Dick
Senior HTF Member
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- May 22, 1999
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- Rick
I know what proxy means, but how does it apply to eBay bidding and how is it accomplished and is it even ethical?
It's more fair, IMO, than the item going to the person who typed in a bid the second before the auction closes.Not really. If a sniper bids the most for an item, they win, if someone else had a higher previous bid, the sniper loses. There is nothing unethical about either practice IMO. Bidding at the last second simply stops the price from increasing in a bidding war, or in some (all too common) cases being shilled up.
If you have your heart set on something (not a good idea with auctions without a "buy it now"), be prepared to overpay, and bid accordingly. If you are looking for a deal, chances are the closer to the end of the auction you bid, the better chances of not being outbid, though you should pad you high bid for the inevitable snipe attempts.
It always amuses me when a long auction goes up, and a bunch of newbies begin a bidding war in the early days, as if they are going to win that early. As long as you have a bid on the table you risk being outbid, unless you maximum is well over what the item is worth.