Auctionbytes-NewsFlash, Number 48 - March 26, 2001 - ISSN 1539-5065
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Auction 'Reserve-Price' Feature Does Not Benefit Sellers, Study Finds
By Ina Steiner AuctionBytes.com March 26, 2001
A scientific study showed that using the reserve price feature on eBay reduces the probability of the auction resulting in a sale, deters serious bidders, and lowers the expected transaction price of the auction. A copy of the study, in which 50 matched pairs of Pokemon cards were listed on eBay - half with secret reserves and half with equivalently high public minimum bids - is available for $5.
http://papers.nber.org/papers/W8183