ProStores to phase out eBay’s third party checkout service

To provide a consistent experience for buyers, third party checkout services on eBay will be discontinued on June 30, 2011.  In order to comply with this decision, ProStores will begin phasing out support for the eBay Checkout Redirect feature in ProStores during late Q1 and early Q2, 2011.

Starting May 1, 2011, ProStores will discontinue supporting Checkout Redirect for all eBay listings. Here is a timeline of key changes that will take place during the phase-out:

• The Checkout Redirect capability will be removed from the eBay Setup page within ProStores and disabled for all existing stores of May 1, 2011. All new eBay listings will be listed with Checkout Redirect disabled.

 

• Items already listed to eBay from ProStores will continue to support Checkout Redirect until the eBay listing ends, or June 30, 2011, whichever comes first.

 

• After June 30, 2011, all eBay listings with Checkout Redirect enabled will be redirected to eBay’s standard checkout process..

Why is eBay doing this?

eBay’s move to discontinue third party checkout will help to provide a consistent experience for eBay buyers.  A consistent and familiar checkout experience is key to completing purchases quickly and easily and to coming away from the transaction with a sense of confidence and satisfaction.

Checkout is also important for sellers, providing essential business functions such as payment processing and tax collection. Important updates over the next year will improve this vital part of the eBay experience for both buyers and sellers.

In preparation, eBay has been teaming up with ProStores and other checkout providers to support this transition and, at the same time, working to provide sellers the robust functionality they need in eBay checkout.   Here are some new features supported in eBay Checkout:

• Integrated merchant credit/debit card services enhanced. Beginning in September 2010, all sellers will have more choices when selecting their payment gateway for offering credit or debit card processing services to their customers. For many sellers, this means that buyers will no longer need to call to provide credit card details and complete the purchase.
• Standardized shipping service terms. To help set buyers' expectations, starting in September shipping services along with estimated delivery times will be displayed more prominently on the item page and in checkout using four industry-standard terms—Economy, Standard, Expedited and One-day. You'll still be able to specify your shipping carriers and costs.
• More control over shipping to Hawaii, Alaska, US protectorates and APO/FPO addresses. Also starting in September, sellers will be able to exclude buyers from these areas from bidding or buying their listings. Or they can use shipping rate tables to provide more accurate shipping costs to buyers at these addresses.
• Premium Sales Tax calculator for high volume sellers. While the basic onsite tax calculator is sufficient for lower-volume sellers, some higher-volume sellers need a more sophisticated option. Starting in September, eBay will pilot a premium sales tax calculator with many advanced tax options.

FAQ’s:

How does this affect my checkout flow for buyers that purchase items directly from my ProStores web store?

There will be no affect to your checkout flow for items purchased directly on your ProStores web store.  The discontinuing of Checkout Redirect will only affect the checkout flow for eBay listings that you configured to send the buyer to your ProStores web store to complete the purchase.

Can I opt out and continue to use Checkout Redirect for my eBay listings?

ProStores as well as all other organizations that provide listing services to eBay are required to comply with discontinuing support for eBay third party checkout services prior to June 30, 2011. You cannot opt out.  ProStores will discontinue support for Checkout Redirect on May 1, 2011, for new listings.

What will happen to items with Checkout Redirect that I list to eBay prior to the May 1 cut-off?

These items will continue to use Checkout Redirect until the auction expires, or June 30, 2011, whichever comes first.  Items attempting to use Checkout Redirect after June 30 will be redirected to eBay’s standard checkout process.