Why are we suddenly gated on brands when new sellers can list the same books
We’ve been selling used books on Amazon for 10+ years with a long history of sales and positive feedback. Recently, we’ve suddenly found ourselves unable to list certain books because we’re being told we’re restricted/gated in the brand.
What’s confusing is that I can see a brand-new seller with no feedback and little/no selling history actively listing the exact same book.
Can someone explain how this works? Why would a 10+ year seller with an established account be restricted while a brand-new seller can list the same product?
Is this a recent change in Amazon’s gating system? We're having 10+ "review listings that need approvals" notifications every day, without any major chances or any account health defects. What is going on?
Example ASIN 1975076451
Why are we suddenly gated on brands when new sellers can list the same books
We’ve been selling used books on Amazon for 10+ years with a long history of sales and positive feedback. Recently, we’ve suddenly found ourselves unable to list certain books because we’re being told we’re restricted/gated in the brand.
What’s confusing is that I can see a brand-new seller with no feedback and little/no selling history actively listing the exact same book.
Can someone explain how this works? Why would a 10+ year seller with an established account be restricted while a brand-new seller can list the same product?
Is this a recent change in Amazon’s gating system? We're having 10+ "review listings that need approvals" notifications every day, without any major chances or any account health defects. What is going on?
Example ASIN 1975076451
10 replies
Seller_nRFmxiQg4EGrw
The gating on books has never made any sense. Some publishers come and go; I've had more than one that I was not able to list at one point, but could list 6 months later.
And a good example of how random it seems to be, at one point, I was restricted from listing any softcover books from Marvel, but could list the hardcover with no problem. But another seller I see often was just the opposite; he could sell softcover, but not hard. (I think now I'm blocked from all Marvel).
It makes no sense, and seems to be only slightly different from random.
Seller_CW0P5hgbsiqWX
1. Do you have commercial accounts with the Publishing Houses?
2. Do you buy your books by the case lot?
3. Do you own a retail B&M bookstore?
Most likely, it is the publishing houses telling Amazon to limit the sellers.
Roberto_Amazon
Hello, @Seller_R4hOLdZklxSS0
Thank you for posting and for your long-standing commitment to selling on Amazon.
I understand how frustrating it can be to suddenly face brand restrictions on products you've sold for years, especially when newer sellers appear unaffected.
Brand gating and approval requirements can change at any time based on requests from rights owners, publishers, or Amazon's internal quality controls. These restrictions are applied at the account level and may vary between sellers — meaning one seller may be gated while another is not, depending on multiple factors including account history, category performance, and brand owner preferences.
Unfortunately, this is not something that can be investigated from the forums. However, if you believe the restrictions were applied in error, I'd recommend:
Requesting approval through the "Request Approval" button on the restricted listings.
Opening a case with Seller Support referencing the specific ASINs and brands affected.
Regarding the increased "review listings that need approvals" notifications — this may reflect recent updates to gating policies from specific publishers. If this continues to expand, documenting the affected ASINs and raising it in a support case would help with investigation.
Best wishes.
Roberto
