# OKCpedia > Businesses & Employers >  Quibids.com

## Dustin

Has anyone tried it?   It's a locally owned bidding website from right here in OKC!   It's addicting!   I'm currently bidding on a 55" Toshiba LED TV..  Doubt I'll get it but it's worth a try!  I've already bid on 25 free bids and WON!  It's a rush when you win!

http://www.quibids.com/auctions/4374...-Thin-LED-HDTV

----------


## BBatesokc

It's legal, but its as close to a scam as you can legally get.

Penny auctions are nothing new and neither are the thousands of people who get taken by them.

But as with all things, don't spend more than you're willing to lose and you've done no harm.

----------


## Richard at Remax

I have a friend who works for them and admits that the group of people bidding on an item, as a whole, get hosed. It's just a gamble and you really get do get an ipad for 30.00 or whatever. but that's 3000 bids at $.60 a bid so right off the top they pocket $1800-price to buy ipad. But it is perfectly legal unfortunately. He also said that the majority of people who end up winning the item right away turn around and flip them on ebay. I could never get into it cause i don't have the time or patience not knowing if I am going to win or not. But I did get invited to their golf tourney in May so hopefully there will be some legit prizes

----------


## Kerry

My understanding is that you can take the money you spent on the bids and buy the item at retail price. If it is something you were going to buy anyhow then you aren't out any money at all. If you are bidding on things you wouldn't pay retail for then you are gambling. Of course, if it was an item you planned to buy anyhow then you should win every auction you enter because should be willing to big all the way up to the retail price.

----------


## BBatesokc

> My understanding is that you can take the money you spent on the bids and buy the item at retail price. If it is something you were going to buy anyhow then you aren't out any money at all. If you are bidding on things you wouldn't pay retail for then you are gambling. Of course, if it was an item you planned to buy anyhow then you should win every auction you enter because should be willing to big all the way up to the retail price.



It's 'suggested retail', not the actual retail price stores are charging. That can be 20-70% more than you'd actually pay. There have been several investigative stories done on these penny auctions and all conclude they are legal, but very deceptive and not a good deal for the consumer.

----------


## Kerry

I just watched an auction for an iPad.  It seems to me that with a little smarts you could 'win' without having to make 100 bids (which would cost you  $60).

----------


## Kerry

> It's 'suggested retail', not the actual retail price stores are charging. That can be 20-70% more than you'd actually pay. There have been several investigative stories done on these penny auctions and all conclude they are legal, but very deceptive and not a good deal for the consumer.


I just used the TV linked to above as an example. Qbids says the value price is $1,363.95. Right now at Best Buy it is on sale for $1,599.99. Is the Qbids value price the price you can buy it from them, or do they have a different 'buy it now' price?

----------


## BBatesokc

Just Google 'Quibids scam' and you'll get more horror stories and real world examples than you probably care to read. Quibids has been around awhile and you won't find anyone that is legit endorsing them. How much proof or common sense do you need to see its stacked against the customer all the way around?

----------


## BBatesokc

> I just watched an auction for an iPad.  It seems to me that with a little smarts you could 'win' without having to make 100 bids (which would cost you  $60).


Now is your chance to prove your smarts then. Let us know how may $60 iPads you win. I'm guessing, ZERO.

----------


## Kerry

> Now is your chance to prove your smarts then. Let us know how may $60 iPads you win. I'm guessing, ZERO.


I have no interest in an iPad - for $60 or otherwise.

----------


## BBatesokc

> I have no interest in an iPad - for $60 or otherwise.


That's good, because you couldn't get one for that. But, if you could, you could sell it quickly for alot more.

----------


## Kerry

> That's good, because you couldn't get one for that. But, if you could, you could sell it quickly for alot more.


From what I have been reading, that is what most people are doing.  It seems like if that is what people wanted to do they could eliminate the middle man (quibids) and create their own penny auction site.

----------


## Thunder

One thing that I do not like about this online auction is the constant reset of the timers.  I think its stupid, because when someone make a bid, the timer reset.  I have no time to waste away my life trying to win it.  eBay does it right by not resetting the timer.

