Here are some guidelines to keep in mind when creating your own Group or joining one.
Group creation requirements
eBay Groups must relate to the eBay experience of community members.
In order to create a Group, a Leader must agree to follow our Groups Usage Policy. Also, a Leader must:
- Have an eBay account(s) in good standing
- Be a registered eBay user for at least 90 consecutive days
- Maintain a feedback score of 50 or higher
Review period
When a new Group is created, the Leader of the Group is subject to a 30-day review period to confirm whether the Leader is qualified as described above. If the Leader has committed any violations of eBay policies resulting in indefinite board sanctions or any eBay account suspensions, exhibited patterns of systemic violations of the eBay User Agreement or other eBay policies (those resulting in multiple procedural warnings), or violated the Shill Bidding policy, then an eBay Groups Administrator may disqualify the Leader and close the Group during the review period.
Transferring leadership
At any time, a Leader in good standing who voluntarily chooses to leave a Group can transfer the Leader's role to another qualified Group member who wants to assume the role. Alternatively, the Leader can hold a Group Election. A new Leader will be subject to a 30-day review period. Otherwise, if a Leader wants to close a Group, the Leader must submit a request to an eBay Groups Administrator.
A Leader may be disqualified at any time if any of the Leader's accounts fall out of good standing, or otherwise violate the eBay User Agreement or other eBay policies.
If a Leader becomes disqualified or is unable to maintain responsibility for the Group, or if a Leader voluntarily chooses to leave and does not transfer the role or hold a Group Election, Groups Administrators will temporarily freeze the operations of the Group while determining if there is sufficient interest to maintain the Group. If there is sufficient interest in the Group and there remains at least one Group member qualified to be Leader, a Group Election may be held. If (a) there is not sufficient interest, (b) there are no Group members qualified to be Leader or (c) a Group Election does not result in the election of a qualified member, the Group will be closed.
eBay reserves the right to close a Group under any of the following conditions:
- The Leader is disqualified and a qualified replacement Leader can not be found.
- There is no member activity within the Group for 90 or more consecutive days.
- The Leader and/or Moderators fail to fairly enforce the Charter or otherwise violate the terms of the eBay User Agreement, Groups Usage Policy, these Guidelines, or other eBay policies.
Group elections
eBay Groups Administrators may announce and qualify all Group Elections in cases where Leaders have been disqualified. Otherwise, a Leader is responsible for hosting and pre-qualifying Group Election results. Once a date for a Group Election has been announced, any qualified Group members who are not eBay employees can announce their candidacy. All Group Elections will be held using the Groups poll component. The total number of candidates for Leader of a Group cannot exceed the number of poll options. A poll for a Group Election will conclude after 7 days, or earlier once all Group members have submitted their votes.
Group membership, roles, and responsibilities
eBay members with a feedback rating of less than 10 can join up to 25 Groups per week (Monday through Sunday). eBay members can join more than 25 Groups per week either:
- By increasing their feedback score to 10
- By adding more Groups after Monday, 12 a.m. following the week they reached their Group limit.
All members of Groups, including Leaders and Moderators, must be registered on the eBay Web site, and they must agree to abide by the eBay User Agreement, other eBay policies, the Groups Usage Policy, these Guidelines and the Group's Charter, if they want to join a Group and remain members in that Group. A Group member is solely responsible for the materials a member posts.
eBay User Agreement, other eBay policies, the Groups Usage Policy, these Guidelines and the Group's Charter, if they want to join a Group and remain members in that Group. A Group member is solely responsible for the materials a member posts.
Leaders are ultimately responsible for the smooth operation and well being of their Groups. They are responsible for use of their Groups, and all their components, by all of the Group members. Leaders are responsible for moderating all Group activities, and must enforce the terms of the Group Charter and eBay policies using the Groups administrative tools. Leaders must follow instructions provided by Groups Administrators that relate to the enforcement of the eBay User Agreement, Groups Usage Policy and other eBay policies. Failure to meet these responsibilities would be grounds for disqualification, as well as the following consequences:
- All eBay accounts connected to the Leader will be suspended for a 7-day period.
- All current eBay listings of the Leader will be ended.
- The Leader will receive a sanction from the Groups system on the eBay Web site.
