is it ethical? (reselling tickets for hot items)

[hitanykey]

Or how about you double dip? You use your Reward Zone card to get Reward Zone points and then turn around and sell the stuff you bought for a profit?

 

After reading through this thread I think I've decided that greedy, unethical and illegal essentially boil down to hating someone that wanted something you wanted but they actually went through the trouble that was necessary to acquire it while you didn't.

[Eddyisgreat]

you guys are forgetting all the n00blets that put their shiz on ebay as soon as (or sooner) they got their HP laptops last year.

 

Ebay was so flooded I don't think most of them got a $50 profit, less time and effort!

[Just Me]

you guys are forgetting all the n00blets that put their shiz on ebay as soon as (or sooner) they got their HP laptops last year.

 

Ebay was so flooded I don't think most of them got a $50 profit, less time and effort!

yeah I'm not fooling with ebay for resale this year. After last years run of fake bidders with the game systems. The whole thing was insane and ebay didn't care or do a darn thing to stop it. I might try selling tickets opening bid $5 and see how that plays out but I'm not even fooling with ebay over the holidays

[scarface]

Last year i went to bb for the laptop. I got there around 9-10pm. The last ticket given out was 5 ppl ahead of me. I was pissed. There was these 2 guys, they took tickets for everything, even somehow one got 2 tickets for the laptop. I ended up getting a ticket for the higher priced sony which i didn't want. I wanted the hp. I was talking to these guys for a bit earlier, he turned around..said u get one? I said not the hp just the sony. He looked at his buddy, said..i'm selling these at 75-100, but since u got here a little after me 50. I had to take it...kinda pissed me off that i had to pay another 50 but i waited that long in line i wasn't going out empty handed i figured. He said i'll try to sell my sony ticket 50/50 and i could get my 50 back. So i said sure. The line was neverending it looked, he went toward the back, a secuirty guard came up saw him coming back and gettin in front of me and told him don't leave the line again or you're gone. Figures he found a buyer for 150 bucks for that ticket, but he couldn't leave the line.

 

Anyway, i think people would get pissed if people were there almost as long as the others selling and didnt get a ticket, but the ones getting there at 4-5 would want to buy one. Forgot some chinese kid was selling his for 100, a lady behind me yelled out to the security guard that he was trying to sell his ticket and it was BS that she waited that long and he was selling them. Manager came out from the yelling, kid put his head down handed the ticket to the security guard and left cause he saw the manager and guard coming over to him.

[cjbryant]

I really do not see the big deal of selling tickets and why the store would stop anyone from selling them. They got there early for the opportunity to get the tickets, sometimes well over 12 hours. The people who are complaining about those selling tickets need to get there earlier or stop complaining. If you want the item, get there earlier or buy the ticket from the people in front of you. I wouldnt be surprised to see people get all the tickets, get the items they want and then leave with the remaining tickets. This way those complaining would not get the tickets and whoever shows up at 11 would get one (when they give out remaining items that were not redeemed).

[dtdoda]

I think it's pretty ironic that those that think that re-selling the tickets is fine and who ridicule those who think otherwise then turn around and complain when the store puts in rules that THEY don't like such as limiting tickets. Sometimes in the very same post!

 

I guess it just comes down to whose ox is being gored, doesn't it?

[barc]

I think it's pretty ironic that those that think that re-selling the tickets is fine and who ridicule those who think otherwise then turn around and complain when the store puts in rules that THEY don't like such as limiting tickets. Sometimes in the very same post!

 

I guess it just comes down to whose ox is being gored, doesn't it?

 

Sorry, I don't see the irony. But I do agree that, as in almost everything in life, it comes down to whose ox is being gored.

[dtdoda]

Really? How about taking their own advice and "stop complaining"?

[SoCalCyclist]

Where's the, "You people are whacked choice?"

[Just Me]

looks like the sony laptop and the cheap desktop will be hot tickets this year. I wonder about some of the other TVs. I think asking $100 for a ticket is nits. I can see $10 or $20 but not much more than that personally

[hangtime_360]

Ha I read this and my first thought was "well, I know what my mom would say" and yet I know what I would do if I didn't have my mom's voice in my head. Personally I am a college student and if I can show up grab 5 tickets with 1 of them being the item I want and then sell 4 of them in order to pay for the 1 I want I don't see how that is unethical. Time = Money right? well my time = their money = them happy = me happy = half the line wanting to kill me lol. I haven't done this but I am really tempted this year.

