UPDATE 12/22/10: After this post was seen by Spoow I did get a refund of my money, they told me they only had a small number of customers. I still found it odd that they say this yet they seemed to have tons of bidders bidding on their site.
You’d think I would’ve learned by now, but yes, PAW seems to have been swindled yet again by a penny auction site.
Who & What: Spoow.com Promised “speed bid auctions” for gold/silver plated, swarovski crystal encrusted iPads & iPods. They even had a buy-it-now option.
Spoow.com has a three-month global Alexa traffic rank of 858,738. 1,525 in Nepal.
“CHICAGO, IL, August 27, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ — Luxury speed bid auction website SP00W! launched today, offering up to 90 percent savings on thousands of dollars worth of exclusive and luxury items in its first week alone. Promoting registration by offering free bids and e-coupons to new users, SP00W! expects thousands of users to be online bidding within the site’s first 24 hours online. SP00W!’s signature offerings include 24 carat gold plated and Swarovski crystal studded electronics, mainly from Apple’s well known line of personal technology products. Exclusive contracts with a Mary Kay cosmetics independent beauty consultant and Nu Skin vendors allow the site to feature customized luxury skin care and cosmetic packages.
“When I first saw other auction sites, it was clear that Spoow would fill an important market void by offering exclusive luxury products that consumers ‘want’ to have. Why would you settle for a regular iPad when you can buy a 24K gold iPad for a less expensive price than the one sold in stores?” “Our main differentiating factor is our selection of unique products that are in demand and of very high quality. We will never carry products available on other sites; Spoow is the only place you can find these products with such amazing deals.”About SP00W! Speed Bid Auctions
SP00W! is the hottest online auction site, featuring discounted speed bidding on custom and exclusive items in real time. Registered users win by bidding on the timed auction of their choice. Bidding starts at $0.01 and increases by $0.01 and 10 seconds for each bid placed. For a fraction of the price, winning a SP00W! auction means a savings of up to 90% and the opportunity to purchase luxury items priced far below market value. With new products arriving daily, SP00W! features both quality and unique customization.
SP00W! Speed Bid Auctions can be viewed online at http://www.spoow.com
SP00W Limited
Phone: (347) 560-0679
Email: media@spoow.com
CEO: We e-mailed Spoow back in September requesting more information, the e-mail came back from an IP in Chicago:
“Thank you for your inquiry and apologies for the delay in response. Please contact wnbarclay@spoow.com with any requests for media or more information. Miss Barclay is the CEO of SPOOW and is currently handling interviews and public information. With Best Regards, SP00W! Customer Service”
I just want my gold plated iPod touch! I gave them 2 months and sent 3 e-mails. According to the FTC, The Mail or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule requires that sellers ship merchandise in a timely manner — a specified time or 30 days — or offer to refund consumers’ money.
The Dubai Connection?
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Domain registrant: a Kamal Nasser, Dubai.
Kamal Nasser, of Dubai and a successful serial entrepreneur and winner of Red Herring Europe 100 award and current Chairman at Epitome World Limited. According to Companies House, Epitome World Limited is a UK corporation just filed 11/2/10:
Epitomeworld.com is the premium online auction community where our global network of VIP’s can win truly unique prizes supplied by some of the most sought after brands on the planet! Inside the community you will find a network of hand-picked individuals who are all engaged in Epitome World auctions that require a mixture of strategy; game theory; and analysis, in order to identify and place a winning bid that will give them prizes that money can’t buy.
Epitomeworld.com Registrant:
Kamal Nasser
P.O.Box 11923
Dubai, Dubai 00000
United Arab Emirates
Spoow.com Registrant:
Kamal Nasser
P.O.Box 11923
Dubai, Dubai 00000
United Arab Emirates
Yes, it did seem to be too good to be true, and some of the items were ending at pretty high prices.
The terms & conditions even stated that they were “Entertainment Shopping Inc.,” Swoopo’s corporate name, that right there was a red flag.
Seeing how a user who had placed just one bid after I had on an auction and won, I decided to try it. I placed 1 of my free (with registration) bids on a 24kt gold iPod Touch, I decided to purchase more bids so bought the smallest bid pack. It turns out that I didn’t need to have bought the bid pack, I ended up winning the 24K Gold iPod Touch with my free bid. The end price: $60.30.This was on back in September.
Shortly afterwards, Spoow changed their auctions to the Dutch, reveal auction platform:
Today, Spoow is gone. I sent customer support inquiries about 3 times asking when I’d receive my purchased item. I still haven’t received a response.
Despite the fact that I’ve been ripped off many times while bidding on penny auction sites, I still bid to test sites out and hopefully get a discount. I still think penny auctions need to be regulated, it’s too easy for unscrupulous scammers to rip us off.
Have you had a similar experience with Spoow.com? Spoow hadn’t been discussed on PAW prior to my testing it out, nor has it been until now. I just performed a search and found that a PAW member also had problems with them in August, but she only posted the warnings on her Twitter page:
At the time I didn’t see any negative/positive reviews. Class action?
That’s why online pharmacies is becoming more popular over the last years. Well-known are remedies which are used to reduce inflammation caused by inflammation of the skeletal muscle etc. There were only few examples. Did somebody tell you about canadian generic Viagra? Maybe you yet know about the question. Sexual malfunction can be a result of a physical condition. Even when it has a physical cause, psychological problems can make the disorder worse. Sex drive problems are so commonly a product of how you feel that there is something to that “headache” saying after all.
Julie Blake November 15, 2010, 12:31 pm
I would be happy to share my experiences as noted above in my tweets…I will do so in the forum.
Amanda November 15, 2010, 12:59 pm
Thank you Julie! It’s concerning me that this is allowed to continue. Now Epitomeworld.com?