Ebay sales - pre-release

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One a few have mentioned this in various other threads so thought I'd start s thread for discussion to get people's thoughts.

What is the general stance on people selling steelbooks not yet released on eBay?

Reason I'm posting. My other half was browsing eBay. Found a steelbook that she thought I'd like(my birthday soon). Pushed for time(she has two jobs and is a mum) she read the description, was happy so ordered.

She emailed the seller as the item was not received. He mailed back saying it would be sent on release date next month.

Now on one hand, she should have done her research on the date of release. (And also the cheapest place to buy it). But in the description there is an amount "in stock" and also states it will be shipped three days after payment received.

To a lot of ppl here this will all be obvious. But to somebody that doesn't understand how many profiteers are out there it's confusing.

I had to explain to her that they don't have it but they can sell it. She's still confused

Thoughts please :)
 
One a few have mentioned this in various other threads so thought I'd start s thread for discussion to get people's thoughts.

What is the general stance on people selling steelbooks not yet released on eBay?

Reason I'm posting. My other half was browsing eBay. Found a steelbook that she thought I'd like(my birthday soon). Pushed for time(she has two jobs and is a mum) she read the description, was happy so ordered.

She emailed the seller as the item was not received. He mailed back saying it would be sent on release date next month.

Now on one hand, she should have done her research on the date of release. (And also the cheapest place to buy it). But in the description there is an amount "in stock" and also states it will be shipped three days after payment received.

To a lot of ppl here this will all be obvious. But to somebody that doesn't understand how many profiteers are out there it's confusing.

I had to explain to her that they don't have it but they can sell it. She's still confused

Thoughts please :)

I thought that they can't but apparently it can be done if it's 30 day's or less before release according another to member in another thread .

What's the steelbook release? because the advance timing matters for any problems if or when it comes to PayPal claims.
 
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Even on ebay , it's illegal to sell pre-release orders without officially stating on the page that it isn't yet released.
However, if they stated the future date of release then there is nothing you can do about it except advise her that buying pre-order steelbooks on ebay is tantamount to insanity.
 
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tobybunny said:
Even on ebay , it's illegal to sell pre-release orders without officially stating on the page that it isn't yet released.

The guy has apologised and refunded my other half. He acknowledged it was misleading as it didn't state pre-order.

Don't know the release as its a gift.

Either way, my stance is that it shouldn't be allowed until a product is released
 
I agree it shouldn't be allowed but we are talking about ebay - they will allow anything they can get away with if it makes them money through commission charges. They have no morals.
However even they don't allow that . I expect someone will report that seller for deliberate violation of policy.

Then again, it might be like that Laurent313000 idiot from France
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/laurent31...DsDVDs_DVDs_DVDs_GL&rt=nc&_trksid=p4340.l2562
who has the nerve to write in tiny letters at the bottom of the page
" CAREFULL: the item is in France not in UK. So the shipping cost is not 1 £ for UK bidders - Ship to Europe: 8£ "

Or even that Lenochuk turd from Spain or whatever his name is who lists all his steelbooks in the UK under the "From Spain" label and lists posting as £ 1 and so comes at the top of every list seach for prices ( only to write in small letters at the bottom of the page that it is actually £ 10 to post to the Uk from Spain not £ 1 as advertised )

I have reported him twice and they have done sweet fa about it even though it is clearly a violation of rules and a dishonest practice. Such sellers have now sprung up in France Spain and Germany , advertising all their steelbooks with £ 1 postage fees and then adding an extra £ 6-10 quid in the description on the page itself.

Ebays response ? There is none.
 
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Only way to stop it is the buyers not buying. I appreciate its your other half and she wasn't to know.
I never buy anything of that site. Its rip off city and I'd rather do without.
The operators should not allow anything that's not in hand. That includes steelbooks, concert tickets etc
However supply and demand means unfortunately they're not going anywhere
 
as far as im concerned if you dont have the product in your hand to sell, then you dont have anything to sell ...like avforums!

at least your missus was trying to do the right thing and wasnt to know..lesson learnt!:lesson:
 
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Hi,

As others have said, Clarky, avoid eBay for anything like Steelbooks, unless you already know what you are bidding on/buying! There're too many sellers on there, that will happily seperate you from your hard-earned, if given half a chance.

If in doubt, ask on here first, and you'll get a straight answer! :)


Pooch
 
PoochJD said:
Hi,

As others have said, Clarky, avoid eBay for anything like Steelbooks, unless you already know what you are bidding on/buying! There're too many sellers on there, that will happily seperate you from your hard-earned, if given half a chance.

If in doubt, ask on here first, and you'll get a straight answer! :)

Pooch

I normally do avoid eBay. As stated, was my other half buying me some steelbooks for my birthday.

