Thursday 8 October 2026News and analysis for online sellers
The Sourcing Herald Sourcing, wholesale & ecommerce insights.

Marketplaces

Selling on Amazon and other marketplaces: policies, fees, listings, and fulfilment.

  1. FTC sends more than $100,000 to 6,205 GOAT customers: the Mail Order Rule lesson for online sellers

    The refunds come from a 2024 order over late shipping and unfulfilled “Buyer Protection” promises. They are a reminder that a delivery promise or protection policy is a commitment a regulator can enforce.

  2. Amazon’s 75-character item names and 125-character Item Highlights: how to split your titles

    Amazon now caps most item names at 75 characters and gives sellers a separate 125-character field. Amazon’s AI is rewriting over-length titles, and doing nothing for 14 days means accepting its version.

  3. FTC and 22 states sue Amazon over Sponsored Products auction pricing: what sellers should check

    The complaint filed on 31 August alleges Amazon charged advertisers their own bid close to 80% of the time while describing a second-price auction. Amazon denies wrongdoing, and nothing has been proven.

  4. Walmart’s US marketplace sales grew more than 50% in Q2, with nearly half flowing through its fulfilment service

    Walmart’s results on 20 August 2026 put third-party marketplace growth well ahead of its total e-commerce growth of 23%, and show advertising up 38%. Nearly $2.9 billion of tariff refunds flattered profit.

  5. Amazon’s seller agreement bans pledging seller rights from 24 August: what it means for revenue-based financing

    Amazon’s revised Business Solutions Agreement adds an explicit ban on transferring or pledging a seller’s rights and obligations. Sellers with financing secured on future Amazon payouts should check their contracts before the change takes effect.

  6. Temu’s €200 million DSA fine: what it signals for marketplace sellers on product safety evidence

    The European Commission fined Temu for a generic, unevidenced risk assessment of illegal products. Temu’s action plan is due on 28 August, and sellers on large EU marketplaces should expect more questions about product safety.

  7. Etsy vs eBay vs Shopify: what each platform earned per $100 of seller sales in Q2 2026

    Using each company’s own second-quarter filings, Etsy kept about $25.90 per $100 of sales, eBay about $14.00 and Shopify about $3.10. The gap says more about business models than about value for money.

  8. Etsy’s Q2 2026 marketplace sales rise 7.5% as take rate reaches 25.9% and the company cuts about 12% of staff

    Etsy’s shareholder letter shows growing sales and a higher share of each sale kept by the platform, alongside a restructuring and a plan to change the Star Seller programme.

  9. eBay’s Q2 2026 GMV rises 15% to $22.4 billion as the $1.4 billion Depop purchase closes

    eBay’s second-quarter results show faster growth, a record advertising share of volume and higher transaction losses. The Depop deal closed on 30 July for about $1.4 billion in cash.