But it's not probably in eBay's best interests to do that sort of thing.

More importantly, it is not in the seller's best interests to do that sort of thing.

Bid prices will run substantially higher when prospective bidders can see what their "competition" is doing, and sellers are going to sell where the prices are best. If the sellers go elsewhere, ebay will suffer.

Also, keep in mind that ebay gets a percentage of the selling price, so it is in their interests to maximize the bidding.

I bid-snipe most of my auctions, but not by any automated program. I look at the previous bidding patterns of the other bidders, and plan my strategy from there. Someone who has placed four bids, each one just barely above the minimum increment to stay on top of the pile is amateur hour -- he won't be a problem. Someone who placed a bid three days ago, and then another one today with a substantial increase in what he is willing to spend is serious competition, have to watch out for that one. That sort of thing.

When I bid-snipe, usually with less than 10 seconds to go, it will always be my maximum amount I'm willing to spend, and that is usually substantially more than the current high bid. The reasons for bid sniping are thus two-fold: to prevent people who don't always bid their maximum from nibbling away at my bid and raising the price before they get discouraged and quit; and to out-snipe any other bid-snipers. Doesn't always work, but usually does. Once I got outsniped and out-bid by someone who bid 5 seconds before close, only to watch him get sniped by someone who bid with 3 seconds left. Made me laugh.

tanstaafl.