beating shill bids

[dragonairex]

There are several sellers that I buy from who are now practicing shill bidding. Here's my question with this sniping... (which I'm new to)

Suppose there's a GPS, starting bid is $0.99. I entered $10 as my maximum. Towards the end of the bid's run, some "bidders" (who are all private btw) will enter a hundred bids up to $56.50. Does this mean, when sniping at the end of the bid, I have to pay $57.50, or am I paying my max bid + the increment?

[Cupid]

Gixen enters your bid at the end of the auction... no amount more than that, ever.

You may not have to pay that much, if less than that, plus a bid increment, is sufficient to win the auction... that is how Ebay bidding works.

If there are other bidders, shill or otherwise, that are willing to enter bids that are higher than yours, at any time during the auction, you can not beat them with a snipe whether automated via Gixen or entered manually yourself at your home.

The only way to beat a bid that is higher than yours is to bid more than that bid.

Sniping provides an advantage over bidders that react to your bid... because, in practical terms, it gives them no time to do so... it does not give you any great advantage over those that were always willing to bid more than you were and take steps to ensure their bid is also placed before the end of the auction... that includes other snipers.

If you suspect shill bidding you should report it to Ebay... they claim to investigate such reports and act on them... I have no idea how well they currently implement that promise, though.
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Mark

[dragonairex]

Okay, at first I had another question, but I see how it works now.

Thanks, this was helpful

[dragonairex]

I DO have one more question...

If I bid on a computer for $125, then the shill bidder out bids me by $130, however his MAX bid is actually $250, does my snipe bid count that max bix and will bid over that? Or will the snipe bid only bid past that visible $130?

Hopefully that makes sense

[Gixen]

[Rickajho]

It's one eBay account no matter how the bid is placed or increased. It all follows the same eBay rules.

Gixen logs into your eBay account for you and places whatever bid amount you told it to. After that it's all about eBay bidding rules. If you placed a bid of $125.00 using eBay that has already been out bid, and after that gixen places a snipe of $250.00, in the scenario you cited your bid just increases from $125.00 up to your max $250.00 as needed - one bid increment at a time.

If I were me in this situation I would be inclined to not bid at all if there is any question of suspicious or shill bidding gong on though. But that's me.

[Rickajho]

Sorry - I mis-read the "who has the max bid" in that question.

Regardless the eBay bidding rules mentioned still apply. If you already bid $125.00 using eBay any snipe bid you place after that follows the same rules incrementing your original maximum bid.

There isn't anything magic about a snipe bid - other than it's precise timing. Think of it as: Are you in front of the computer creating or increasing your bid? Or is gixen doing it for you? Don't over-think gixen's role in this though - it does not or cannot rewrite the bidding rules.

[Cupid]

To be honest, I'm not sure I understand the question.

If anyone bids more than you, and their bid is accepted by Ebay, they win but Ebay only shows the price as being a maximum of one bid increment more than your bid... no matter how much more they actually bid... and that is all they have to pay... As Rickajho has said, all of this is standard to Ebay bidding, and a Gixen bid is just a standard Ebay bid, placed in the last few seconds of the auction.
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Mark