Been buying steelbooks for years now but appreciate the advice all the same :)
 
Can you please explain what this means?

that will happily seperate you from your hard-earned, if given half a chance.
 
Hi,

Can you please explain what this means?

It means that there are plenty of unscrupulous eBayer's who will happily screw you over, if they sense that you are a pushover, a newbie, or someone who doesn't know the way in which eBay operates.

Basically, eBay is no longer the trustworthy decent site, that it once was, and that it still claims to be. It's full of iffy sellers, iffy buyers, and people who don't care about screwing you out of your money - see this thread for example.

The fact that you have to use/offer PayPal as a method of payment, and that buyers are favoured over sellers, in disputes demonstrate that eBay is not worth using now for many people.


Pooch
 
Hi,
It means that there are plenty of unscrupulous eBayer's who will happily screw you over, if they sense that you are a pushover, a newbie, or someone who doesn't know the way in which eBay operates.
Pooch

Actually Pooch I think you are being too diplomatic although I agree with what you say about the ebay sellers.

Basically though, it's nothing to do with knowing how the site operates or not and everything to do with taking money off those stupid people who either don't know how to use a search engine and shop around to compare prices or are simply too lazy to do so.

It's not rocket science but it seems to be for some people despite the fact the world and his wife has had internet access for over a decade now.

To give a classic example - I saw one seller trying to shift the 3d & 2d blu-ray set of The Immortals for £ 9.99 brand new sealed and delivered free , he had only sold 2 of 15 copies available after 27 days and on the same search result, there was an open 7 day auction for a second hand copy of the same set which was standing at £ 13.50 plus £ 1.99 P&P and still rising & going strong.

Try & figure that one out :confused:
 
In relation to e-bay pre-orders then I would say don't. Wait until the item is released and then order when dealers have it available for shipping. I know when it comes to items sold out pre-order then that can become a problem then research the dealers to find a shortlist that are reliable. Reputable dealers just as ireputable dealers exist.

I know I'm stating the obvious. Of course it's obviously better to buy from a reputable store but then things such as best buy or target exclusives you have to know somebody in the relevant country as they don't ship abroad.

Apologies if I've taken this off topic I will cease this habit eventually.
 
I see this thread has been cleaned up and the white knight has disappeared!
 
That's the trouble, you can't always wait until an item is released because as soon as an item goes OOS, eBay resellers double their prices. I think the best solution is to preorder every Steelbook announced and then decide if you want it later down the line. It's amazing how demand suddenly increases when an item goes OOS. I guess it's a case of 'I will buy it later' and then panic as it goes OOS and the item starts to rise in price, which in turn increases the price even more.
 
That's the trouble, you can't always wait until an item is released because as soon as an item goes OOS, eBay resellers double their prices. I think the best solution is to preorder every Steelbook announced and then decide if you want it later down the line. It's amazing how demand suddenly increases when an item goes OOS. I guess it's a case of 'I will buy it later' and then panic as it goes OOS and the item starts to rise in price, which in turn increases the price even more.

yes i pre order everything now, but its murder keeping track of everything especially with play as there are so many..and they keep changing release dates to add to the chaos ...
 
Hi,

I think the best solution is to preorder every Steelbook announced and then decide if you want it later down the line.

I think that's actually a really bad idea. Why on earth would anyone want to pre-order every single Steelbook, on the off-chance they may want it later on?! :confused: Unless, that is, you are one of these people that likes to buy all such titles, and then flog-them off when they've gone OOP/OOS for a massive profit - like some of the eBay charlatans, who pre-order lots and lots of copies of Limited Edition stuff, with absolutely no other intention than to flog them off afterwards, to profit from other people's misery!

A Steelbook is nothing more than a posh case. Some of which, are better than others. However, most people would (or should) know whether they want a certain release, purely based on whether they like the film or not.


Pooch
 
Why? Maybe because Steelbooks sometimes go OOP before release. Steelbooks are mainly about the design. Of course the film is important, but if I just wanted the film, I would buy the amaray. Sometimes it is not possible to decide straight away. You may wish to know what cut of the film is include, what extras are included, what the artwork looks like, whether it is embossed etc. and sometimes a Steelbook can sell out before that information is made available. That's why I suggest that Steelbook collectors (not film collectors, like I say if we just wanted the film we would buy the amaray at a fraction of the price) preorder all Steelbooks just so that have the option to buy it if they want it.
 
Hi,

It means that there are plenty of unscrupulous eBayer's who will happily screw you over, if they sense that you are a pushover, a newbie, or someone who doesn't know the way in which eBay operates.

Basically, eBay is no longer the trustworthy decent site, that it once was, and that it still claims to be. It's full of iffy sellers, iffy buyers, and people who don't care about screwing you out of your money - see this thread for example.