----------


## BBatesokc

> One thing that I do not like about this online auction is the constant reset of the timers.  I think its stupid, because when someone make a bid, the timer reset.  I have no time to waste away my life trying to win it.  eBay does it right by not resetting the timer.


Thunder, don't waste your time. This is NOTHING like Ebay and you will lose every time.

----------


## Midtowner

This could be considered an illegal game of chance (gambling).

----------


## Kerry

> This could be considered an illegal game of chance (gambling).


When people talk in terms of "winning" and the site markets people as "winners" I think it is gambling. Place bids and Win. Thousands of winners daily.

Place your bets... I mean bids.

----------


## actionman

I have no association with them. But come on people take some personal responsibility. Read the rules and understand how it works. It is not gambling and it is not a scam. I don't buy anything from them because I don't believe you can get anything like a bargain on there. And the people running this site are making a disgusting amount of money. I only wish I would have thought of it. 

I did some research and you can actually but that penny auction software now and set up your own pretty easily. Wow.

----------


## Midtowner

> I did some research and you can actually but that penny auction software now and set up your own pretty easily. Wow.


That doesn't make it legal.

----------


## actionman

Well thank goodness I didn't say anything about legality. But now that we are on the topic I have yet to see anything that makes it illegal or a scam. When you do google 'quibids scam' as the person suggested above you find a lot of angry people that were expecting to win Ipads for $38.00. I found a lady who was pissed and her explanation was "I was under the understanding my account would be charged if I won something". Or really? She didn't read the rules. 

If you don't like it or didn't get your high hopes met that does not make it a scam. Are the odds against you winning something? Yes. Gambling? Possibly. Illegal? Well we'd have to answer the gambling question. But I see no different than church or school raffle. You are paying for the chance to win something that you will likely not win.

----------


## Thunder

Like I said, the timer keep resetting each time someone put in a bid, which is all wrong. Want to win something?  Be a last second bidder on eBay.

----------


## actionman

And you proved my point for me - you didn't read the rules. It is doing exactly what it says it is going to do in the terms and conditions that you agree to when you sign up. It is not ebay. It does not work anywhere near the same as ebay. Before you play a game you need to learn the rules.

----------


## Thunder

You need to put down who you are talking to. I know you are not talking to me, because I never use that scam place.

----------


## BBatesokc

> And you proved my point for me - you didn't read the rules. It is doing exactly what it says it is going to do in the terms and conditions that you agree to when you sign up. It is not ebay. It does not work anywhere near the same as ebay. Before you play a game you need to learn the rules.


Your statement reminds me when companies sit back with a smirk on their face and tell their customer "too bad, it was on line 475, 3rd paragraph on the 42nd page, in 4 point type of the contract you signed."

----------


## actionman

OK. I am not sure what your point is. But here is mine. 

I am tired of people that are too lazy to read the rules whining. We have way too much of that going on. Too much sloth, laziness and lack of personal responsibility. That is what I am against. People whine when a company does something questionable and doesn't publish their terms and conditions. And then a company is completely above board, publishes all of the terms and conditions and the same person will whine because they were too hard to read. Or something happened that they didn't understand because they didn't take the time to read the T&C they originally asked for. These same lazy people sometimes sue said company because of their own ignorance. And they win. It is possible to win a lawsuit suing somebody else because of your own ignorance. It makes me want to scream. 

Awhile back I signed up for quibids. I poked around the site for about 10 minutes and got a basic understanding about it before I ever signed up. I didn't have to read any contract in depth. I didn't have to read "line 475, 3rd paragraph on the 42nd page, in 4 point type of the contract". All I had to do was be an adult, do my due diligence, and not get sucked into the hype on the front page. I put in a little money, won some cheapo items, and decided "I don't like this type of commerce site. I am going to choose not to use it". I didn't go all chicken little on the world.

----------


## Thunder

Penny auctions should be where people can only bid one cent increment.  And people should not be forced to pay for each bid.  Quibids.com force people to pay 60 cents per bid.  That is so wrong!

