Check Those DVDs Purchased On Half.com

[classfour]

I recently ordered a dvd on half.com for my son. Upon opening, I noticed the disc was not as glossy as it should be. Turned it over, only to find purple dye - and a noticeable plastic aroma filled the air.

I then inserted the disc into the old laptop & ran DVD Identifier on it:

ProDisc S03 medi, ElbySoft CloneDVD was the burning Ap.

Yes, I did send an immediate "nasty-gram" to the seller informing them of my findings, including the specifics about the media, etc..

Yes, I did get a rather swift refund.

My main question is this: After seeing this happen, and having received a complete refund (who wouldn't give one), do I pursue it any further????

What would YOU do????.....

BTW: This individual has ANOTHER copy "available" at the moment - I'll be they can find yet another one when that one sells.

PS: While I've backed up many DVDs, and own several hundred; I have never been so stupid as to sell a copy - especially on the internet. I have loaned a copy to family or friends in lieu of my original - if you burn it on cheap enough media it'll only play a couple of times anyway. It's not as if I couldn't do the same thing: I have the hardware to rip and compress, and even have a duplicator - yet I choose not to deceive people in this manner.

[Forum Troll]

Not much you can do, other than notify eBay about it. They'll probably just revoke his username.

[classfour]

Yep, The dreaded "Use Name Revocation" proceedings

I could hammer them in their review - but would probably get the same in return and have to go thru the process of getting it removed...UGH.

My only wish in this matter is they cease & desist - I really don't want the unwary getting taken in this manner. I'm glad that I caught it, and glad that I received a refund; but not liking the situation.

Were I stupid enough to sell copies to the unwary & were caught: I would for certain want the original copy returned to me before I did a refund - even if I had to pay for return shipping on the thing. The fact that someone I don't know has a pirated copy of a disc with my machine ID and other info on it would not set well for me. If that thing got into the MPAA investigators hands and set them on me.........whew!

[lordsmurf]

Is it really worth your effort? Have you nothing better to do in your free time? It would be one thing if you got screwed over, but you got your money back, and the fake item for free. Now go and buy the legit one, and move on. Not that I agree with the half.com guy/gal either, but did this person really affect your life so much that you now have a vendetta?

[sacajaweeda]

Is it really worth your effort? Have you nothing better to do in your free time? It would be one thing if you got screwed over, but you got your money back, and the fake item for free. Now go and buy the legit one, and move on. Not that I agree with the half.com guy/gal either, but did this person really affect your life so much that you now have a vendetta?

I agree with this smurf.

[classfour]

Not vendetta.

I DID purchase a legit one - elsewhere.

I have not pursued the half member on this, either.

As I stated: I'm more into making others aware of what is
going on, so they don't get ripped off.

It's my belief that the more someone who is doing this gets
caught, the less profitable it will become - eventually forcing
them to stop.

[lordsmurf]

You already did that. He was forced to pay fees, products costs, shipping .... and then got nothing for it. You're likely not alone. A dozen of those and he'll probably give up after losing $50-60 in materials/shipping, not to mention wasted his time.

[Cobra]

Well, I'd agree with classfour in this case. Any unscrupulous retailer deserves to be crucified. It's a personal thing. If a business tries to screw me, I'll nail them to the wall.

[canadateck]

What Movie was it?

[classfour]

Napoleon Dynamite.

My ten-year-old flat loves it (and almost all Adam Sandler movies except Spanglish).

[waheed]

The problem is that many movies (not released) are still on ebay, but some sellers actually mention its a copy, on dvdr etc... and nothing seems to get done about it. Many people still end up bidding on the dvds.

Some of these are even 1 day auctions, so by the time you report them, (which ebay require at least 24 hrs to respond), the auction is over.

I once reported a ebayer selling copies of harry potter 3, king kong etc... which he had a 3 day auction, nothing was done about it. The auction ended as usual. It seems that ebay dont really care.

[Jester700]

The problem is that many movies (not released) are still on ebay, but some sellers actually mention its a copy, on dvdr etc... and nothing seems to get done about it. Many people still end up bidding on the dvds.

Some of these are even 1 day auctions, so by the time you report them, (which ebay require at least 24 hrs to respond), the auction is over.

I once reported a ebayer selling copies of harry potter 3, king kong etc... which he had a 3 day auction, nothing was done about it. The auction ended as usual. It seems that ebay dont really care.

I can understand their position (on THIS issue, anyway). The manpower that it'd take to weed out such 3 day auctions would drive costs up. You can make a copy that is indistinguishable from an original in an auctio pic, so the WORST of this ilk (who sell as an original) wouldn't even get nabbed. IMO there are bigger fish to fry.

[shelbyGT]

I don't get a chance to say this too often, but I agree with smurf. Not worth it.

[hech54]

Wha Wha Wha...Bad Old Ebay...blah blah blah.
Nobody sells octane testers to test all that so called high octane gasoline we out in our cars almost daily yet Ebay and Half.com are the root of all evil.
It's called buyer beware and it's not 100% Ebay/Half.com's fault because you didn't buy anything from them.....you bought it from a seller on Ebay/Half.com.
Yea...it still sucks but if that is your worst problem you will have this week you are going to have a damn good week.

[sacajaweeda]

"issues".....

[classfour]

I should've posed the question as a POLL.

The main reason for a post wasn't because someone is selling pirated crap on half.com, it was because they are selling it as "like new" - not stating it is a copy.

I'm usually very quiet on a forum, trying to only provide input when it can be helpful.

Saying it's not worth my trouble is not even reading the original post - I said: What would YOU do???

I appreciate the input, and the multitude of assistance that I've received from many on videohelp from the days of vcdhelp.com.

[hech54]

My comments were not aimed at you personally....I was just anticipating the endless flow of morons that usually harp in on threads like these saying "Ebay Sucks" when it is a dirtball seller who sold the disc and not Ebay itself.
I would at least e-mail the seller at tell him what a dirtball he is....that is IF he is still a registered user. I would also post his e-mail address here and his Ebay/Half.com user name here as well so others can enjoy telling him what a dirtball he is..
That is what I would do.

[classfour]

No offense taken. The site where it was purchased is posted. The DVD (-R) in question is posted also. Not being certain how many are "available" or having sold is the big question. If everyone can take the buyer beware attitude and check their half or ebay purchases (which I do) upon receipt - catching theses people at their own game would eliminate them. I don't actually belief ebay or half "suck". I've purchased tons of hard to find items off of each. I've benefited many more times than I've been burned. Until this particular instance, there were only three times that were particularly disagreeable.

I do agree heartily on one item in your posting: DVD Decryptor RULES. I hope LightningUK is doing well.

[Doramius]

I have no time. I'd have a whole bunch of friends from all over put in reports to eBay (even when they've bought nothing from the person) that the person is selling bootleg DVDs that can be bought in the store.

Now if it was a RARE movie and I cannot find it anywhere else on DVD........... ....that type of incident may slip my mind to report.