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eBay's Half.com marketplace posted news on its discussion boards on Monday that sellers would no longer be able to list game consoles. Beginning November 24 (Thanksgiving Day in the U.S.), sellers will no longer be able to list new game system or accessory listings on Half.com.

Half.com said the new ban was "an effort to put more focus on media items, which have always been Half.com's specialty." Sellers in the game systems category believe eBay is making the move in response to fraud.

One EcommerceBytes reader wrote, "Instead of working to prevent fraud, eBay (HDC) is planning on removing the entire category, unlike its competitors such as Barnes and Noble, who are adding such categories."

eBay had purchased the Half site in 2000 and planned to integrate it into eBay and eliminate the Half.com website and brand, but eBay reversed the decision in 2004 with much ambivalence.

Shortly after Thanksgiving, Half.com will roll out the second phase of the policy enforcement by removing all game system and accessory listings from the site, and will remove the categories from the Half.com marketplace. ("Games" is a separate category that will remain on Half.com.)

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About the author:

Ina Steiner is co-founder and Editor of EcommerceBytes and has been reporting on ecommerce since 1999. She's a widely cited authority on marketplace selling and is author of "Turn eBay Data Into Dollars" (McGraw-Hill 2006). Her blog was featured in the book, "Blogging Heroes" (Wiley 2008). Follow her on Twitter at @ecommercebytes and send news tips to ina@ecommercebytes.com.

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