OT: Tool for sniping over at ebay

[Baron Munchausen]

Randallw said:
I think Ebay has a mechanism whereby you make a bid of what you want to pay but you also make a bid of the maximum you are willing to pay, that way if someone outbids you near the end it will automatically up your bid for you.

Yes, and that is the key reason for sniping. If you enter a price and are automatically outbid, you have time to 'think' or maybe simply 'adjust' would be more accurate - it's an emotional process more than intellectual. You consider whether the item is worth more to you, or maybe just consider whether you will stand for being outbid, and often go back to bid again. In order to prevent others having time to decide they want something badly enough to outbid you, many will wait until the last possible moment and only then place their bid. It seems quite likely to me that sniping really does result in lower prices due to the way it reduces competition. Since this works against the seller's interest in getting the highest possible price for the item, I can also see why sellers try to find ways to penalize or completely prevent sniping.