I've been buying and selling on a once-in-awhile basis on eBay for over 11 years now, and have some of the same gripes being registered about them here, particularly the new Paypal requirement, and sellers not being able to leave negative feedback. That said, I'd like to chime-in on the fee issue and coupla other things.
Regarding fees, I sense there's a difference between those who are doing expensive items, or massive 500+ listings as a business enterprise, and those like me who just have stuff to sell occasionally. I don't have exact numbers, but of the bazillions of items posted on the Bay, I'd guess the vast majority are like me. Depending on the final auction price of the things I sell, I'm paying anywhere between 8-13% for all the current associated fees to unload my items. That's part one to bear in mind.
Part two is that compared to others, eBay gives me two distinct advantages: lots of traffic and very detailed categories to post my stuff where people are going to look for it. There's some level of value in that to me, so when it's added to being able to avoid having yard sales, running ads in the local paper, answering phone call inquiries, and yadda, it kinda boils down to whether it's worth paying some other entity a percentage of my sales, which is a cost I know upfront. So yeah, if I sell something for $30, I don't mind losing $3.89 of it. It would cost me that much to run an ad in the paper, with no picture and only locals looking at it, along with all the other headaches.
Considering eBay is an "auction" site, the customary option for auctioning things to the highest bidder are auctioneers, who skim 30-40% off the selling price. They also nip buyers for up to another 20%. There's a cottage industry now of eBay consignment listers that I often hear people complain charge 30% + all fees to list someone's stuff on the Bay, but hey, if it only sells for $10, is $3 outrageous for their effort? 8-13% in fees sounds a little more reasonable in comparison to me, and I am getting benefits from the cost.
I'm not at all a member of the eBay fundamentalist fanclub, but do feel we're a capitalist society with an objective of business to make money. EBay is really good at it. So is Bill Gates, while offering buggy programs for years while building a $6M mansion. I read on the news boards here that a seller revolt in Australia prompted their eBay to retract the Paypal requirement. The same effort needs to happen here, or a mass exodus to get their attention, neither of which is likely to happen. I wholeheartedly agree with the suggestion to use multiple sites for selling if they have better terms, but with 178 people having bookmarked the 56 auctions I have posted on the Bay, I know for sure that effort will put cash in my pocket in three days. Paypal gives me automated fast payment, insurance to buyers, and no bounced checks with even higher outrageous fees, and that's worth 2.9% to me, altho I don't like to be told I can't gamble on check and MO's.