Warning - long post!

Shortly before it was announced that eBay's Blackthorne team will be closed down in its PA office & taken over by the Seller Tools team in San Jose, it was noted that for the first time, over 5 million core & store listings are on eBay listed thru Blackthorne. How ironic!

I suspect my dismay & outrage at hearing we users are losing the Blackthorne team will likely have no effect upon the decision, but I must encourage you who decided to reconsider!
Among the eBay community, I've not experienced anything like the Blackthorne community. The developers worked closely over the years with many of us users to create a program which surpasses any competitor. Of course, there were rough patches thru the early days of development and bugs do appear with every new release, but 'tis the nature of software. The efforts of the team & many of us users resulted in a superior product.

For the Pro version at $25/month, some have complained about Blackthorne's lack of support. (Heck, even I do not have a phone # to the PA offices!) Quickly, most have discovered that on the Blackthorne-hosted boards and thru the "contact support" function within the program, support is readily available in most instances.

Imagine, you deciders: Blackthorne is what it is because of the developers and those of us who've worked with them as testers & users. A group of us core users is the free support who guide others. (A bit of a disclaimer here: I have sold much on ebay thru my listings for one-on-one remote Blackthorne training. There was a niche I've filled - but it hasn't kept me from helping out on the boards when I can, from answering dozens of "help me with Blackthorne" emails I receive each month & from offering a free Quick Start Guide.)

I have been active in the eBay Community for years & have considered Blackthorne to be my "home" community. Though I've made many a friend among eBayers, it is the friendships I've made thru the Blackthorne community (users & developers) which I especially value. (Please read Seth Godin's blog & new book, Tribes!)

I suspect we "hard-core" Blackthorne users are devotees as much because of the Blackthorne team as because of the usefulness to us each in our eBay businesses. Moving Blackthorne to San Jose & new developers is NOT what will keep us dedicated. I am involved in the Blackthorne community because of its culture of civility (for the most part) and its dedication to keeping & making the Blackthorne software a superb piece of software and the team's responsiveness to sellers' needs.

I am concerned that eBay, as demonstrated in so many things particularly this year, will not be able to, nor willing to, devote such effort to Blackthorne's growth & success. I am concerned that the Seller Tools team will not be able to grasp what I and others have about the program over months and years. (Heck, I'm one of those self-proclaimed experts & I continue to learn something new constantly.)

I urge you deciders to rethink your decision to close down the PA Blackthorne team. They are the finest examples of eBay employees - and it's only seven of them who've accomplished so much. You do not want to alienate those of us upon whom you're likely depending to keep Blackthorne alive & well. (Not a threat - just a suspicion.)