ebay question - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

25 Feb 2004

Oh, I'm probably going to regret weighing in on this but: ebay proxy 
bidding is MUCH better than a sealed bid auction because if you win, 
you only end up paying one increment more than the second highest 
bidder (usually a buck or two). In a true sealed bid auction, you pay 
whatever you bid, which might be a lot more than the second highest 
bid. So, the ebay model almost always gives you a better deal than a 
sealed bid, and never a worse deal.

What most people don't like about sniping is the emotional letdown 
they get when their bid sits at the minimum for a week, and then 
their maximum gets exceeded at the last second. I have to admit, I've 
ended up feeling cheated myself, as if I actually deserved to get a 
PDP-8 for $10. But all they've cheated me out of is the opportunity 
re-think my maximum bid after that find out that someone else may be 
interested.

What would make eBay much more interesting (and more expensive for 
buyers) would be the going-going-gone approach used by live auctions, 
and the old onsale.com site. Real auctions stay open until bidding 
activity has ceased for a period of time. Onsale kept auctions open 
past the posted closing time until 10 minutes had passed since the 
last bid. This made sniping irrelevant, but in exchange you could get 
a frenzy of emotional incremental end-stage bidding.

Brian