www.telebid.com

uchacha

cryptoguru wrote: »

It's actually worse than what has been explained.
The winner has to pay the price they won the item at as well as for their bid tokens, their bids just get them the right to buy it...

It's basically gambling!

MoneySavingExpert.com, isn't Telebid.com a gambling site, as the nature of 'bidding' is more like gambling than auctioning? This should be grounds enough to take legal action as the site claims to be an auction site, but bidders cannot place their own bid, they must bet, and be the last person in the lottery-line to win.

What do you think MoneySavingExpert.com? :undecided

L0NDONER

TeleBid

Address:
Parkshot House 5 Kew Road
Richmond-upon-Thames
TW9 2PR
UK

I have just written to my local MP asking for clarification
on the above company
and trading standards

lonath42

Personally, when I found this site I thought it was a scam. However, having got a Wii for £18 and a few days ago, a 450d camera for £50, I am liking it very much. Once you win, they just order the item from a supplier (got my Wii sent from Amazon Yes, the company makes a fortune, and good luck to them. I have saved a small fortune. However, winning is mostly luck. I have seen today as an example, 3 bidders who have spent a huge amount to ensure they win. In one case, someone spent almost £2000 to win a £500 camera.

Treat it like the lottery, and you might get lucky. I am going to use it again in the future.

Tyronic

First off, the site isnt a con, it is a ingenious idea playing on other people's greed. The rules are perfectly clearly before you bid, each bid goes up 7p, they tell you get bid costs 50p.

Why do you guys keep complaining about it? Sure some people bid more than what the actual item costs! But thats their problem.

As for the site using bidbutler and its own account to make sure it doesnt make a loss. I have seen plenty of items make a loss, most noticeable when someone mentioned a nintendo going for £8.20. Meaning they lost half the money they spent for the item.

As for being highly illegal, they dont need to bid on their own items, the large profits means its pointless. Plus the site is owned by a large multi national firm, they invested over 3million euros developing and advertising so its not like they need someone to bid on it themself. Guys stop complaining, we all know what they are doing, its a gamble just like the national lottery is. The national lottery is 14million to 1, this site is just a different way.

Bamber19

Tyronic wrote: »

Why do you guys keep complaining about it? Sure some people bid more than what the actual item costs! But thats their problem.

Hello expected new poster number 10, the reason people are complaining is because some people believe that stupid people should be protected, and that exploiting their stupidity, which is what is happening, is wrong.

The simple "you knew what you were getting into" argument doesn't cut it, people sign up to contracts that are unlawful every day and that argument never works if they challenge these at a later date. In this instance I don't believe it to be illegal, although it could be depending on whether the site is percieved to be an auction, shop, lottery or other game of chance, but it's not legality that most people are talking about anyway, it's morality.

In reference to the lottery, the National lottery is regulated and other raffles/games of chance are also. This site would appear to be claiming to be completely different from these and sees itself more as an auction so they probably haven't looked into the relevant licensing and regulation. It could not be argued that there is any element of skill involved here, it is simply a game of chance, which to run without authority could be illegal.

ANGSTDATA

no - i totalllly agree with you - by the way has totalllllly really got 6 ls in it?

vaengr

Got suckered in by this sites advertising and thought it to be an auction site bought the minimum £5 to try it out but very quickly realised it was a gaming site and they charge a £5 fee to return any money - (just wonder if I'd paid £10 it would have been a £10 fee).

My main complaint is they way they advertise, OK I was too quick to give them money (I had had a few drinks by that time) but it clearly advertises itself as an auction site (maybe need to clarify the entry for auction at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auction ?)

If it had advertised itself as a gaming site I would not be moaning :cool:

vaengr

My first two posts in this forum are one after another sorry but needed to add this;

Been watching it closely since getting conned myself and there seems to be no pattern in the bidding.

In one case I've seen two bidders both spend over £500 in bids and get beaten by a third for an item worth about £200.

Another one I watched (although this item was just free bids) they actually lost money by only getting £46 for something that was worth £75.

The true nature of the site means it has got to be covered by gaming legislation surely? Although full credit to the originators for coming up with the idea in the first place I can't think of a better 'scheme' to take money off the stupid and gullible than this which resides in a very grey area of UK legislation.

Sexy_Em

i'm interested in having a go on this site. A lot of the comments left in this thread clearly don't understand the concept of the site. However, I also understand what people are saying about about it being a bit like gambling.

I know telebid are making a complete fortune out of the site - and fair play to them as its a good idea and it works. I just want to know - if you do actually win something at a bargain price, and you haven't spent a fortune on bids - is there anything wrong with it?

grayme-m

Sexy_Em wrote: »

i'm interested in having a go on this site. A lot of the comments left in this thread clearly don't understand the concept of the site. However, I also understand what people are saying about about it being a bit like gambling.

I know telebid are making a complete fortune out of the site - and fair play to them as its a good idea and it works. I just want to know - if you do actually win something at a bargain price, and you haven't spent a fortune on bids - is there anything wrong with it?

Many would say yes. Whilst that's a big if, what about all those that don't realise what the site is all about, those that need protecting from themselves that don't win?