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Why doesn't ebay kill sniping?
lkeigwin
Posts: 16,895 ✭✭✭✭✭
Okay, I missed out on a few David Kahn CBH auctions tonight. My snipes weren't high enough. Realistically, I wouldn't have gone to the moon as someone did. But it got me thinking...
Wouldn't higher auction prices result from auctions that end only after a few minutes of inactivity? Kinda like DLRC does it?
Sure, the playing field would be changed. But wouldn't it be better for ebay's bottom line? (I know...who cares, but this is a business.) And maybe for buyers? I'm probably missing something again.
Lance.
Wouldn't higher auction prices result from auctions that end only after a few minutes of inactivity? Kinda like DLRC does it?
Sure, the playing field would be changed. But wouldn't it be better for ebay's bottom line? (I know...who cares, but this is a business.) And maybe for buyers? I'm probably missing something again.
Lance.
Coin Photography Services / Everyman Registry set / BHNC #213
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Lane
See http://www.doubledimes.com for a free online reference for US twenty-cent pieces
<< <i>But wouldn't it be better for ebay's bottom line? >>
Suppose people who like to snipe decide not to bid at all (FWIW.. from what I've read over the years, that's what a lot of them say)- do you think it would still improve eBay's bottom line?
Maine_Jim
Paper is expensive, and gold is patient.
That being said...
If eBay changed the rules to state that the auction ends a certain time....unless there has been a bid in the last 30 seconds of the standard bidding....then 30 seconds will be added onto the end of the auction....etc. If someone bids in the "Extra 30 seconds" then another "Extra 30 seconds" will be added to the auction time....etc etc This would be an interesting concept and might allow for a few sellers and eBay to make more money.
Greg
Not really looking for much these days but if I were, it might be a toner.
HH
1947-P & D; 1948-D; 1949-P & S; 1950-D & S; and 1952-S.
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<< <i>If eBay changed the rules to state that the auction ends a certain time....unless there has been a bid in the last 30 seconds of the standard bidding....then 30 seconds will be added onto the end of the auction....etc. If someone bids in the "Extra 30 seconds" then another "Extra 30 seconds" will be added to the auction time....etc etc This would be an interesting concept and might allow for a few sellers and eBay to make more money. >>
Maybe, maybe not.
Right now, people need to put in their maximum bid before the designated closing time. With an extended format, bidders only have to go to the next bid increment to keep the auction going. I think it's quite likely there'd be bidders who would have made a snipe bid of $250 on an item with a current bid of $125, who might also reconsider that, at $185 (after multple incremental bids of $2.50), he's had enough, and stop bidding.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
Lane
edited for spelling...
See http://www.doubledimes.com for a free online reference for US twenty-cent pieces
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And I think the actual sales and final values would fall for real auctions.
Ripe for abuses (you think shilling is bad now!)
As a buyer, who wants to sit on there computer and bid every three minutes (or whatever) and micro-increment bid to be the last man/woman standing? Damn, if I had three or four lots I was interested in, it would start getting pretty tough.
Plus, I can see the bidiots now!
Also, as a seller I think the bids would trickle in and then whoever happened to be at their computer, logged in and bidding would have a better chance. I think very few bidders would want to place a strong bid early, if at all. Nuclear bidding would be very costly if someone wanted to f' with you ... and they would have the chance, whether a shill, a bidiot or someone who knows you.
Oh, and the returns, cancelled sales and cancelled bids would probably go up exponentially.
For DLRC it works, but I do not believe those are always real "auctions" in the truest sense of the word (no offenese to DLRC - I have some wonderful coins I have purchased from them). Unless I am mistaken, many of their coins are house-owned (or possibly "on memo" from clients) with solid "for sale" reserves.
“We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”
Todd - BHNC #242
Check out my current listings: https://ebay.com/sch/khunt/m.html?_ipg=200&_sop=12&_rdc=1
The are called "people who always lose ebay auctions".
Personally I feel they give me a bit of 'peace of mind'. I put in what Im willing to pay...and then go away. If I win, good. If I dont, thats fine too.
<< <i>I am willing to bet that somewhere in the eBay catacombs someone has studied this issue and has determined that the present systems extracts more money for eBay than extending auction endings. >>
Agree. This is not a new idea and eBay has certainly studied this idea.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
<< <i>I sniped an auction last night. If they extended the auctions I would not use ebay anymore. >>
What would you use?
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
If/when I snipe all I did was enter my maximum bid and now do not have to worry about missing the auction as my bidding is taken care of for me. My max bid is the most I am willing to pay. If I lose then the item went for more than I am willing, enough said.
I think sniping can help to make an item go for more money than typical too. How many of us do a nuclear snipe for a "must have" item? I know I have. Well if two or more people do a nuclear snipe, the last person standing wins. That mayhem happens all in the last seconds. I think if it was spread out sooner in the auction time, a few may back out of a nuclear bid as they will then know for a fact they will have to pay at least the current high bid.