----------


## BBatesokc

Actually, what is tiring is people like you who read into a thread what was never said and basically end up arguing with themselves.

A member asked about the site and other members gave their opinion. Opinions I might add that are accurate. No chicken little, no whining, no sloth. I never played or lost any money with them, but I am educated and realistic enough to know what a penny auction is and how and what the service depends on to make money.

Pointing out a perceived flaw (as Thunder did), regardless if it is in the TOS, is simply contributing to the conversation and addressing the original question.

----------


## Thunder

And people don't realize how much they are spending until its over.  Most often, people have only one mindset, to win, win, win at all cost.  Those bids quickly adds up.  I read a review earlier where "winning bid prices" labeled on products shown on the site are not the actual amount paid.  They are showing the "bid dollars" so you look at 60 cents per bid dollar, then you see how its truly a scam/misleading.

----------


## Richard at Remax

It tells you straight up it is $.60 a bid. They aren't trying to hide it. It's the people who can't do simple math who are the ones complaining. And the whole thing IS a gamble. Some people think it is worth gambling $20-$30 in order to get something that would cost 10-20x that. If someone thinks it is wrong then don't participate. It is what it is. I am not going to cause I have no guarantee that I will win anything. But like the above poster said, I am pissed I didn't think of it before hand.

----------


## Midtowner

21 O.S. 981




> *1. A "bet" is a bargain in which the parties agree that, dependent upon chance, or in which one of the parties to the transaction has valid reason to believe that it is dependent upon chance, one stands to win or lose something of value specified in the agreement. A bet does not include:*
> 
> a. bona fide business transactions which are valid under the law of contracts including, but not limited to, contracts for the purchase or sale at a future date of securities or other commodities and agreements to compensation for loss caused by the happening of the chance including, but not limited to, contracts of indemnity or guaranty and life or health and accident insurance; or
> 
> b. any charity game conducted pursuant to the provisions of the Oklahoma Charity Games Act; or
> 
> c. offers of purses, prizes or premiums to the actual participants in public and semipublic events, as follows, to wit: Rodeos, animal shows, hunting, fishing or shooting competitions, expositions, fairs, athletic events, tournaments and other shows and contests where the participants qualify for a monetary prize or other recognition. This subparagraph further excepts an entry fee from the definition of "a bet" as applied to enumerated public and semipublic events.
> 
> 2. "Consideration" as used in this section means anything which is a commercial or financial advantage to the promoter or a disadvantage to any participant. Mere registration without purchase of goods or services; personal attendance at places or events, without payment of an admission price or fee; listening to or watching radio and television programs; answering the telephone or making a telephone call and acts of like nature are not consideration. As used in this paragraph, the term "consideration" shall not include sums of money paid by or for participants in any bingo game or a game of chance with comparable characteristics as defined by subparagraph b of paragraph 1 of this section and it shall be conclusively presumed that such sums paid by or for said participants were intended by said participants to be for the benefit of the organizations described in subparagraph b of paragraph 1 of this section for the use of such organizations in furthering the purposes of such organizations;
> ...


21 O.S. 982




> A. Commercial gambling is:
> 
> *1. Operating or receiving all or part of the earnings of a gambling place;
> 
> 2. Receiving, recording or forwarding bets or offers to bet or, with intent to receive, record or forward bets or offers to bet, possessing facilities to do so;
> *
> 3. For gain, becoming a custodian of anything of value bet or offered to be bet;
> 
> 4. Conducting a lottery or with intent to conduct a lottery possessing facilities to do so;
> ...


How does this company not violate the bolded text?

----------


## Double Edge

> How does this company not violate the bolded text?


Where is the server located?

----------


## Kerry

> I did some research and you can actually but that penny auction software now and set up your own pretty easily. Wow.


Do you have to 'win' it via a penny auction site?

----------


## Midtowner

> Where is the server located?


The company is located over by the Baptist Hospital complex, I believe.

