Ebay bans seller feedback

EBAY is changing the way feedback works next month - and sellers are up in arms about it.
Some are threatening to boycott the site because they won't be allowed to leave feedback - but their buyers will.
This has led to some fears about sellers being held to ransom by buyers withholding feeback and demanding unfair changes to deals. In some ways this is a double whammy as ebay is also putting up fees for sellers.
One thing for sure is that this fundamentally changes what is at the heart of ebay's success - the feedback system.
Although the site is attempting to mitigate concerns by installing safeguards with regards to unpaid items and whether the feedback will be posted, I believe they are in danger of killing the golden goose.
The feedback system works both ways - in some cases buyers can be blocked in advance because their obviously poor reviews show them to be dodgy - something which is impossible to know after these changes.
There is no doubt the current system has its problems. People are discouraged from leaving negative comments on sellers after a deal goes wrong, or the item isn't all it's cracked up to be, because they fear 'revenge' negative will be posted for them.
Be that as may, I can say that the only negative comments I've ever left have been for sellers who didn't pay up.
The new system also means sellers are reliant on ebay's complaints system. As someone who occasionally has had to deal with their customer service, I can't say I have much confidence. All you seem to get back is an automated response which doesn't deal at all with the issue you've raised.
It will certainly be interesting to see how it turns out - and the question is - why change a successful formula so radically?