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==Bidding==
==Bidding==
According to QuiBids’ site, customers must register an account and purchase their first Bid Pack in order to bid on auctions. The Beginner Bid Pack costs $60 and includes 100 Real Bids<ref name=QuiBids.com>{{cite web|title=How Does QuiBids Work?|url=http://www.quibids.com/en/quibids101/blog/12-How-does-QuiBids-work|publisher=QuiBids.com|accessdate=20 November 2012}}</ref> . So long as they have not been placed in an auction and are not beyond their three-year expiration date<ref name="QuiBids Help section">{{cite web|title=Bidding on QuiBids|url=http://www.quibids.com/en/help/faq/10-Bidding|publisher=QuiBids.com|accessdate=20 November 2012}}</ref>, the monetary value of Real Bids can be refunded<ref name="QuiBids Terms & Conditions">{{cite web|title=QuiBids Terms & Conditions|url=http://www.quibids.com/en/help/terms.php|publisher=QuiBids.com|accessdate=20 November 2012}}</ref>. Each auction is on a timer and bidding may begin only when there are five minutes remaining on the timer. A bid placed in the last twenty seconds will reset the timer for another ten or twenty seconds, allowing other customers the chance to bid. Additionally, a bid increases the final auction price by one cent. When the timer runs out, the last customer to bid on an auction wins the right to purchase the product at the auction price.<ref name="How Does QuiBids Work?">{{cite web|title=How Does QuiBids work?|url=http://www.quibids.com/en/quibids101/blog/12-How-does-QuiBids-work|publisher=QuiBids.com|accessdate=20 November 2012}}</ref>
Users pay a fee for each bid they place in an auction. Each action is timed, and the last bidder for an item when the timer runs out wins the auction and pays the price bid for the item plus the bidding fee for each bid they made. However, each bid also adds time to the timer, thereby giving others a chance to continue bidding. All bidders, whether they win the item or not, must pay a fee for each bid they placed for the item. For example, if 500 bidders bid on an expensive plasma television, 499 bidders will pay bidding fees without actually receiving any product at all.<ref name="quibids">{{cite web|title=New to QuiBids|url=http://www.quibids.com/en/help/faq/15-New-to-QuiBids|publisher=QuiBids|accessdate=13 November 2012}}</ref>

Customers who bid on an auction may at any point during the auction and up to two hours afterward, choose to Buy Now, so long as the customer did not win the auction. This feature allows customers to purchase the auctioned product at the listed Buy Now price, less the value of Real Bids they spent in the auction<ref name="QuiBids Buy Now Explained">{{cite web|title=Buy Now Explained|url=http://www.quibids.com/en/quibids101/blog/25-Buy-Now-Explained|publisher=QuiBids.com|accessdate=20 November 2012}}</ref> . So if a customer spent 60 Real Bids on a gift card with a Buy Now price of $100, they could choose to Buy Now and purchase the gift card for $64.



==Reception==
==Reception==

Revision as of 22:34, 20 November 2012

QuiBids.com is an American online retailer headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States.[1] It is the world’s largest retail website that operates on the bidding fee auction business model, which is also known as a penny auction [1] As of October 10, 2012, QuiBids was the 286th most traffic website in the United States, according to Alexa.com. QuiBids.com is also available in Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, Germany, and France, as of October 2012.

History

Matt Beckham and Shaun Tilford (now QuiBids’ chief executive officer and chief technology officer, respectively) founded the company in 2009 and launched the site out of Beckham’s Oklahoma City apartment in the fall of that year. The company name is a portmanteau of the words “quick” and “bids,” and is pronounced the way both words sound.[2]

By October 2012, QuiBids had grown to employ about 150 people, fulfilling orders on thousands of products every day. Other improvements since its launch include a wider selection of products and the incorporation of elements of gamification such as QuiBids Badges, auction statistics, and QuiBids Games, the latter of which customers play to earn Voucher Bids to use on the site.

