We desperately need regulations or laws that will allow officials & companies to pursue civil & legal actions against individuals who engage in online/physical scalping. I am amazed this is not already illegal, and how it doesn’t fall under price gouging is a mystery to me. Or even market manipulation.
But, There is a large cottage industry around scalping where people will sell bots & services to others to purchase highly sought after commodities, at large volumes before other consumers have the opportunity. The same individuals who use these services, will take the large supply they have just purchased and will sell them at an exorbitant rate. If you want the item you have to purchase from a scalper because anytime the main seller releases more inventory the scalpers just repeat.
Some industries even encourage/benefit from scalping. Exhibit A:Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster employs their own scalpers to artificially raise ticket prices and resell them back to consumers.
Scalpers typically go after, included but not limited to: Venue Tickets, Shoes, Electronics, Playing Cards, and many more consumer goods.
Attached is an example of a camera I have tried to purchase but can’t because of scalping. One pic is the original MSRP $, the other is what it is currently being sold at. At least a 100% markup.
