they just shrug their shoulders, that is arrogant," Grace said. "They can control content and for them to fail to do so is unconscionable."
The suit asks a judge to force the cyber-auctioneer to filter words like "fraud, liar, cheater, scam artist, con man" from the site, or to warn users of the prospect of potentially libelous retaliation if they complain about a seller.
One analyst doubted whether the suit would have much impact on the wide-open cybermarket.
"One of the cleverest things they did was saying, 'We are not responsible, we are only a platform,"' said analyst Safa Rashtchy for U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffrey. "EBay is like Teflon cookware: nothing sticks to it."
Although eBay has successfully fended off similar suits, an erosion of the feedback system's credibility could be devastating, said Rashtchy.
"If this or other lawsuits over feedback were to succeed ... it would be hugely negative for eBay. EBay's success is largely because of this feedback system," he said.
The lawsuit also demands that buyers and sellers, who use aliases in eBay transactions, register their screen names with the state of California as fictitious business names, and that eBay be forced to collect state sales tax.

Source: Reuters

Rolandthemad · 01-24-2003, 05:27 PM

Hmm..sounds like a frivilous lawsuit to me. All sellers have at least one negative remark for them. If he doesn`t have much positive feedback then I wonder if the negative feedback is true? It didn`t even say if the condition of the books were really as poor as the buyer said they were.

I wonder how registering with California fits in. Probably so the lawyers can have more legal wrangling power. I hope Ebay doesn`t buckle under this.

[ 01-24-2003, 05:29 PM: Message edited by: Rolandthemad ]

Grojlach · 01-25-2003, 03:55 AM

I agree, Roland... The feedback part is one of the most important eBay features. Adding a filter could only lead to people deleting negative feedback to make their reputation look less bad.
Can't help but say "boohoo" to the guy who's suing now... You have to admit he's a bit of a crybaby over this matter, or at least a terrible sport.

01-24-2003, 04:17 PM	#1
Grojlach Zartan Join Date: May 2, 2001 Location: Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum Age: 43 Posts: 5,281	Buyer Sues eBay for Alleged Online Slander LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A Los Angeles man who says he was libeled in eBay Inc.'s EBAY.O "feedback" section of its Web site has sued the online auction house for refusing to remove statements he says damaged his reputation. Analysts say the case, sparked by an online sale of vintage Hollywood magazines, cuts to the heart of what makes eBay work: the power of buyers and sellers to keep an eye on each other. Robert Grace, publisher of a Los Angeles legal newspaper, sued eBay and Hollywood memorabilia dealer Tim Neeley this week in a California Superior Court after the Web site refused to remove negative comments Neeley made after selling Grace six vintage entertainment magazines. According to the lawsuit, Neeley said Grace "should be banned from eBay," and was "dishonest all the way" for alleging in the online forum that the magazines he bought had arrived late and in a worse condition than advertised. In his lawsuit, Grace demands $2.5 million in punitive damages from eBay and $100,000 from Neeley. A spokesman for eBay said the company would not comment on pending litigation. Neeley said Grace started the battle of words by complaining in eBay's signature feedback section about the condition of the "Radio TV Digest" magazines he bought. The magazines dated from the 1940s and 1950s, he said. Grace said when he asked Neeley for a retraction, the memorabilia dealer replied: "Get a life, dude." EBay warns its users they could be held responsible for fallout from libelous comments they make in "feedback," where buyers and sellers can rate each transaction. "You are responsible for your own words," a warning on the site states, in part. "You should be careful about making comments that could be libelous or slanderous. You will not be able to retract or edit feedback you left." SUIT ASKS FOR FILTERS Grace, an attorney, said he would not have filed suit over the postings "except for the fact that eBay's policy needs to be revised." "Once they are advised that something isn't true and they just shrug their shoulders, that is arrogant," Grace said. "They can control content and for them to fail to do so is unconscionable." The suit asks a judge to force the cyber-auctioneer to filter words like "fraud, liar, cheater, scam artist, con man" from the site, or to warn users of the prospect of potentially libelous retaliation if they complain about a seller. One analyst doubted whether the suit would have much impact on the wide-open cybermarket. "One of the cleverest things they did was saying, 'We are not responsible, we are only a platform,"' said analyst Safa Rashtchy for U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffrey. "EBay is like Teflon cookware: nothing sticks to it." Although eBay has successfully fended off similar suits, an erosion of the feedback system's credibility could be devastating, said Rashtchy. "If this or other lawsuits over feedback were to succeed ... it would be hugely negative for eBay. EBay's success is largely because of this feedback system," he said. The lawsuit also demands that buyers and sellers, who use aliases in eBay transactions, register their screen names with the state of California as fictitious business names, and that eBay be forced to collect state sales tax. Source: Reuters __________________ [url]\"http://www.audioscrobbler.com/user/Grobbel/\" target=\"_blank\"> [img]\"http://www.denness.net/rpi/username/Grobbel\" alt=\" - \" /></a>

01-25-2003, 03:55 AM	#3
Grojlach Zartan Join Date: May 2, 2001 Location: Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum Age: 43 Posts: 5,281	I agree, Roland... The feedback part is one of the most important eBay features. Adding a filter could only lead to people deleting negative feedback to make their reputation look less bad. Can't help but say "boohoo" to the guy who's suing now... You have to admit he's a bit of a crybaby over this matter, or at least a terrible sport. __________________ [url]\"http://www.audioscrobbler.com/user/Grobbel/\" target=\"_blank\"> [img]\"http://www.denness.net/rpi/username/Grobbel\" alt=\" - \" /></a>

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01-24-2003, 05:27 PM	#2
Rolandthemad Manshoon Join Date: February 27, 2002 Location: The Future Age: 40 Posts: 217	Hmm..sounds like a frivilous lawsuit to me. All sellers have at least one negative remark for them. If he doesn`t have much positive feedback then I wonder if the negative feedback is true? It didn`t even say if the condition of the books were really as poor as the buyer said they were. I wonder how registering with California fits in. Probably so the lawyers can have more legal wrangling power. I hope Ebay doesn`t buckle under this. [ 01-24-2003, 05:29 PM: Message edited by: Rolandthemad ]

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