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Re: [OM] Online auction editorial

Subject: Re: [OM] Online auction editorial
From: "TIM THOMPSON" <Tim@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 1 Dec 1998 16:38:54 -0500
The last minute guy does not know any more than anyone else 
what the current potential (hidden) high bid is.  The computers 
store the bids and bid incrementally until they hit each individual's 
maximum.  If your maximum had been higher than his last moment 
bid you would have won.


To:                     olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Copies to:              lhawkins@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject:                Re: [OM] Online auction editorial 
Date sent:              Tue, 01 Dec 1998 14:27:41 -0500
From:                   "R. Lee Hawkins" <lhawkins@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Send reply to:          olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

In your message dated: Tue, 01 Dec 1998 09:25:06 PST you write:
>
>    3 or 4 people bid on the item in a humane, sane manner. You enter the
>most your willing to pay, the computers do the rest, incrementally
>matching other bids until you win or are overbid. Everythings just dandy.
>That is until a maniacal, shameless, profit-driven collector-seller comes
>along and bids at the last minute(sometimes within the last 5 seconds, I
>kid thee not), and takes his prize at a couple of bucks over the current
>high bidder,

Please think of how a real-life auction works.  There, by *definition*,
the object in question is purchased within the last few seconds of 
the
auction.  Admittedly, in that case you are face to face and have a 
chance
to outbid the other party, as there is no time limit on a "real" 
auction.

>thus guaranteeing him any item he wishes as long as he's willing to stay
>at his computer 24 hours a day with 6 timers on the wall, sans life. I
>saw the

It only guarantees him the item if he/she is willing to outbid 
everyone
else who has bid on the item.

>same fellow get 3 of these lenses in this manner, and I was the high
>bidder on 2 of them. Now I know this is not against any rules. I also
>know it would be sour grapes to insist on some rule against this.
>Ultimately, you need to leave matters of ethics and morals in the hands
>of the buyers and sellers, and hope honesty wins out. I'm not very
>familiar with auctions, this being

How is it dishonest to outbid someone in the last few seconds of 
the
auction?  By your own admission, you have already bid the max 
you were
willing to pay.

>one of my first attempts at one. I'm sure there's probably some slippery
>slang term for the situation I've described. Maybe I'm just a sore loser.
>Whatever the case, I think I shall save my sanity and stick to straight
>sales from now on, even if it mean a few more dollars. Just my three
>cents.

I have been beaten out in exactly this manner by so many people 
on EBay
that I have simply decided that that is how EBay works.  Also, let's 
turn
this around.  Since the person who bid in the last few minutes of the
auction was obviously willing to pay the amount they paid for the 
item,
and that amount was more than you were willing to pay, why is the 
time
they bid relevant?  You (by your own admission) had already 
decided on
your maximum price.  If that is completely true, then when the 
person
placed the higher bid for the item is irrelevant; they would have 
beaten
you out in any case.  However, if you argue that "but if they had 
outbid
me sooner then I could have bettered my offer" then you obviously 
didn't
originally bid for the maximum amount you were willing to pay.  I 
feel
your frustration (believe me, I've lost out to lots of nice items this
way), but I've come to realize I can't have it both ways.  I either 
place
the max bid that I am willing to pay and not worry if I get outbid, or I
bid in the last minute or two to make sure no "money grubbing 
scum" has a
chance to do to me what was done to you and has been done to 
me too often
in the past.  Sometimes, you have to fight fire with fire.


Just my 2 kopecs

Cheers,
--Lee

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Regards, Tim.

The ARA Consulting Group
A Division of KPMG LLP
Tel: 416-969-6569  Fax: 416-922-5380

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