Archive of UserLand's first discussion group, started October 5, 1998.
Re: 100 websites that will change the world
Author: Eric Soroos Posted: 1/16/2000; 11:24:22 PM Topic: 100 websites that will change the world Msg #: 14509 (In response to 14506) Prev/Next: 14508 / 14510
I really don't like E-bay, and it's probably a sign that they're doing something right.It used to be that most of the buying and selling took place on Usenet, a reasonably efficient market place, but occasionally a startling inefficient market place. (Efficient in economic terms, where the value of an object is known and agreed upon)
It was the inefficiencies that I liked. In areas that I knew well, a bargain (by definition, an inefficiency, since if the market could bear a higher price without changing the time on the market, that price should have been known by the seller) could be spotted and acted on quickly. I have bought many bike parts at well below 'fair market' value with this system. And it was a handy way to get rid of parts _quickly_ if I didn't want something.
Ebay has basically killed this barter. From an economic standpoint, auctions are a more effecient mechanisim, but given the publicity and the search tools, it's far harder to be the most knowlegable buyer for a particular item.
eric
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