On Monday, we asked eBay.com’s spokesperson if eBay was testing a free-shipping membership program after a Wall Street analyst revealed the marketplace was testing a program that would cost $25/year for Free Next Day delivery on certain orders – similar in part to Amazon Prime.
While eBay didn’t respond to our inquiry, we discovered eBay Germany is testing such a program in which buyers can pay an annual fee to receive a “number of benefits” in shipping and the redemptions.
eBay Germany had announced the beta program as part of the spring seller updates in that country. It said the benefits to sellers would include extra exposure on its site – products that qualify for the program will be specially marked and highlighted in the search.
In addition, participating sellers would receive additional discounts on final value fees, and eBay would bear part of the costs for any returned items.
eBay Germany said it was testing the program with a select group of sellers – items would not be visible to buyers throughout the testing phase. More information is available on the eBay Germany website (in German language).
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