Didn't mean to imply that you shouldn't do anything about bootlegs. My point is that it takes much diligence to try to rid a site of bootlegs and will be a neverending battle like illegal drugs. As long as you have buyers, the sellers will continue to list the items even after being caught. Is it right? No. Should you do nothing about it? No. But like drugs, the only thing that will stop it is for the user to stop buying.
posted on October 18, 2001 04:18:03 PMNo. But like drugs, the only thing that may stop it is for the user to stop buying
Or the seller to be told s/he can't sell.
If you use the analogy of drugs, who does the DEA spend most of their efforts and money on? It's not the buyers!
I know this problem won't go away completely, but don't you think that "your" preferred venue would be much safer if it reduced or elimnated these things? Let the buyers go somewhere else to buy this junk.
posted on October 18, 2001 05:17:19 PM
Many of the posters here seem to be missing the point of Bidville's new verification system.
In my opinion, verification of all users is a good thing, be they buyers, sellers, or just posters to the message boards. Addresses should be verified, and steps taken to ensure that minors are not using auction sites. Of course, by "minors", I mean children, not those of limited mental capacity.
The problem many are having is that Bidville is charging to verify. First, Bidville charged to host images by forcing everyone to pay for a Premier membership. Now, in order to sell, you have to be verified...BUT, to be verified, you have to pay a fee to Bidville.
I realize that Bidville is a business, and some sort of revenue has to be generated to keep the site active - heck, anybody with a 6th grade education will realize that. What bothers me tremendously about the "verification fee" is the timing.
At some point, all sellers on Bidville will have to weigh the costs against the sales. Many sellers, especially those that do this for a hobby, simply do not sell enough on Bidville to justify an extra fee.
I can see paying some sort of fees to support some major advertising - Bidville needs buyers. But if these new fees are simply to keep the site active, maybe Bidville should rethink having an online business in the first place.
Any business needs at least five years of operating money on hand before going into business - many businesses don't show a profit before then. If the money isn't on hand to support the site, the sellers shouldn't have to be the ones to do it...unless the buyers and the sales are present!
posted on October 21, 2001 04:11:57 PM
My Problem is giving Mr. "prez" my credit card info. I do not trust him. He has shown himself to be a childlike unstable person.
posted on October 21, 2001 04:53:18 PM
RB wrote:
If you use the analogy of drugs, who does the DEA spend most of their efforts and money on? It's not the buyers!
(((And that is exactly why there are still so many sellers still out there! The government doesn't want it stopped. Look at all the money, cars, boats, airplanes etc. they would not be able confisciate.))) A BIG loss in revenue! If they jailed the buyers as well, then people would be a little more afraid of buying. Just my opinion.
posted on October 22, 2001 09:31:36 AM
Well get a load of this! Now they want to force you to pay to use the message boards. Lol we need to get Dimview back here. I think this site will top Yahpoo in the fall of numbers.
posted on October 22, 2001 12:15:01 PM
Where does it say anything about paying to use the message boards? A seller has to be verified and pay related verification fees but currently bidders are still free ( can't image a site trying to charge bidders a fee to get verified ).
posted on October 22, 2001 12:24:20 PM
Pay, Pay, Pay ... doesn't anyone buy anymore?
Is it correct to assume that you need a secret code (password) to get to the message boards, and that in order to register that secret code, you have to Pay, Pay Pay?
opals4u ... on your drug seller opinion, you're not really that paranoid to believe that are you? Next thing you'll be telling us is that the POTUS purposely took out the towers to start a war, thus boosting the economy ... someone has to make and sell the guns and bullets, right?
posted on October 22, 2001 01:55:59 PM
The boards on BV? Are we still on the talking about the thread topic site? There is no anouncement on the BV announcement board.
posted on October 22, 2001 02:28:37 PM
Read in the announcment board. Under the latest announcement they added it in amongst the reasons for why they want your credit card number. For the heck of it I registered again and was prompted with:
Use of Message Boards
You must be a Verified Member to access the Community Center. To learn about becoming Verified, Click Here.