[safool]

The main problem with selling tickets is the fact that dozens of other people have been standing in line for nearly the same amount of time as you. Last year at BB many people were depending on counting how many people were in front of them to decide if they had a chance of getting what hey wanted. If the ad says 15 available and you are 20th in line you feel confident that you can get one. Now if everyone if the first 15 take one of every tickect your screwed.

[Iliveforblckfri]

last year i was the 5th one and got all the tickets just incase i needed somthing, then if i did not want the ticket, i just gave it to nice looking people inside the store. THis couple with a teenager kid were looking at computers so i walked up to them and asked if they need a desktop. they said yes and i gave them the ticket. they were so happy because the desktop deal at bb was good last year. this feeling was better then the $20 dollars i would make. be nice everyone because good things happen to good people. :)

I agree with you. Getting the good feelings are worth much more than any payment would be. I purchase items for coworkers. It costs $420.00 minimum for a round trip ticket from where we live to where the stores are. My hubby has an airplane and flies me into town. My nephew thinks I should make a profit to help cover my costs. I laugh at him. I like helping my coworkers. :holiday16 :holiday16 :holiday16

[Lidstrom]

Like I have said elsewhere on the forums, if you are going to make the argument that it is "just business" and you can sell it, then you had better be claiming the income. No legitimate "business" sells things without reporting the income.

[msluchie]

it is very UNETHICAL--end of story

[nedsw33]

Unethical? No. You stand out in the cold and wait in line all night long. You can do Whatever you want with the items.

 

Explain to me what is unethical in that??? Nothing. Look up the word in the dictionary.

[lupajunie]

Like I have said elsewhere on the forums, if you are going to make the argument that it is "just business" and you can sell it, then you had better be claiming the income. No legitimate "business" sells things without reporting the income.

Hrmm I don't know about this, I don't think that will stick with many people. So are you saying whenever I sell things on ebay or craigslist (things at home maybe I don't need anymore, or maybe a gift I got that I'd rather sell off for money but don't have the receipt to do so) that's business and I should claim that on my taxes? That sounds pretty unlikely to me that anyone would do that. How about a little girl selling lemonade, should her parents report that during tax time? That argument just doesn't hold up very well. But here let me list some UNBIASED pros and cons of this issue:

 

PROS: You can make a little profit to be used towards your spending, You can help someone out by selling them a ticket they otherwise wouldn't of gotten because of their place in line.

 

CONS: It is illegal in SOME states (though this is up for debate on whether or not they could actually charge you BUT if the BB management so chose to kick you out then that's totally up to them they 'RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REFUSE SERVICE TO ANYONE'. You may be taking a ticket someone otherwise would have gotten but are now selling it off, You add to creating a vicious chain of other ticket sellers who may next year be ahead of you and take YOUR ticket, you can potentially waste someone's time in line.

 

That's pretty much it, but as you can see it's all pretty much subjective and I personally don't lean either way because it just depends on the person and their own morals. I may choose to sell tickets myself and I wouldn't feel bad doing it.

[Kimp67]

last year i was the 5th one and got all the tickets just incase i needed somthing, then if i did not want the ticket, i just gave it to nice looking people inside the store. THis couple with a teenager kid were looking at computers so i walked up to them and asked if they need a desktop. they said yes and i gave them the ticket. they were so happy because the desktop deal at bb was good last year. this feeling was better then the $20 dollars i would make. be nice everyone because good things happen to good people. :)

That's exactly what I have done. We need more good ppl in the world!

[jmcdon00]

Totally ethical. Just like it is ethical to buy something and then turn around and sell it for a profit. You earned the right to purchase the item at a reduced price and if you wan the tv and not the laptop then sell your ticket for the laptop, you just got the tv even cheaper.

The only exception to this rule is if there are rules posted that dissallow it.

[lupajunie]

That's exactly what I have done. We need more good ppl in the world!

That is undeniably a very nice thing to do, right? But....(I hate to turn this into a philosophical debate but I just need to make this one point) who's to say what is good and what is bad? If you have a standard of what is wrong or right or good or bad where do your standards come from? or maybe Who? Is it yourself? If so then, you choose to say that we all have our own individual standards of right/wrong and good/bad and since the individual can pick their own standards whose standards do we live by? Our own is it not? Unless it's law, then it's all a big free-for-all and people can do and say what they please and if you think it's wrong then it's only wrong to YOU not everyone. I'm just bringing up this point because you can't say something is wrong or right if you have an individual standard of morals, and even the subject of morality.... where did morality come from? Human evolution? The only people I'll respect on here for saying it is possibly wrong or unkind to sell tickets is someone who believes in God because then their set of standards are not of their own but of God's. And if you want explanation on why God would say that, I could tinker around in my head to give you an answer. But even then I'm not convinced God would say it's wrong to do. If I choose to sell tickets then it's only because I need to make more money inorder to buy presents for others. So I'm 'taking away' from one set of people to give to another set of people.

