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Has ARM Ltd really claimed the word “ARM” on eBay? This is getting absurd
Summary: all-4-drums expressed frustration over their eBay listing being put on hold due to an IP report by a rights holder, claiming misuse of the word "arm" in their product title. They clarified that the term was a descriptive part name and not a trademark infringement. red_magpie shared concerns about similar issues where common words are trademarked, highlighting the growing reliance on AI for decision-making at eBay, which complicates customer service interactions. They also criticized eBay's shift towards unpaid member support due to declining human assistance, expressing dissatisfaction with the current approach.
My listing for an original Alesis drum spare part has been put on hold after an IP report from ARM Limited.
The reason? My title included the words “cymbal arm”.
That is not a brand reference. It is the actual name of the drum part. Alesis itself calls this type of component a cymbal arm.
The claim also says I used the ARM trademark and logo. I have never used the ARM Limited logo anywhere in the listing.
So now I am being told to contact the rights owner and ask them to retract the claim.
Where does this end?
Can a listing for an arm support, arm band, monitor arm, microphone arm or car control arm also be reported because it contains the normal English word “arm”?
I have asked eBay to record this as a disputed and potentially false rights claim and to review it properly.
Has anyone else had a VeRO report like this, where a completely normal descriptive word was treated as somebody else’s trademark?
I would be very interested to hear from other sellers who have had similar cases.
red_magpie
Mentor3 weeks ago · EditedIn some situations a normal descriptive word can be registered as a trademark. Windows and Apple are two obvious examples.
But nobody in their right mind would think of banning adverts for windows or apples.
Sadly, what we're increasingly seeing on eBay is the march of the robots. Human decision making and customer service is increasingly being replaced by poorly trained and questionably intelligent AI. It seems that the desire to save money has overridden the obvious need to monitor AI performance and for a "red button" for users to report erroneous results.
It has reached the point where eBay's automated AI help system is widely derided and users endlessly report that speaking to a live Agent has become near impossible.
eBay's response to this has been to convey the title of "Mentors" on this Member to Member Support (a title that no-one asked for). And they have quietly moved us to centre-stage by integrating us into eBay's customer support system. Indeed, for a lot of the time this "Member to Member Support" seems to have become the only way in which users can contact a human being.
For myself, working alongside eBay to try to help other users is something I have been happy to do for over 20 years. But being manoeuvred by eBay into providing free live customer support whilst they quietly withdraw from this role themselves is another matter. I think that eBay is crossing a red line in what is beginning to appear as the exploitation of unpaid, volunteer "Mentors". Like Topol, I am "Reviewing the Situation".
papso22
Mentor3 weeks agoYou will need to repost on the main seller board to get responses. This board is limited.