posted on February 6, 2001 09:36:13 AM new
Yes, chepistar, you are making sense (coffee or not).
"My part in this is more on the side of bidder protection than auction interference."
I completely agree with that. Now I will try to elaborate...." if you were burned by a box auction for $400 would you ever come back to eBay? " The answer is no, but how many of these auctions are there compared to the number of actual playstations 2 units for sale? It seems to me that most of these buyers are fairly new to Ebay and could be a lot of shilling going on. I am just trying to say (and not good at this) that if there are several of these bidders that get burned, then perhaps THEY will get p-off enough to do something about it. It sure looks to me like Ebay is doing nothing about this so far and there have been MANY complaints....no doubt. Geeeee....maybe I have not had enough coffee either (or perhaps something a little stronger lol)
posted on February 6, 2001 10:38:05 AM new
Thank you figmente for that excellent advice! I didn't know that Yahoo had that option, and have immediately exercised it (as did one person previous to me.
I know that the bidders in the Yahoo auction are incredibly stupid - up to $280 last I looked, with almost all new bidders. But I still cannot see them being ripped off to this extent, no matter HOW stupid they are. I agree - if it could be up to about $20, it may get them to READ the bloody auction listings.
Unfortunately, you cannot contact bidders in Yahoo.
posted on February 6, 2001 10:39:00 AM newROFLMAO
I don't know what time zone your in but something stronger than coffee sounds good to me right about now (and it's only 1:30PM!)
(and not good at this)
You are very good at this! Let's try some more clarification: I have over 800 transactions under my belt ~ if I bid on a box I might deserve 3rd degree burns. I would re-read the auction a kazillion times and file with eBay about the deceiving and unethical tactics of the seller. A year ago, though, if I bid on one of these auctions and won, I would run to the mirror with my tail between my legs to see if it said S-U-C-K-E-R on my forehead. I wouldn't complain to eBay, I'd say "SH*T ~ that place is full of scam artists ~ not a place to hang out ~ back to the Mall for you, Chepi!". I don't think the newbies will complain, they'll just vanish like the dinosaurs.
BUT... are you saying that what appears to be newbies is actual just a bunch of shills? Then I will have to rethink this. I'll go start another pot of coffee ~ don't want to be blitzed when the kids get home from school.
posted on February 6, 2001 11:03:44 AM newcdnbooks
is fraud now allowed on eBay????
Why don't you list an auction for "fraud" and see if eBay allows it? Afterall, if you can list an empty box.....
Sorry ~ couldn't resist a litlle playstation humor. I'm not sure what you're saying.
posted on February 6, 2001 11:10:59 AM new
..it just seems to me that if you craft a listing in a highly deceptive manner so that a bidder, or a great many bidders, believes that you are selling a playstation when all you are selling is an empty box, then you are awfully close to committing fraud....or perhaps you have, in fact, committed fraud.
One hopes that eBay's policies and practices might prevent such listings......
Bill
[ edited by cdnbooks on Feb 6, 2001 11:12 AM ]
posted on February 6, 2001 03:04:03 PM new
The Yahoo auction closed, before I could get logged in to bid on it... 24 bidders, closed at $321. Jeez... are they stupid, or what?
Only one other person complained to Yahoo about the auction, so it got through without a hitch.
One bidder got cancelled - with an ID of "iloveboxauctions". I suppose the seller didn't like that.
May the seller's posterior become putrid with pustulous excrescences.
You don't even have to be sneaky about the box auctions... Just write it up AS A BOX, and the bidders will flock (see my above post about the Yahoo auction). The guy said it was a BOX, warned people to make sure they knew what they were bidding on, and STILL THEY BID!!!
$321 for an empty Playstation box. The guy will be laughing, and the bidder will hopefully learn to READ THE LISTINGS. CHECK THE FEEDBACK. LOOK AT THE BID HISTORY.
posted on February 7, 2001 09:04:39 PM new
I feel like we are just going around in circles with this whole problem.