I might not be explaining my thoughts very well this morning, but my point is there is something inside many of us (or maybe just me) that will do a nuclear snipe on a must have item. There is something in that brain that sees the coin at $25 and I am hopeful it is a rip, but will enter a max of $250 just to get it as I need it. I may not bid that $250 if the coin is already up that high a few hours before the auction ends etc, its all about that "what if" and the uncertainty of getting a good deal, but at the same time knowing you gotta have it and thus, a nuclear snipe.
Lower listing fees fixed duration and price and higher FVF's.
<< <i>I do not use a snipe program.... I do it myself and have been highly successful. More fun that way too. Waiting til the last five seconds then 'snap', hit the key. I throw a nuclear bid at that time and win everything I really want. Great fun. Cheers, RickO >>
Yep, it is kind of like scoring a direct hit on a 1000 yard shot when you win one with 0 seconds(once) and 1 second left(many times) with a well trained index finger hitting the enter key. Is sort of exciting, gets the pulse racing. On the auction last night the losing bidder bid a couple of times, but like yours, mine was a nuke bid.
<< <i>Guess 'cause it makes them (AND sellers) more money???
Exactly.
Empty Nest Collection
When I do a search for "Morgan Dollar PCGS" on any given Friday the first matches are usually auctions ending within 10-30 seconds. And I sniping if I bid $36 on a MS64 1880 S dollar with 3 seconds left if I just logged in?
Remember, sniping does not insure winning, bidding the highest insures winning.
>
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<< <i>I do not use a snipe program.... I do it myself and have been highly successful. More fun that way too. Waiting til the last five seconds then 'snap', hit the key. I throw a nuclear bid at that time and win everything I really want. Great fun. Cheers, RickO >>
Same here. I probably have about a 75% success rate. There is only 1 item I am pissed about losing but I didn't really have the cash to win the item at the time either as it turned out....but I might have found the cash really quick if I needed to....oh well.
Not really looking for much these days but if I were, it might be a toner.
<< <i>Sniping is very convenient. If I had to be at my computer at the end of every auction and stay there until there was no more bidding, I would bid a lot less. Sniping allows me to bid my max with no worries. If you are getting outbid by snipers, then you aren't bidding enough. It doesn't matter when the bidding happens, you must be the high bidder to win.
Remember, sniping does not insure winning, bidding the highest insures winning. >>
You can bid your max without having to snipe or having to be at the computer at the end of the auction.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
<< <i>
<< <i>Sniping is very convenient. If I had to be at my computer at the end of every auction and stay there until there was no more bidding, I would bid a lot less. Sniping allows me to bid my max with no worries. If you are getting outbid by snipers, then you aren't bidding enough. It doesn't matter when the bidding happens, you must be the high bidder to win.
Remember, sniping does not insure winning, bidding the highest insures winning. >>
You can bid your max without having to snipe or having to be at the computer at the end of the auction. >>
You're liable to have someone run up the bidding then. Sniping keeps your max bid closer to your vest so to speak.
<< <i>Okay, I missed out on a few David Kahn CBH auctions tonight. My snipes weren't high enough. Realistically, I wouldn't have gone to the moon as someone did. But it got me thinking...
Wouldn't higher auction prices result from auctions that end only after a few minutes of inactivity? >>
I think the question is does going to the moon generate higher auction prices....
if you wanted to snipe, you had to stay up to all hours and hit the button just at the right time
it was a skill.......the programs take all the fun away, I would like to see sniping prohibited by automated programs, maybe with a "hidden/skewed word/symbols" like ticketmaster, etc.
<< <i>Sniping is very convenient. If I had to be at my computer at the end of every auction and stay there until there was no more bidding, I would bid a lot less. Sniping allows me to bid my max with no worries. If you are getting outbid by snipers, then you aren't bidding enough. It doesn't matter when the bidding happens, you must be the high bidder to win.
Remember, sniping does not insure winning, bidding the highest insures winning. >>
So are the whiners pissed at sniping/snipers or sniping programs? I'd guess programs.
<< <i>A lot of people DONT use snipe programs.
The are called "people who always lose ebay auctions".
Not true...I don't use a snipe program but do usually wait to see where the auction is at during the last half hour. If, near it's end, it's at a reasonable range of what I think it is worth I will bid. I will bid very high (2x to 3x+ the current bid price with 10 seconds or so left) if I really want something. Most times I win. Yeah, I been outbid by a snipe, but I look at it as someone else was willing to pay more than I wanted to. Are you telling me you never lost an auction ussing a program? Does it just always automaticlly bid more and more? What happens when the real value is a fraction of what you paid - you're stuck with it.