[jmcdon00]

Hrmm I don't know about this, I don't think that will stick with many people. So are you saying whenever I sell things on ebay or craigslist (things at home maybe I don't need anymore, or maybe a gift I got that I'd rather sell off for money but don't have the receipt to do so) that's business and I should claim that on my taxes? That sounds pretty unlikely to me that anyone would do that. How about a little girl selling lemonade, should her parents report that during tax time? That argument just doesn't hold up very well. But here let me list some UNBIASED pros and cons of this issue:

 

PROS: You can make a little profit to be used towards your spending, You can help someone out by selling them a ticket they otherwise wouldn't of gotten because of their place in line.

 

CONS: It is illegal in SOME states (though this is up for debate on whether or not they could actually charge you BUT if the BB management so chose to kick you out then that's totally up to them they 'RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REFUSE SERVICE TO ANYONE'. You may be taking a ticket someone otherwise would have gotten but are now selling it off, You add to creating a vicious chain of other ticket sellers who may next year be ahead of you and take YOUR ticket, you can potentially waste someone's time in line.

 

That's pretty much it, but as you can see it's all pretty much subjective and I personally don't lean either way because it just depends on the person and their own morals. I may choose to sell tickets myself and I wouldn't feel bad doing it.

As far as the taxes, most people who sell things on ebay actually paid more for them than what they are selling them for, so there is no profit. But if you bought a $300 laptop and sell it for $500 then you have a $200 profit and that is taxable and would be claimed as business income on a schedule C. Many states also require you to pay sales tax on the difference(you already paid it on the first $300).

 

Your basis in a gift is the value on the day you recieved it. So as long as it didn't go up you would not have any income to report.

 

If you did have a profit you could use expenses such as mileage to and from the store and possibly your supplies while waiting(coffee?). You could potentially even take a loss on your taxes if you lost money, although there has to be a profit motive.

[lupajunie]

As far as the taxes, most people who sell things on ebay actually paid more for them than what they are selling them for, so there is no profit. But if you bought a $300 laptop and sell it for $500 then you have a $200 profit and that is taxable and would be claimed as business income on a schedule C. Many states also require you to pay sales tax on the difference(you already paid it on the first $300).

 

Your basis in a gift is the value on the day you recieved it. So as long as it didn't go up you would not have any income to report.

 

If you did have a profit you could use expenses such as mileage to and from the store and possibly your supplies while waiting(coffee?). You could potentially even take a loss on your taxes if you lost money, although there has to be a profit motive.

http://www.ezinearticles.com/?Do-You-Pay-Taxes-On-eBay-Income?&id=40793

 

I appreciate your posts first of all because I would never of thought selling things like that would be considered taxable. But I'm still not convinced because of a few things... first, do these tickets have on them that they're not worth anything? Many have said they don't and, although not labeled as so, are technically worth the amount you're saving. So with that said if I sell a ticket for an item you'd be saving $200 with, for $20... that's technically not profit then? I'm not implying anything by these questions, they're just honest questions.

 

Secondly, since this can just be considered a hobby (which doesn't take away tax liability) then it's not a business and the seller can so choose not to report it and not have IRS come breaking down the door. Just wondering what your thoughts were on that, hope to hear from you soon.

[jab5]

A guy last year who was Number 3 in line got there Wendsday at 8 PM and on Thursday Night all he could talk about was selling his tickets to the people in the back of the line, then all of a sudden after BB employees handed out tickets at 4:00 AM on Friday I saw two police officers and the HUGE Best Buy Manager (700lbs) were walking to towards the back. Soon word came around in the line that people were complaining to management that the guy was selling tickets and he got all of his vouchers confiscated and they removed him from the property and told him not to come back.

Damn that must have sucked for him, waiting all that time and spending two nights in the cold and getting absolutely nothing out of it. I would have killed myself If i were him!

 

Oh, and about an earlier post about people being arrested for scalping tickets/vouchers.

