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Posted By: davidcycleback

As already noted, if the bidder knew he was going to be shilled he would not have placed the $3,000 max bid. He placed the $3,000 ONLY under the assumption there would be no shilling. Thus, the seller saying there is no shilling in order to trick people into placing max bids that he then shills up makes the final price invalid. The final price was formed through trickery and deception. In fact, if the bidders knew there was going to be shilling, they would not have participated and the final realized price would be $0 due to 0 bids.

Remember, it's an auction not a sale. In a sale, the buyer and seller can mutually agree upon a price. They can haggle and go back and forth in determining the price. In this haggling, the seller might fairly figure out the most the buyer is willing to pay and get that price. In an auction, however, the competing bidders determine the price and the seller is not allowed to participate. If an eBay seller doesn't like the competing bidders format, if he feels auctions won't maximize his profits, he can have a straight sale. eBay has Buy it Now and Make An Offer options.