Etsy’s James Ossman broke down the platform's new rules in a YouTube video (Image credit: Etsy)

It's good to have rules. But there's only so far you can go without needlessly stating the obvious. You wouldn't, for example, expect to see signs in restaurant kitchens saying "Don't serve raw chicken". Store managers don't email their cashiers telling them to "Give customers the correct change". These things are common sense, and don't generally need to be said out loud.

So why is Etsy suddenly telling its sellers: "The photo of the product you're selling should actually be the photo of the product you're selling"?

Last week the marketplace for handmade goods made an important-sounding announcement: that every listing must now include at least one unedited photo of the actual item, shot against a real background.

It also specifically banned the use of AI image generators for patterns, recipes and instructions for customers. It's outlawed listings created by bots.…