We started selling on Amazon in 2013. At that time Amazon required UPC's which we purchased from one of Amazons accepted vendors (instantupccodes.com, which has closed since...)
Apparently in 2016 Amazon changed practices and allows only GS1 UPC's. (Totally Fine with this change)
Since that time, we have now been Trademarked and are a Registered Brand owner on Amazon and are registered with GS1 with prefix and new GTINs for all our products.
My problem is that our OLD listings with UPC's that no longer are approved on Amazon are not grandfathered in, and the listings are being removed sporadically by Amazon. I do have NEW GS1 numbers, but the system will not allow the change. We are trying to proactively fix these UPC's to follow Amazons regulations.
I realize that we can create a new listing. That is obvious, however by doing so we lose not only ALL of our reviews, we lose page placement, etc. LOSING ALL THE SALES
Is there a certain department that can assist with these issues? I'm hoping for Amazon help here. We have tried opening cases and have gotten nowhere of course. I don't understand how Amazon could allow us to use UPC's and then after the fact implement a change and ban them. We should at least have the ability to correct with the new rules?
(I included the information below as to when Amazon changed the rules of the acceptable UPC's)
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Does Amazon allow suppliers to use barcodes obtained from a UPC reseller?
No, Amazon explicitly states on Seller Central that UPC barcodes must be obtained from the GS1 and be registered on the GS1 Data Hub portal. Please note that in the past Amazon did not require suppliers to obtain UPC codes from the GS1 and accepted UPCs from any source, including UPC resellers. However, in June 2016, Amazon updated their policy regarding UPCs and now requires suppliers only use UPCs that contain a GS1 Company Prefix issued to the supplier’s company name.
To view Amazon’s UPC policy, login into Amazon’s Seller Central and review the Product UPCs and GTINs section. Here’s what is published on Amazon’s Seller Central;
“We verify the authenticity of product UPCs by checking the GS1 database. UPCs that do not match the information provided by GS1 will be considered invalid. We recommend obtaining your UPCs directly from GS1 (and not from other third parties selling UPC licenses) to ensure the appropriate information is reflected in the GS1 database.
* Important: All invalid product UPC listings will be removed and may result in your ASIN creation or selling privileges being temporarily or permanently removed.”
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