I do not know what made me think that five or six people could take on this thing with the box sellers and eBay and somehow win. Ebay just does not care about their customers, they care more for the bottom line, which is probably how is should be because they are a business and profit is one of the most important, if not the primary, goal. Ever single day box auctions are ending and making eBay a nice little profit. They make far more on the box auctions than on those auctions, which serve to warn Playstation bidders that there are a few unethical people on eBay who are trying to make them believe they are bidding on a system instead of a damn box. I feel I have just been trying to do the right thing. Or doing what I would hope someone would do for me.
Those of us, who have asked bidders to just go back and reread the item descriptions carefully to make sure they are bidding on a Playstation instead of a box, are just wasting our time. We are receiving obscene and threatening email, some have had their auctions tampered with, among other things.
Over these past several days I have spent a lot of time on this problem, way too much time. I have spent time that would have been much better spent with my son and much better spent listing my own auctions, because Lord knows we need the money desperately!
Overall, I have learned something; ya can't change the world if nobody else gives a damn. While I hate to sit back while some greedy S.O.B. counts his money and continues to rip-off innocent people who are just trying to buy a Playstation and not thinking that in their wildest dreams that the seller it taking him or her for an expensive ride, there isn't anymore I can personally do. I guess I am done.
posted on February 8, 2001 01:51:43 AM new
I hear you cmbtboots... Here I have this nice, new PS2 box that just arrived (WITH a PS2 inside it), and I am thinking "$$$".
Maybe it is all about money and not morals. I hope not.
But I am still shaking my head at how STUPID some bidders are.
posted on February 8, 2001 03:32:26 AM new
Chepistar, cmbtboots, mivona, and the rest of you that have been so helpful (or at least trying to be) to the bidders...a big THANK YOU from me. The only thing I feel that I will continue to do is to ask the seller the question "Is this for the Playstation2 UNIT or just for the box?" Unbelieveable how many actually answer me with "just the box"..those I will continue to report to Ebay. Yes, I know what you mean, cmbtboots, about the "hate mail" in one form or another (I have a new relationship with my delete button lol). I do believe, also, that there is a lot of shilling going on in these auctions, and have asked Ebay in every single report to look into it (perhaps a light bulb will go off in one of those "kids" heads that work there). There are quite a few of us out here, cmbtboots, that really do give a damn..I for one. I will continue to try to stop what I can and for those that do get through, it will be up to those "buyers" to start SCREAMING fraud at Ebay and whoever else they can find to scream at. You all will never get a thanks from the bidders that you have helped and you will never get a thanks from Ebay...but I THANK YOU!! Janet
posted on February 13, 2001 02:47:41 PM new
Regarding getting in touch with Yahoo users bidding in the auctions...
It's not 100% by any means, but there are several ways:
1. Check out their profile to see if they list their email address. Look at http://profiles.yahoo.com/SOMEUSER (where "someuser" is the user)
2. Try sending an IM with Yahoo Messenger (or CheetaChat) to that user. The Instant Message will also reach them if they are in any of the Yahoo chat rooms.
3. Try [email protected] alot of us use the free email address since Yahoo is just as good as any of the others out there (ala Hotmail)
I bet you can reach at least half of them this way.
posted on February 13, 2001 03:44:05 PM new
I remember a short while back when a man was arrested for fraud selling a computer, and inside the box was all these computer parts. Maybe that isn't the same as this case, but I have another example. Say if I list a auction titled, "'97 Red Corvette New." The bidders get it up to $37,000. In the mail the winner receives a Hotwheel toy. Well, they got their new red corvette!! lol.
Common sense is at least 50% of the law. If you buy a New Gucci watch at a garage sale for $2, the police could arrest you for holding stolen property(or a fake) because common sense says you can't get new Gucci's for $2 anywhere. A $400 PS2 box is just plain deceptive. He should be glad he didn't sell it to me.