Scalping is defined as selling something (tickets) more then their face value. The Best Buy vouchers for the Doorbusters have no value, so its not scalping. I would love to have them falsely arrest me for scalping tickets and trying to sell them for $50, because they would have a lawsuit worth a helluva lot more then $50 on their hands.

 

Also, another thing. Does Best Buy have some policy that states that people waiting in the line for Black Friday sales are not allowed to sell the vouchers that they waited over 12-15+ hours to get? I seemed to miss that one as Best Buy likes to enforce it as a rule.

[ignacio7v]

It is all business. Did everyone already forget last year when the wii was in short supply?

I bought four wiis. kept one for my sons and the rest I sold them for 100 profit each. I froze my ass making the lines on different days yet I saw many dissappointed parents with their children going home empty handed. Everyone that bought the wiis from me were thankful that I made their christmas. They were even surprised that I did not sell them for a higher price.

 

Again. Is it unethical? No way. It is a win win situation for everyone involved even on black Friday. Happy shopping everyone.:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

[barc]

...he got all of his vouchers confiscated and they removed him from the property and told him not to come back.

darn that must have sucked for him, waiting all that time and spending two nights in the cold and getting absolutely nothing out of it. I would have killed myself If i were him!

 

 

Serves him right for shooting his mouth off. He should have quietly taken his tickets and sold them. Bragging to the masses, what a tool. Still, I don't think it's suicide worthy.

[jab5]

Serves him right for shooting his mouth off. He should have quietly taken his tickets and sold them. Bragging to the masses, what a tool. Still, I don't think it's suicide worthy.

He was stupid, but try waiting in line outside in the cold for as long as he did while getting absolutely nothing out of it and tell me how happy you are.

[NCHeel]

Instead of going to the End of the line ( to people who get there 20 min before doors open) maybe try and sell them to the 13th person instead. They've been there all night, and deserve the break. You could say, "Hey.. I decided I dont really need this, I"m thinking of selling it.. you want first dibs?"

I sold my tickets last year and raised enough money to get the Panasonic camcorder for free. I started out by going to the people where the tickets had ran out and they were pissy to me when I told them I would sell them the tickets for $10-20 depending on the item. I said OK watch this and I went to the very back of the line and those people were glad to see me and I got $200 in like 10 minutes.

[cpthnsolo]

I don't know about you guys but last year was the first year I saw ticket selling on the levels that I did. People from the back were walking up and down the first 100 people offering $20 to $50 a ticket for various tickets. Would it really be wrong to sell them a ticket to an item you were on the fence about to start with? Sure we're all after one or two things specifically, but a lot of us wind up going for other door busters after hearing others in line talk about them all night.

 

I always go with a large group (5 to 8 of us) and we get all of the computer and camera doorbusters that we can. I'm typically buying for friends, family, coworkers, or church friends who aren't brave enough to endure the madness so I'm not a reseller. However this past year I resold two of the tickets from my group to people walking around offering to pay 'X' amount of dollars. Hours later I took my entire group out to Cracker Barrel with the money from the ticket sales and we ate like kings. In addition to buying all of the door busters we originally set out for we had a great time having breakfast afterward. Considering we had already given away one of our tickets for the cheap desktop to the nice ladies behind us (they nearly cried when they heard we got the last ticket) I didn't hesitate in the slightest to sell a couple of tickets to people who were nearly begging to buy them.

 

I don't think there is a right or wrong answer to this question and it will depend entirely in the eyes of the beholder. <snip> and I don't think we can fault those that try to make a quick buck from doing so.

 

Exactly. As someone who has waited in line all night at Best Buy for four years running I know exactly how disappointing it is not to get what you want. However if someone wants to wait in line for 15+ hours these days in hopes of selling their tickets for $50 to $100 then let them. My time is worth a lot more than that to me though so I'm going to keep most, if not all of the tickets that I get.

 

-Timothy

[dad2trips]

At my BB last year the police stated they would arrest anyone caught doing this. They said it was scalping which is illegal. So for my city it is not a question of ethics and if it is right or wrong. It is just plain illegal.

[kam5085]

i was #1 in line at circuit city, and i sold tickets last year for 2 items and gave away the third ticket (im a college student & i need the money). Maybe its unethical, but i didn't rip people off - i just got my laptop cheaper than circuit city was offering it to begin with. i think everyone in the top 10 sold their tickets to ppl at the back, and the manager knew it - but he couldn't do anything about it.