posted on August 12, 2002 06:59:21 PM new
WEll with the change over we had two programs running on one. One said do this the other one said do that and they did just what they were to do. The good part is we now know the system will hold up under a heavy load of listing over hundreds Per hour and sending out all info pertaining to them.
posted on August 13, 2002 08:00:47 AM new
Might not be all that bad advice. An online auction can be a real money pit. I've know several people who lost a fortune on brick & mortar businessess that never had any kind of a chance.
posted on August 13, 2002 09:01:46 AM new
With the economy sinking now isnt the time to build an auction site since auctions are becoming a fad anyway. Maybe I will start a auction site for RB called bootlegs.com!
posted on August 13, 2002 10:17:11 AM newMaybe I will start a auction site for RB called bootlegs.com
Now, there's a great idea! I've got gazillions of bootlegs. I could be the only seller on this new venue and I could make some major bucks.
Maybe I could get Yahoo to link to my illegal auctions the same way they link to theirs ...
Heck, maybe I could get that eBay copyright 'expert' quasi-lawyer guy to, ahem, share some of his knowledge about bootlegs and the law. With his advice, I would be assured success!
All I need to do is get over a few minor legal hurdles first ...
posted on August 13, 2002 10:31:28 AM new
Nobody would care that everything was bootlegs ( including the rightful intellectual property owners ). You'd get rich.
posted on August 13, 2002 01:20:30 PM new
Bootlegs.com is only a venue, and cant be responsible for what is listed. Hey if ebay gets away with it why cant everyone?
And yes being in the video business for many years I know the studios love bootlegs. Remember when napster was in full swing? They were making record profits. Small video stores tried to stop the dual-deck VCR as well, but failed. They were made special for bootleggers.
posted on August 13, 2002 02:20:23 PM new
It's just not videos & DVDs. There are a lot of illegal items on auction sites, from watches to purses to designer clothing. It's 'buyer beware' on any venue like an online auction site, swap meet or garage sale.
posted on August 13, 2002 04:32:42 PM newSmall video stores tried to stop the dual-deck VCR as well, but failed. They were made special for bootleggers.
I have three GO-VIDEO dual deck VCRs. Two of them were purchased before the DMCA made them illegal, and they both break Macrovision encoding very nicely. I bought the 3rd one a couple of years ago and it does not have this feature. I need all three of them to keep up to date with my tape trading hobby.
And no, I do not rent commercially released tapes from Blockbuster and copy them! I won't even make a copy of any of my Emmy tapes (which are not encoded) - if someone wants an ep from Spin City or Malcolm in the Middle, for example, they have to negotiate for the original studio released tape.
As to "buyer beware", that's a crock when it comes to on-line buying. This caveat is intended to cover cases where you can inspect the item and then make a decision, and it came about way before the advent of on-line buying. Besides, it doesn't cover scams or blatantly illegal material.
It is especially interesting to note that eBay is now providing eBay created links on their search pages that point directly to pages and pages of listings on their "venue" for the illegal DVDs and VCDs of the "Star Wars Trilogy". Last time I looked, there were 99 listings for DVDs and 66 for VCDs - ALL 100% ILLEGAL!
It will be interesting to see how eBay will defend their "we're just a venue" argument when they themselves advertise bootlegs on their own venue. IMO, that's the same as abetting a criminal activity and they certainly can't say "gee, we didn't know those listings were there".
