EBay phases out paper payments in US

Ebay has said that, as of November, checks and money orders will no longer be allowed as payment methods on its site.

US customers will have to pay for purchases with eBay's subsidiary PayPal; use a credit or debit card; use credit card processing service ProPay; or pay upon pickup.

EBay posted the information on the FAQ section of its Web site. 

In January 2009, all of the approved electronic payment methods will be integrated into eBay checkout. For example, if a seller offers credit or debit card as a payment option, buyers will be able to directly enter their credit card information securely in eBay checkout and their payment will be directly routed to the seller's Internet merchant account, according to the company.

The ecommerce company said it is looking to eliminate third-party checkout options.

“Ultimately, it's eBay's goal to have buyers always pay for their purchases within the secure confines of eBay,” a statement on the FAQ page read.

Further, eBay said it will not permit Google Checkout, Checkout by Amazon or Amazon Flexible Payment Services as payment methods.

“Google's and Amazon's products and services compete with eBay on a number of levels, so we are not going to allow them on eBay,” a statement read.

The company said some categories of items will be exempt from the new payment restrictions, including motor vehicles, industrial equipment, real estate and “mature audience” products.