All of my auctions are closed and I am out of there. They are pushing a little to hard for my credit card information.
posted on October 22, 2001 02:41:49 PM
I believe all new members are verified but sellers must have credit card verification. If BV ever tried to make all users be credit card verified with a certification fee than that would be the end of almost all new users registering there.
BV has not informed by email any of it's users of the change of TOS. This speaks volumes of the quality of the management team there.
It was you that went off topic, not I. I only replied. But since you wish to go further, has the policy that you referred to stopped the movement of Drugs? If you can say YES, then I stand corrected. Until then I shall continue to take the view by my own judgement.
With Auctions or Drugs, the buyer should be the main concern. Without buyers there would be no need or use for sellers. Stands to reason to me. But I have been wrong before and could be again. These are just my opinions.
posted on October 22, 2001 02:47:09 PM
Bidsbids read it and weep. You are right! no more new users!.
Verification is required for anyone who wants to sell items on Bidville or access our community message boards. At this time, verification is not required to bid on items. However, our sellers have the option to prevent non-verified members from bidding on their auctions. If you are not verified, you may not be able to bid on certain items at the discretion of the seller.
posted on October 22, 2001 02:51:44 PM
Here is the link to the verification rules.
Bottom line, anyone who wants to use the message boards needs to be verified. Certain "vets" who have been there for awhile have 3 months free ride but everyone there will have to pay to use the message boards.
http://www.bidville.com/help/about_verification.htm#four
posted on October 22, 2001 02:51:58 PM
I stopped by there briefly today, and tried to access the boards and was denied..... so unless I pay them, I'm not welcome.
What really hacks me off is that I have transactions that I would dearly love to leave feedback on, but since I missed the feedback cutoff by one, I cannot access my information to leave those feedbacks unless I pay them. I was cut off from that the second that verification was in place.
I had already removed my auctions for other reasons, but this is just plain poor business to just shut someone out like that. Those great buyers do deserve their feedback.
posted on October 22, 2001 02:54:32 PM
Verification was to go in steps at BV with sellers get cc verification first. If a cc is needed to use BV's message center for new users then the wild poster that struck both AW and BV late last night with a lot of bin laden posts used a valid credit card to post at BV last night?
Maybe in the future this will a reality but not now? What a poor way to run an online auction site.
Okay I just read Crankyoldhag's post. There probably will be a purging of Devil's Advocates at BV soon to rid the boards of malcontents. I can not see BV surviving this move. With free credit card verification maybe, but not with fees for all and strict +2 feedback rating before fedback is allowed to be posted. BV is doomed and the simple folks that live there have no clue as to it's coming implosion due to a very poor management team. ( maybe that jab will flush out the good doctor )
[ edited by bidsbids on Oct 22, 2001 03:01 PM ]
With Auctions or Drugs, the buyer should be the main concern. Without buyers there would be no need or use for sellers. Stands to reason to me.
Hmmm .... seems to me we agree here, at last with respect to auction venues.
If the buyers are so damn important, how come all auction venues kiss the seller's butts and let their precious buyers "beware"? You may have noticed that the majority of the rules on any of these venues, especially the dreaded eBay, are designed to massage and protect their sellers
There is very little protection offered to us buyers when we get hosed by a seller, and if the seller's feedback is high enough, they are allowed to keep hosing other buyers. If the buyers start to complain, they get suspended. I have proof
posted on October 22, 2001 05:32:52 PM
RB wrote:
You may have noticed that the majority of the rules on any of these venues, especially the dreaded eBay, are designed to massage and protect their sellers
((( I don't really see much protection for sellers either, especially in the NPB department. The seller gets no free relists as with an auction closing with no bids, which is the same thing. Their time in listing is a total waste. You call that protection? Let's get it straight! Ebay cares about nobody except eBay!)))
Not a good site to use as an example in my opinion.
