This is not a new rule for chips. EBay has been offering 50 listings free for any category (except, I think, motor vehicles) for more than a year. Prior to that, they offered 100 free listings a month, and there have been offers just about every month to list 500 items or 1000 items or unlimited items for free on a particular day (in July 2012, they offered a 3- or 4-day free listing period).

This eliminates the listing fee for items listed within those parameters, but eBay also raised its final value fees in conjunction with these programs. It takes a lot of the financial risk out of listing if you do it at the right time.