When you post anything on eBay — photos, descriptions, reviews — you give eBay a permanent, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, reproduce, and sublicense that content in any medium, forever.
This analysis describes what eBay's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
The perpetual and irrevocable nature of this license means eBay can continue to use content you have posted even after you delete your account or remove the content, and eBay can sublicense it to third parties.
Any content you post on eBay — including product photos and descriptions — is licensed to eBay permanently and royalty-free, and eBay may sublicense it to others, with no obligation to compensate you or remove it after your account is closed.
How other platforms handle this
By making available any Content through the Service, you grant to Pinterest a non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, sublicensable, worldwide license to use, copy, modify, create derivative works based upon, distribute, publicly display, and publicly perform your Content in connection with opera...
By using our Services, you grant Ideogram a royalty-free, worldwide, sublicensable, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, distribute, create derivative works of, publicly display, and publicly perform your Content (including prompts and Outputs) in connection with operating and improving ...
By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through the Services, you give Miro a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, reproduce, process, adapt, modify, publish, transmit, display and distribute such Content in any and all media or distr...
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"When you provide content using eBay's Services (directly or indirectly), you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, sublicensable (through multiple tiers) right to exercise any and all copyright, trademark, publicity, and database rights you have in the content, in any media known now or developed in the future.— Excerpt from eBay's eBay User Agreement
REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: This provision may engage EU consumer contract unfairness standards under the Unfair Contract Terms Directive and its national implementations, which scrutinize terms that create significant imbalances between platform and user rights in perpetual, irrevocable licenses. UK consumer rights frameworks carry similar considerations. In the US, this type of broad content license is common in platform agreements and is generally enforceable, though the FTC Act's prohibition on unfair or deceptive practices remains relevant if users are not adequately informed of the license scope. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Medium. The perpetual, irrevocable, and sublicensable nature of the license is broad but consistent with standard platform practices for marketplace content. The primary governance risk arises in EU and UK contexts where such terms may face regulatory scrutiny for unfairness. JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU and UK users face heightened exposure under consumer contract unfairness regulations. California users may have relevant rights under state law regarding use of their likeness or personal content in commercial contexts. Business sellers who post proprietary product photography or branded content should assess intellectual property implications of this license grant. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Professional sellers and brand owners should evaluate whether posting proprietary imagery or branded content on eBay effectively grants eBay sublicensable rights that could conflict with existing IP licensing arrangements or exclusive agreements with other platforms. The sublicensable-through-multiple-tiers language is particularly broad. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Legal teams should assess whether eBay's disclosure of this license scope in the User Agreement meets informed consent standards under applicable law, particularly for EU users under GDPR's concept of lawful basis for processing where content includes personal data. Teams should also evaluate whether the sublicensing provision requires disclosure under applicable EU digital services or consumer protection frameworks.
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The perpetual and irrevocable nature of this license means eBay can continue to use content you have posted even after you delete your account or remove the content, and eBay can sublicense it to third parties.
Any content you post on eBay — including product photos and descriptions — is licensed to eBay permanently and royalty-free, and eBay may sublicense it to others, with no obligation to compensate you or remove it after your account is closed.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 3 platforms. See the full comparison.
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