Were I them, I'd be spending some of those megabucks on lobbying the state legislature to make it legal to host online gambling businesses in OKC.  It'd be good for jobs and growth here anyhow.

----------


## Double Edge

> The company is located over by the Baptist Hospital complex, I believe.
> 
> Were I them, I'd be spending some of those megabucks on lobbying the state legislature to make it legal to host online gambling businesses in OKC.  It'd be good for jobs and growth here anyhow.


The server, not the company. If the server that executes the transactions is not located in Oklahoma, I don't believe the Oklahoma law you cite would apply any more than if I bought stock in a casino in Vegas.

----------


## actionman

Thunder: Then you develop a site that does it your way and make those your rules on your site. Your site would not be called Quibids because the quibids rules are exactly what you don't like. 

There is a difference between not liking something and it being wrong.

----------


## Midtowner

> The server, not the company. If the server that executes the transactions is not located in Oklahoma, I don't believe the Oklahoma law you cite would apply any more than if I bought stock in a casino in Vegas.


It doesn't work that way.

----------


## Richard at Remax

They work in the Valliance Bank building aka the Tower on NW Expressway and I44

----------


## BBatesokc

> It doesn't work that way.


Agreed - the law doesn't work that way.

----------


## SoonerDave

The ongoing issue regarding sites like quibids (and swoopo and BidCactus) is that whether the basic model of the "dollar auction" game really amounts to gambling. Apparently, the state of California's own gaming commission has concluded that (in this particular case, Swoopo) was not, ultimately, gambling, and thus outside their jurisdiction. 

I think the legal tightrope being toed here is whether a scenario like this amounts to a "game of chance," like randomly selecting one card from a deck or rolling dice. That's a fixed, calculable probability. I suspect the argument would be made that there is no way of calculating the probability that, at any given point in a given auction, another person will enter a bid. 

FWIW, the sites are all horrendous ripoffs IMO, but a recent Business Week article I came across said that after a white-hot start a few years ago, traffic to the various penny auctions sites has dropped drastically as the "game" is becoming better realized as one that you simply shouldn't play. 

-SoonerDave

----------


## BBatesokc

> The ongoing issue regarding sites like quibids (and swoopo and BidCactus) is that whether the basic model of the "dollar auction" game really amounts to gambling. Apparently, the state of California's own gaming commission has concluded that (in this particular case, Swoopo) was not, ultimately, gambling, and thus outside their jurisdiction. 
> 
> I think the legal tightrope being toed here is whether a scenario like this amounts to a "game of chance," like randomly selecting one card from a deck or rolling dice. That's a fixed, calculable probability. I suspect the argument would be made that there is no way of calculating the probability that, at any given point in a given auction, another person will enter a bid. 
> 
> FWIW, the sites are all horrendous ripoffs IMO, but a recent Business Week article I came across said that after a white-hot start a few years ago, traffic to the various penny auctions sites has dropped drastically as the "game" is becoming better realized as one that you simply shouldn't play. 
> 
> -SoonerDave


Actually, they are skirting the law by allowing you to purchase the item if you don't win it - thus removing all chance.

----------


## Midtowner

> Actually, they are skirting the law by allowing you to purchase the item if you don't win it - thus removing all chance.


Actually, they're only presenting a legally potential defense to what they are being accused of.  I'm sure our courts will work it out.  I'd hope that the legislature might create an online gaming exception to gambling hosting because it'd create lots of good jobs, and won't have the direct negative impact gambling usually does on a community.  It'd really be a win-win.  

I'm not against these guys, I think it's great.  I wish the state would get out of the way and let them innovate.

----------


## SoonerDave

> Actually, they are skirting the law by allowing you to purchase the item if you don't win it - thus removing all chance.


Last time I looked at Swoopo (which I admit was two or three years ago) they didn't offer you that option. You lose, you lose.

----------


## BBatesokc

> Last time I looked at Swoopo (which I admit was two or three years ago) they didn't offer you that option. You lose, you lose.


Speaking of "losers" Swoopo actually did allow you to purchase the item you were bidding on.

----------