The fact that you have to use/offer PayPal as a method of payment, and that buyers are favoured over sellers, in disputes demonstrate that eBay is not worth using now for many people.


Pooch

"unscrupulous eBayer's who will happily screw you over" - Any grown up Adult or people with commonsense could realize that he/she is being pushed by the seller and can cautiously retract their bid or stop bidding further. The seller normally doesn't message the bidder to increase the bid. If this happens then bidder can report to eBay for further action as it is lack of conduct.

"eBay is no longer the trustworthy decent site" - This appears to be a very prejudiced comment. I buy and sell lot of items at eBay and have had little issues in comparison to dealing at forums where I have been scammed left, right and center. There is very little buyer or seller protection at the forums.

Agree that disputes favor buyers than sellers.
 
they are some decent people on ebay as there are dodgy people..

youre only screwed over if you allow yourself to be...or if someone is purposely trying to sell your dodgy products, fake products, or knowingly faulty products without your knowledge.

if someone has kept hold of a steelbook which then increases in value 6 months later. it is not dishonest to sell that at a profit. how do you think shops and businesses function?

exactly the same way. you then have a choice that if you desire that item, you can see the price in advance, or bid , or make an offer..it doesnt matter if that person paid 1p for it..supply and demand, as long as it is an original item and you have all the details beforehand. and is as described.

i dont sell much stuff on ebay, but i have just sold thor steelbook for £65..i paid £17.99 for it...

i could have sold it on the forum for £35 - 40,

or ebay for £65 the going rate. - minus fees ..no brainer..but for once..i made a profit

that has paid for cabin in woods steelbook, jaws steelbook and dark souls game.. and im chuffed, and im certainly not dishonest in any way.

and im quite happy to share my story, i dont have 10 copies of thor to sell to make a profit (wish i did now!). i had one copy from my personal collection, that i decided to sell so i could buy other stuff...simple as...

i do disagree with the pre-sales as stated above, as the item is not in the hands of the seller. if it was i wouldnt grumble over the price he chooses to charge as i dont have to buy it!
 
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Well said.

Wish I had 10 copies of Trek, Iron Man and Thor as it could have given me enough cash to purchase items for another 3~6 items. I repeat, this is commonsense and clever thinking and not scalping.

Checkout the Asian retailers who are selling exactly the same Play.com Steelbooks at double or triple the price. If big guns do this then imagine the plight with little guns?
 
thats another good point, in these days of austerity, we dont have massive amounts of disposal income, so any little profits we do make, gives us an opportunity to buy items that we might of not had money for.
 
Exactly. Whilst I do think that ordering ten, fifteen, twenty copies for profit is morally wrong, I don't think there is any harm in buying an extra copy or two for yourself. Ultimately it's a risk and sometimes you'll make a profit and others you'll lose money on. I recently started ordering extra copies now I have extra disposable income and recently did a trade on here for Iron Man 1 and 2. The guy who bought them saved quite a bit on eBay prices and the profit paid for my copies. Both of us got a reasonable deal so I don't see the problem.
 
My sealed James Bond 6 movie Blu-ray Collection sold for just 10 quid in eBay but the loss was compensated by a Steelbook. So yes, some Steelbooks insulates us from incurring loss.
 
they are some decent people on ebay as there are dodgy people..

youre only screwed over if you allow yourself to be...or if someone is purposely trying to sell your dodgy products, fake products, or knowingly faulty products without your knowledge.

Interesting in this thread how the emphasis on dishonesty is placed on the sellers.

I've bought and sold on ebay and in my experience , for every dodgy seller out there (yes there are some) , there are 4 or 5 dodgy buyers trying every trick in the book to lie cheat steal and thieve from sellers.

Favourite dishonest buyer tricks I've encountered (and suffered from) include
- opening non receipt cases with Paypal a day after posting(especially popular with international buyers)
- Claiming non receipt (even when I have the tracking confirmation from Royal Mail)
- Claiming the packet I sent arrived but was empty
- Claiming the steelbook arrived badly damaged ( even though it was wrapped in a recycled play.com box with foam included ) - strangely they still wanted to keep the steelbook and were reluctant to send it back simply asking for a £ 10 refund to settle the dispute.
- paying for items via echeque and then cancelling the payment at the last moment in the hope that I will have mistakenly posted the item by then.

I could go on and on but you get the idea. Add the above to the ebay buyer trolls who buy stuff they may not necessarily want just so they can give the seller a really hard miserable time by complaining about everything under the sun with the fear of a negative feedback affecting the seller's rating unless they kiss the backside of the troll buyer.

Since they absolved buyers of all potential blame and granted them immunity from negative feedback , the ebay world has changed quite drastically and when I've got rid of my current stock, I intend closing my account - I can't cope with the deceit and the stress caused by dishonest "buyers"
 
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