There are a couple things that make it gambling. First the outcome is uncertain. And winning does depend on factors that are beyond the control of any one participant. Instead of the "luck of the draw" as in a card shuffle, you do not know who your competitors are, or how many there are, or how much they are willing to spend, or when they will give up, or what their skill level is. Skill and strategy can help: just as there are good poker players, there are some users who win more than others. But this is just as uncertain and addictive as most OTHER forms of gambling, and almost everyone involved loses, which is the ONLY way any of these sites can be profitable.
In addition to the fact that this really is gambling, though thinly disguised, consider that some of these sites ("the house") use a variety of methods to maintain their edge over users. Some site are blatantly abusive and run auto-bidders to act as shills. Others create rules that guarantee their profits in ways that are less obvious, but still end up reducing the chances of getting a real bargain after the cost of bidding is factored in. It is also a common practice to display items for auction with inflated values to encourage lots of bidding. The fact that some of these sites will not allow refunds is also a sure giveaway that there is no interest in customer service, just exploitation.
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it is gambling
In addition to the fact that this really is gambling, though thinly disguised, consider that some of these sites ("the house") use a variety of methods to maintain their edge over users. Some site are blatantly abusive and run auto-bidders to act as shills. Others create rules that guarantee their profits in ways that are less obvious, but still end up reducing the chances of getting a real bargain after the cost of bidding is factored in. It is also a common practice to display items for auction with inflated values to encourage lots of bidding. The fact that some of these sites will not allow refunds is also a sure giveaway that there is no interest in customer service, just exploitation.
Techdirt has not posted any stories submitted by unknown.
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