In February 2011, QuiBids officially rebranded itself as an entertainment retail auction.[3] QuiBids sells consumer electronics, home and garden products, gift cards, sports and recreational equipment, apparel, jewelry, and many other products, and is accredited by the Better Business Bureau with an A-minus rating.[4]

Bidding

According to QuiBids’ site, customers must register an account and purchase their first Bid Pack in order to bid on auctions. The Beginner Bid Pack costs $60 and includes 100 Real Bids[5] . So long as they have not been placed in an auction and are not beyond their three-year expiration date[6], the monetary value of Real Bids can be refunded[7]. Each auction is on a timer and bidding may begin only when there are five minutes remaining on the timer. A bid placed in the last twenty seconds will reset the timer for another ten or twenty seconds, allowing other customers the chance to bid. Additionally, a bid increases the final auction price by one cent. When the timer runs out, the last customer to bid on an auction wins the right to purchase the product at the auction price.[8]

Customers who bid on an auction may at any point during the auction and up to two hours afterward, choose to Buy Now, so long as the customer did not win the auction. This feature allows customers to purchase the auctioned product at the listed Buy Now price, less the value of Real Bids they spent in the auction[9] . So if a customer spent 60 Real Bids on a gift card with a Buy Now price of $100, they could choose to Buy Now and purchase the gift card for $64.


Reception

QuiBids received a Best in Class distinction from the Interactive Media Awards in July 2012.[10]

QuiBids was voted fourth best place to work in Oklahoma City. [11]

Auditing firm Grant Thornton reported with "'reasonable assurance' that 'bids on auctions are placed by bona fide users, that QuiBids does not manipulate the bidding process to inflate the bid price or affect who wins the auctions, and that winning auctions and 'Buy Now' orders are fulfilled (i.e., shipped).'"[11]

According to Reviewopedia.com, penny auctions are a bad deal for the consumer and should always be avoided.[12]

The Better Business Bureau has closed over 1000 consumer complaints about QuiBids.com during the last three years. Nearly 25% of these complaints were not resolved to the customer's satisfaction. The BBB does not report the number of open complaints.[13]

In 2010 Lawrence Locke filed a class action suit against QuiBids claiming that it does not adequately inform customers of the low probability of a positive outcome or that most customers lose money overall. He also claimed that "the percentage of money returned constitutes violations of the Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act and common law fraud by omission under Oklahoma law." [14] [15] Jeff Geurts, chief financial officer of QuiBids, claimed the suit has no merit.[11] He explained that QuiBids allows customers who lost an auction to buy the item at full recommended retail price plus tax, shipping, and handling minus the amount the customer spent on bidding for that item.[15] The Washington state attorney general's office studied the penny auction business model and concluded that it does not constitute gambling under its state laws. It is now studying whether or not penny auctions constitute a lottery.[15]

Other federal lawsuits have also been filed claiming illegal gambling and false advertising by, among other things, misappropriating images from news websites and fabricating customer testimonials. [16]

References

  1. ^ a b Walker, Tom (6/72011). "Founders of Oklahoma City-based QuiBids earn an A in entrepreneurship, job creation". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 10 October 2012. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference quibids was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Farrand, Jill. "Director of Public Relations". Cision. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  4. ^ "BBB Business Review: QuiBids". Better Business Bureau. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  5. ^ "How Does QuiBids Work?". QuiBids.com. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  6. ^ "Bidding on QuiBids". QuiBids.com. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  7. ^ "QuiBids Terms & Conditions". QuiBids.com. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  8. ^ "How Does QuiBids work?". QuiBids.com. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  9. ^ "Buy Now Explained". QuiBids.com. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  10. ^ "Interactive Media Awards nominees". The Interactive Media Awards. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  11. ^ a b c "What to Expect on Penny Auction Sites". ABC News. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  12. ^ "QuiBids.com Reviews – Legit or Scam?". Reviewopedia.com. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  13. ^ "CONSUMER COMPLAINTS". Better Business Bureau. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  14. ^ "QuiBids Class Action Lawsuit Complaint". Class Action Lawsuits In The News. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  15. ^ a b c "Penny Auctions Draw Bidders With Bargains, Suspense". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  16. ^ "QuiBids.com Penny Auction Site Investigation. Is It a Scam or a Scheme? Why So Many Complaints?". GetOutofDebt.org. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
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