E-commerce news
One story a day from the e-commerce world, and what it means for your store.
41 stories
- Platforms
Amazon Seller Central now manages eBay, Shopify, TikTok Shop and Walmart
At Accelerate on Sept. 24, Amazon let U.S. sellers connect rival marketplace accounts to Seller Central for free, and cut Multi-Channel Fulfillment fees 15–25% for six months. It affects any seller running Amazon alongside other channels or a Shopify store.
- AI & tools
Amazon adds Seller Assistant automations, opens seller data to Claude and Quick
At Accelerate, Amazon gave Seller Assistant memory and always-on automations and launched a plugin that connects seller accounts to Amazon Quick and, in beta, Anthropic's Claude. Primary account holders can claim 12 months of Amazon Quick Plus free until Dec. 31.
- Social commerce
Best Buy to open TikTok Shop store in late October with 10,000 products
Best Buy will launch on TikTok Shop in late October with nearly 10,000 products, in-app checkout and in-store returns, backed by its creator program and Best Buy Ads. Electronics sellers on TikTok Shop face a major new competitor for holiday traffic.
- Platforms
Etsy adds shared shop access, paid custom options and a third variation
Etsy's September seller update lets team members help run a shop with their own logins, lets sellers charge for personalization, and adds a third listing variation, wider appeals and ad groups. Small teams and personalized-product shops benefit most.
- Payments
Amazon blocks Meta's Muse agent while Shopify stores stay open to it
Amazon began blocking Meta's Muse AI agent from buying on Amazon.com, while Shopify merchants remain discoverable and purchasable in Muse by default. Sellers on both channels face a split in how AI agents can reach them.
- Platforms
eBay to drop Live sales from seller standards and Top Rated Plus on Oct 15
From Oct. 15, eBay Live transactions, including past ones, will no longer count toward Seller Level, Top Rated Plus or Service Metrics. Live-heavy sellers may need more regular marketplace sales to keep Top Rated status.
- Policy & regulation
CBP to open CAPE Phase 3 for IEEPA tariff refunds on Oct. 6
CBP will start accepting refund declarations for finally liquidated IEEPA tariff entries on October 6, for CIT plaintiffs who filed importer of record numbers by July 30. About $1.3 billion in refunds is held up by missing banking details.
- Social commerce
Whatnot cuts seller commissions with volume tiers, as low as 3%
Whatnot is moving to commission tiers based on rolling four-week sales, cutting rates for sellers above $15,000 while smaller sellers stay at 8%. Existing sellers switch on September 21, new sellers the week of September 28.
- Advertising
Meta merges creator tools into Creator Marketing Hub, adds Instagram live ads
Meta has launched a global Creator Marketing Hub that combines creator discovery, messaging, permissions and partnership ads, and will open Instagram Live partnership ads on September 29. Brands running creator campaigns on Facebook and Instagram are most affected.
- AI & tools
Google tests AI Business Agent in YouTube ads, adds UCP cart transfer
Google launched a US beta that lets YouTube ad viewers ask an AI agent product questions, and began rolling out UCP cart transfer so shoppers can finish checkout on merchants' own sites. AI performance insights also became generally available in five countries.