EcommerceBytes-NewsFlash, Number 2887 - September 07, 2012 
3 of 5 
eBay Announces New Global Shipping Program - Prematurely?
By Ina Steiner
EcommerceBytes broke the story about the as-yet unannounced eBay Global Shipping Program last month, a program designed to foster cross-border trade.
On Thursday, eBay announced the program on its blog, but later deleted the post. Here's the deleted announcement:
In today's world, the marketplace is global - but shipping product globally can be a headache. That's why eBay Marketplaces is testing the Global Shipping Program (GSP), to make cross-border trade considerably easier.
With GSP, U.S.-based sellers just ship their item to a U.S. shipping center, and the Global Shipping Program takes care of the rest. The global shipping provider will process the package, complete customs forms, pay applicable import charges, and ship the package internationally. This industry-leading borderless shopping experience aims to open millions of new listings to the international market, enabling sellers to grow their - and eBay's - cross-border trade business with the same ease as selling domestically.
"The future of commerce depends on helping our customers bridge international borders," said Carl Gish, Vice President of Global Shipping, Marketplaces. "With the global shipping program, we are testing new ways to open global commerce corridors, while giving customers that "domestic feel" they've grown accustomed to."
"The technology back-end that powers the global shipping program is truly innovative on a variety of fronts, and highlights the brilliant talent of our teams," said Ken Moss, Vice President, managed marketplaces technology (pictured above).
The Global Shipping Program pilot is available now, and will open to all U.S.-based sellers later this year. It's easy to get started by enrolling a seller account in the pilot. GSP is free and applies to any item; however, it is particularly effective for items selling for $50 or more. Complete program details are available, including ideal listing categories.
See more information in this August 23rd EcommerceBytes news story.
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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