Cross Registry

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by steve B

To work well, it would probably require access to each included companies database. I can't imagine PSA allowing it since a big piece of what keeps them at the top is the prices driven by the registry.

Many databases are probably either unavailable, or no longer exist. GAI? Plus how many other defunct companies.

The idea is a really good one, but I'm not seeing it operating easily like a grading companies own registry.

Rather than make a straight grade translation what I think would work better would be weighting the grade based on both the card and the grading company, with a little flexibility for stuff the company would have most likely gotten right.

Like my Delong graded by Acu-Card. It says it's a 7, but it's trimmed. My impression of Acu-Card is that they could get the authenticity right, but couldn't tell about alterations. So I might weight all Acu-Card grades at the bottom while giving PSA, SGC Beckett etc the top of the weighting scale.

A way to track cards known to be altered or clear mistakes would be good too. Like all the stuff outed as trimmed on blowout being automatically considered an "A" and noted as such.

A good feature would be including ungraded cards as well.

Lots of work to make it a real working thing, and I'm not really seeing how to even make it pay for itself unless you get enough traction to charge grading companies a fee to integrate their database. And that brings up a bunch of conflict questions, like a new sketchy grading company paying for inclusion to buy some legitimacy.

I wasn't thinking about population reports, because in my opinion they are highly problematic, considering all the cards cracked out for resubmitting, and cards cracked out because collectors prefer them that way.

I'm talking about collectors who have completed sets and want to have their accomplishment recognized and compared to other similar completed sets. So they pay some fee, submit proof of the cards they own (maybe something simple like video of their cards on top of a current dated newspaper,) and then their cards are entered into the registry database for that set.

So, you wouldn't need any data from any TPG company - the only data you'd be dealing with would be what was voluntarily submitted by collectors who wished to have their cards and set recorded in the registry.

Yes, minds better than mine would need to figure out the weighted formulas to standardize grades of the different TPG companies, whether some TPG companies are even reliable enough to include, and weighing how much more the Mantle counts vs. a common... stuff like that would all need to be decided.

As to cost and profitability, look at it this way. Suppose someone has a set that is 90% graded PSA, but the rest are BVG or SGC, including a few high dollar cards. Currently, if this guy wants his set in the PSA registry he has to get all those non-PSA cards re-graded.

1. How much will that cost?
2. Will those cards cross at the same grade or be assigned lower grades?
3. How long will the wait time be?

That adds up to a ton of money, time, and some risk. With the Cross Registry, no re-grading is necessary, unless they are in slabs of unreliable TPG, in which case they can be re-submitted to any legit TPG for grading.

A new LLC setting up such a registry could charge a few hundred dollars to register a set and still save the collector thousands. After awhile, with general acceptance, AHs would be listing complete sets with references such as being #12 on the Net54 Cross Registry (or whatever it's called.)

It would involve some work no doubt, but the benefits would be huge, and zero cooperation or data would be required or even wanted from any TPG or anyone else, besides the collectors who chose to pay the fee and register their sets.