You're allowed to "gift" up to $10,000 per year to any one person. You can gift as many $10,000 gifts to as many people as you want (or can afford).
Therefore, sending a couple of thousand a year to someone in small increments, each of which is tagged as "gift" will not trigger any tax consequences on your or them.
What they're wanting to do is catch people who make thousands and thousands through ebay and paypal.