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Does rumours of a new codex influence Ebay prices.
Is it possible to manipulate Ebay by posting rumours on internet forums

I don't think people do it to push ebay sales honestly. I don't think people hop on the ebay purchases until stuff is set in stone. I didn't load up on new wraiths until i saw the confirmed necron rumors and saw the images from the codex of what they planned the new wraiths to look like (I like the skull ones more than a bug looking one...)

It is sleazy, dishonest and underhanded, but yes.

However, there's plenty of rumors out there, and one that is total BS, and with the tag of "and you can get on this rumor now with my ebay sale!" will reek of sleazy, dishonest, BS.

So yeah. You can do it, and you'll likely be caught and called on it. Rightfully so.

I dunno, after seeing the change from 4th edition nids to 5th, would you really want to risk ebaying say... a full carnifex army off ebay only to get swatted with the nerf bat?

I usually think its best to see the concrete "what is coming" rumors/news before jumping on the new army bandwagon. GW Typically likes to make the newest units the best to push the sales

1. Yes

2. Possible but not to make huge swings. The best way to manipulate ebay prices is by bidding up limited edition, and rare models. Take Leman Russ (the primarch not the tank) for example. Before the SW codex was last released I was sitting on 5 of them. One of them was still even sealed in the blister. When I bought them I wasn't paying more than 20 apiece for them. As soon as rumors started circulating about an impending SW codex release I started bidding on Russ like mad. I started bidding them up to 35 dollars maximum If I ended up with the model for 35 dollars that was fine. In most cases I was still outbid at the end. By the time the SW codex actually was released the LR was hitting around 40+ apiece. The one I had sealed in blister ended up going for the unreal price of 80+ dollars.

I have since stopped doing stuff like that. While not illegal, it is unethical (imo)

inquisitorlewis wrote:1. Yes

2. Possible but not to make huge swings. The best way to manipulate ebay prices is by bidding up limited edition, and rare models. Take Leman Russ (the primarch not the tank) for example. Before the SW codex was last released I was sitting on 5 of them. One of them was still even sealed in the blister. When I bought them I wasn't paying more than 20 apiece for them. As soon as rumors started circulating about an impending SW codex release I started bidding on Russ like mad. I started bidding them up to 35 dollars maximum If I ended up with the model for 35 dollars that was fine. In most cases I was still outbid at the end. By the time the SW codex actually was released the LR was hitting around 40+ apiece. The one I had sealed in blister ended up going for the unreal price of 80+ dollars.

I have since stopped doing stuff like that. While not illegal, it is unethical (imo)

So you bid on your own listing then?.
Been watching the price of chaos bits( wanting to build thousand sons army), but prices keep going up.

I don't think rumors effect ebay prices that much. What effetcs online prices of models is simply the fact an army is being updated. What the tau are getting isn't as influencial as the tau simply getting a revamp.

No. I never bid on my own listings. That violates all kinds of ebay policies. I bid on other peoples Leman Russ' to drive up the overall price

Once again, I never ever do any kind of schill bidding.

It's really only shill bidding if you are also the seller, or are in cahoots with the seller to drive up prices. Otherwise, you are just as much at rist of owning some of those figures as anyone else.

Breotan wrote:It's really only shill bidding if you are also the seller, or are in cahoots with the seller to drive up prices. Otherwise, you are just as much at rist of owning some of those figures as anyone else.

Yup. Your'e absolutely right. I did nothing wrong. I wasnt in cahoots or bidding on my own items. I would bid on other peoples items to drive up the market price before auctioning off my own. I took the risk of winning an item I didnt really need. That was ok though because I knew demand would go up once the codex came out so I didnt mind bidding.

inquisitorlewis wrote:Yup. Your'e absolutely right. I did nothing wrong. I wasnt in cahoots or bidding on my own items. I would bid on other peoples items to drive up the market price before auctioning off my own. I took the risk of winning an item I didnt really need. That was ok though because I knew demand would go up once the codex came out so I didnt mind bidding.

I'm not sure why that was unethical, exactly. If people paid for them at level X, then clearly the market supported the product at level X. It's market manipulation, but that's capitalism. You didn't collude with anyone else, and if you had won them, you would have paid for them, right? So what's the problem?

Posting rumors to falsely inflate the value of a security before selling your own shares is unlawful, but I don't think you should take the legalities and ethics of a similar but different sphere and apply it elsewhere.

Ouze wrote:

inquisitorlewis wrote:Yup. Your'e absolutely right. I did nothing wrong. I wasnt in cahoots or bidding on my own items. I would bid on other peoples items to drive up the market price before auctioning off my own. I took the risk of winning an item I didnt really need. That was ok though because I knew demand would go up once the codex came out so I didnt mind bidding.

I'm not sure why that was unethical, exactly. If people paid for them at level X, then clearly the market supported the product at level X. It's market manipulation, but that's capitalism. You didn't collude with anyone else, and if you had won them, you would have paid for them, right? So what's the problem?

No problem. I just don't do it anymore.

inquisitorlewis wrote:

Breotan wrote:It's really only shill bidding if you are also the seller, or are in cahoots with the seller to drive up prices. Otherwise, you are just as much at rist of owning some of those figures as anyone else.

Yup. Your'e absolutely right. I did nothing wrong. I wasnt in cahoots or bidding on my own items. I would bid on other peoples items to drive up the market price before auctioning off my own. I took the risk of winning an item I didnt really need. That was ok though because I knew demand would go up once the codex came out so I didnt mind bidding.

So basicly a bit of market manipulation due to expected release of upcoming codex.

loki old fart wrote:

inquisitorlewis wrote:

Breotan wrote:It's really only shill bidding if you are also the seller, or are in cahoots with the seller to drive up prices. Otherwise, you are just as much at rist of owning some of those figures as anyone else.

Yup. Your'e absolutely right. I did nothing wrong. I wasnt in cahoots or bidding on my own items. I would bid on other peoples items to drive up the market price before auctioning off my own. I took the risk of winning an item I didnt really need. That was ok though because I knew demand would go up once the codex came out so I didnt mind bidding.

So basicly a bit of market manipulation due to expected release of upcoming codex.

Correct.

I think the number of people that are rumor savvy, buy units/armies bases on effectiveness, and are ebay savvy all at once is pretty limited.

I'm not a big ebay buyer/seller anymore, but it seems that the market for used stuff is driven more by the dedicated re-seller than by anything else. And they know that nearly anything will sell if it's well photographed.

Meaning, yeah, you can try to manipulate the cost of Tau lots by spreading rumors, but the price of Tau lots is going to be controlled by other insiders, not by end users looking to buy.

I'm making this statement based on the assumption that there are people that buy large lots, and break them up to sell units. As a person that made decent money doing it on the side during Law School, I figure that it's harder now because the pros have gotten into the game.

Hmm, brb starting a rumor to get my fething auction to sell.

Rumors influence things a bit, but nowhere near as much as the actual codex releases. The majority of 40k players and buyers aren't on forums like these, and as a result aren't as rumor-savvy.