A Leader can solicit the help from other Group members who are not eBay employees to manage the Group's operations, assign the role of Moderator, and control Group members' access to certain Group components.
Along with Leaders, Group Moderators are responsible for the smooth operation of the Group and the fair enforcement of the Group Charter and eBay policies. In general, Moderators have access to the Group administrative tools, and the ability to remove Group content and suspend Group members. Moderators must follow instructions provided by Group Leaders and Groups Administrators that relate to the enforcement of Group Charters and eBay policies.
If a Moderator fails to meet these responsibilities, the Leader or Groups Administrators can change the Moderator's role, or remove the Moderator from the Group.
Group Charter
In the Charter, the initial Leader will identify any and all membership terms and conditions specific to the Group. The Charter will include any special conditions that must be met by members in order for them to join the Group, and common rules of conduct expected of all Group members. All Group members, including Leaders and Moderators, must agree to abide by eBay policies, including the eBay User Agreement, the Groups Usage Policy, these Guidelines, and that Group's Charter, if they want to join a Group and remain in that Group.
Charters must be consistent with all eBay policies. For example, a Group Charter cannot require a Group member to publish personal contact information.
Any changes to a Charter must be posted using the Group's Announcements component.
Charter violation appeals
If the Leader or a Moderator of a Group determines that there has been a Charter violation by a Group member or takes action related to that determination (i.e. that is, removes that Group member's post or imposes other Group sanction), then that Group member can appeal the determination and related action to the Leader of that Group. Groups Administrators will not hear appeals from Group members about any determinations or actions related to Charter violations that are taken by Group Leaders and Moderators.
Group member profile information
Each Group member will have a single profile. The profile will include some basic public information related to that Group member's eBay status, such as eBay User ID, feedback scores and feedback stars, as well as a link to that Group member's listings on the eBay Site. A Group member will have the option of adding personal information to his or her profile and the Group member will be responsible for that content. Personal information added to a profile by the Group member will not be verified or crosschecked. The Group member can add, modify, or delete personal information in their own profile at any time. Once a person has registered to join a Group, other members of that Group will be able to view the new Group member's profile and the new Group member will be able to view the profiles of other members of that Group. The profile information will be displayed in each Group to which that person belongs for as long as that person is a member of those Groups.
Group photo album management
Before pictures can be uploaded to a Group photo album, either the Group Leader or a Group Moderator must first approve the pictures. Leaders and Moderators are responsible for removing photo album content in their Groups that violate Group Charters, the eBay User Agreement or other eBay policies.
Group discussion board management
Group Leaders and Moderators are responsible for removing Group discussion board content that violates Group Charters or eBay policies. All Group discussion board threads without activity for 90 consecutive days will be automatically purged from the eBay Groups system.
Remove member from a Group
At any time, a Group member will have the option to officially leave the Group by clicking on the Group “Remove Me” link. Also, a Group Leader or Moderator can edit the status of any member, and remove them from the group at any time. Members who have been removed or have removed themselves from a group may rejoin the group. While all content previously posted by a removed member will remain, their User ID will no longer appear on the Members page, and their profile page will no longer be visible to Group members or other viewers.
Ban Member from a Group
A Group Leader or Moderator can edit the status of any member, and ban them from the group. Members who have been banned can no longer access any of the Group functions. While all content previously posted by a banned member will remain, their User ID will no longer appear on the Members page, and their profile page will no longer be visible to Group members or other viewers.
Email members management
A Group Leader or Moderator can send a Group's email message at any time. Before a Group member can send a message, either the Group Leader or a Group Moderator must first approve it through the Moderation Group Controls section. Leaders and Moderators are responsible for making sure that all Group's email messages comply with the Group Charter, the eBay User Agreement or other eBay policies. A Group member can choose to opt out of receiving Group email messages by changing their Preferences in the Group Controls section.
Activity on eBay is required to follow this policy, the eBay User Agreement and all applicable laws, as well as respect the rights of third parties. If it doesn’t, eBay may take action consistent with applicable laws and the eBay User Agreement, and may even be legally required to do so. Such actions may include, as an example only: Removing the listing or other content, issuing a warning, restricting activity or account suspension.