Here is a verbatum respose from eBay regarding their sniping policy. If so many people are happy with sniping then why are they so against sniping software? Read on!
Hello,
Thanks for taking the time to write to us! I'll be glad to try to help!
We get a fair amount of mail about sniping and it's an issue we've wrestled with for a long time. Part of the problem is that there is not
a consensus of opinion among users. Some users hate the practice while others find it exciting, and there are sellers who just love to have
snipers hit their auctions.
We were considering making a change much like what you're suggesting late last fall, but many users contacted us and asked us not to and the
idea was shelved. This is something that comes up for discussion periodically, and at this time there are no plans to change the bidding process but that doesn't mean it might not change in the future.
There is a common misconception in the user community that snipers always win when in truth they don't. In point of fact, it's the highest
bid that wins, regardless of what time it was placed. Difficulties arise when bidders try to second-guess and place a bid they think should
be high enough to outbid anyone else rather than bidding their maximum. We realize it can be tough to figure out what that maximum is. I generally advise people to pick a number and then ask "What if someone bid $1 more than this - would I be willing to go higher?" If the answer is yes, then they need to add to it and ask the question again. Eventually, by bumping it up incrementally (bigger increments for more expensive items, of course), they'll get to the point where they say "If somebody else is willing to pay that much for it, then they want it worse than I do!". When that happens, they have truly figured out
their maximum. If a sniper places a last-second bid and it isn't high enough, they usually won't have time to place another one before the auction ends. If the sniper does manage to be high bidder, then the underbidder has the satisfaction of thinking the sniper is an idiot to pay that much.
Hopefully this will at least help clarify some things for you. If you have any further suggestions, please do send them in, as we really do read them and take them into account when considering changes.
We thank you in advance for your cooperation, and wish you luck with your future eBay transactions!
Regards,
Rebecca T.
eBay Customer Support
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