To add as an afterthought: These same NPB's are allowed to leave Negative feedback on an auction they did not complete. Another Great benefit for sellers???
[ edited by opals4u on Oct 22, 2001 05:37 PM ]
posted on October 22, 2001 08:54:48 PM
Well, let's see. In the last 6 weeks at eBay, I was hosed by one seller for $300.00 US and another for $42.00 US. The latter one simply ripped me off and sent nothing. The former one sent me a piece of equipment that was defective and although his listing indicates the item comes with a 90 day manufacturer's warranty, it turns out he a rogue reseller. The manufacturer will not warrant anything this guy resells on eBay, nor will the seller offer a refund, a replcaement, or the cost of repairs. The seller continues to list and sell on eBay even though I have provided eBay with irrefutable proof that he is a crook. eBay has ended his actions at least 4 times as a result of their investigation of the info I have provided them. The seller continues to sell and I am out a lot of money. I have all the emails between me and eBay and it reads like a horror novel. "Yes, we did confirm that this seller is misrepresenting his items and yes, we did take action. But, he's a seller and what the heck ...."
So, as a buyer, I have spent $342.00 US and eBay is giving me zero protection, nor are they protecting any other potential victims from these particular sellers. You, as a seller still have the item that was never paid for, but you are out the listing and selling fees.
Tell me, opals4u, how many deadbeats does it take for you to lose $342.00??
posted on October 23, 2001 06:17:32 PM
I bought a $280 item on eBay. The seller never sent to product. I notified eBay. eBay kicked him off. Refunded $175 of my money, and PayPal refended the rest.
No problems here. Funny, how it's the people who have an ax to grind always have an outlandsih story to tell (i.e., cats getting credit cards, buying Sony Vaios on Ubid for $9), yet they never seem to happen to us "normal" folk.
I like the fact that only verified users can post on Bidville's message board. It means I don't have to wade through all the garbage from deadbeats... like I have to here.
posted on October 23, 2001 06:51:45 PM
You must be one of the 20 people not jumping ship. Bidville has turned into nothing but a closed shell. Nobody in their right mind is going to give that crooked prez credit card info without being able to check out the pulse of the community. Whenever I check out a new auction site, the boards are one of the first places I go. The crooked prez made a big mistake. Having to be verified to post may be a good idea. Having to be verified to read the boards tells me the prez is using the few bucks he is making to buy some heavy drugs. I had my account removed from Bidville today and feel much cleaner.
What did you mean by calling people here deadbeats. I take some offence for that and I might not be the only one.
posted on October 23, 2001 07:32:08 PM
I am not jumping ship! I will stay around and see if Bidville does some advertiseing to help bring in sellers. I believe all this will payoff in the long run and after all the work I want to be there when it pays off. I am for verification but I did not push for it because I was afraid it would have to be Credit Card it is and that is that. I see some people with 12 to 30 IDs just got 2 more of them suspended lol what does that make it 15 down and 2 more to go (I hope it is 0).
I find it interesting not long ago people on this board were saying Bidville needs verification to make the site safe. They also said 99 relist made the site a warehouse. And that Bidville needs to do something about the feedback.
Well Bidville has verification they have taken the 99 relist to 10 and they are working on the deadbeats and trouble makers "suspending them". But yet even after bidville has done some of the things some of the people on this board wanted, you still say the site has alot of problem and refuse to admit Bidville is trying to get the site running safe and smooth. So all I can say is keep talking negative if thats all you can do but at least admit bidville does make some of the changes you wanted to see. Have a nice buying/selling day
posted on October 23, 2001 07:52:20 PM
Nobody asked to be charged for the honor of viewing the community center. All of that advertising is worthless as long as the first thing a newbie sees is a demand for money.
posted on October 23, 2001 08:05:45 PM
daredevil .. sorry, but I am much older and wiser now and I am not going to respond to your taunting with an argument. Suffice it to say that I---AM---CANADIAN, and unfortunately, most "protection" and insurance offered by eBay is applicable to US residents only
