I got this message from eBay in a recent email and thought this was something to pass on because I had not noticed this change. It seems like this would be an interesting feature because “watching” is one of those hidden and personal activities on the auction site. I wonder what are the four most watched items using this method? It looks like with my simple experimenting that the list is not solid and depending on the item you view the “most-watched items” changes.
Item pages now include seller merchandising
Here’s another great way to get your popular items in front of more holiday shoppers. At the bottom of item pages, buyers now see the most-watched items in the category. Of course, you can always opt out of having other sellers’ items appear on your pages. If you do opt out, your items won’t appear on other sellers’ pages, so consider the trade-offs carefully.
Check out the eBay general announcement page
I’m not sure that would be a useful feature. I only put something on my watch list if I’m curious about the value but don’t have any intentions of bidding. For example, I watch auctions on Jamboree flags and World Jamboree patches to get a feel for their values. When I’m ready to bid on an item, I set up a snipe bid but don’t watch it. Why call attention to your intentions?