ebay and prices of games

[final fight cd]

you guys are saying supply and demand. well how come i ALWAYS see a handful of earthbound carts on ebay going for +/- $100 dollars. i also ALWAYS see a handful of CIB snatcher for the sega cd. this would mean in fact that demand is down and supply is up.

[dsheinem]

you guys are saying supply and demand. well how come i ALWAYS see a handful of earthbound carts on ebay going for +/- $100 dollars. i also ALWAYS see a handful of CIB snatcher for the sega cd. this would mean in fact that demand is down and supply is up.

I don't think you quite grasp the concept...

[final fight cd]

i think i get the concept pretty darn good.

could you share why i am not grasping it.

[bacteria]

From personal experience, I find some games can be expensive but if you aren't in a rush to get them, you can normally get a corker of a deal on ebay for the same item. It is just a question of luck and patience. Best deal I won on ebay was 9 PC games, good titles, I was the only bidder, won for a few pence; postage included!!

[jp1]

i think i get the concept pretty darn good.

could you share why i am not grasping it.

As long as there are people who are willing to pay $100 the price is going to be $100. When people are not willing to pay that much anymore the price goes down.

For example...

You always see copies of Earthbound for $100 because they successfully sell at that price. Not because they are exceedingly rare but because there are people that consider that a fair price and are willing to spend it.

[dsheinem]

i think i get the concept pretty darn good.

could you share why i am not grasping it.

You aren't accounting for context in your conception of supply/demand.

The price of these items is indeed based on supply/demand - the asking price (e.g. Snatcher for $100) is based on what the market as a whole - online/offline/etc. - will bear.

For example: if Snatcher was being offered at $20, it would get "snatched up" immediately, but the seller would not be maximizing their profit. Same with $30, $50, $70 and so on. The recent prices listed on eBay represent the current market balance ( the "equilibrium") between the supply of the game and the demand.

The context is important: eBay auctions are pretty much the only supplier of these titles, so they can charge what they know or suspect the item will sell for. If it doesn't sell for that price, they reduce the price until they find the market's level of demand.

[dsheinem]

i think i get the concept pretty darn good.

could you share why i am not grasping it.

As long as there are people who are willing to pay $100 the price is going to be $100. When people are not willing to pay that much anymore the price goes down.

This is a MUCH simpler way of saying what I said.

[bacteria]

Indeed, something is worth whatever someone is prepared to pay for it and the seller is prepared to take for it. That is the equilibrium in market forces.

[Octopod]

i think i get the concept pretty darn good.

could you share why i am not grasping it.

As long as there are people who are willing to pay $100 the price is going to be $100. When people are not willing to pay that much anymore the price goes down.

This is a MUCH simpler way of saying what I said.

Yes, but that has nothing to do with supply and demand.

[dsheinem]

As long as there are people who are willing to pay $100 the price is going to be $100. When people are not willing to pay that much anymore the price goes down.

This is a MUCH simpler way of saying what I said.

Yes, but that has nothing to do with supply and demand.

True. Mine did try to do that by explaining context.