eBay API Changes Shutdown ShelfTrend - Could Other 3rd Party Apps Be Next?
eBay sellers are lamenting the loss of ShelfTrend, a third party tool providing analytics and product research to help sellers list competitively on the platform, as changes to eBay's API have made it impossible for the app to continue operating.
ShelfTrend notified their customers today that the existing app will be shutting down as of February 5, 2025 due to "changes in eBay’s API policies and strategic direction" but they plan to continue developing an AI-powered insights tool to take its place.
About
General Questions
Why is ShelfTrend shutting down?
ShelfTrend relies on eBay APIs to provide marketplace intelligence. Due to changes in eBay’s API policies and strategic direction, we can no longer sustain the application as it works today.This decision allows us to focus on building ShelfTrend AI, an exciting new ecommerce solution powered by AI.
When is ShelfTrend closing?
The ShelfTrend app will close on February 5th, 2025. After this date, users will no longer have access to the app or its features.What is ShelfTrend AI?
ShelfTrend AI is our upcoming AI-powered application designed to revolutionize ecommerce by offering smarter, faster, and more actionable insights for sellers. Stay tuned for updates as we develop this new and exciting product by signing up at www.shelftrend.comHow can I stay informed about ShelfTrend AI?
Visit www.shelftrend.com to sign up for updates, including announcements about early access opportunities and the official launch.
ShelfTrend goes on to say that freemium users will continue to have access to the app until February 5 and billing for premium users will stop in January.
Users can continuing using the product and support will still be available until the closing date, but you should export any reports, insights, or other important data from the app before February 15, 2025 as the app will no longer be accessible after that date.
The company was co-founded by Anojan Abel and Lisa Wong, both of whom worked at eBay Australia and apparently left to start ShelfTrend in 2016.
Oddly enough, after leaving ShelfTrend in 2018, a stint at Meta, and founding AR company HelloXR, it appears Abel is back working for eBay on a contract basis, leading product operations efforts to grow GMV.
The sudden shut down is raising concerns that other apps and program which depend on the eBay API could be next, with another ex-eBayer, Robert Bassett, suggesting on LinkedIn the changes may impact a lot of third party tools and that eBay may be tightening up access as a first step toward providing more robust reporting directly.
As Bassett suggests, such a walled garden approach could enable eBay to position their own data products as a premium service which may potentially either be packaged as a "value add" for higher tier Anchor or Enterprise store subscribers or something available at an additional cost to generate revenue.
That could fit in particularly well with eBay's efforts in the UK as they continue to differentiate more between business and private sellers amidst broader C2C pivot and introduction of buyer fees coming next month.
Liz Morton
Are any other third party apps you use to manage your eBay business being impacted by API changes? Let us know in the comments below!
