Well, well, well… As you already know, the RTX 50 situation is looking particularly tense. In order to limit the risk of price rises or stock-outs, which would ultimately lead to higher prices, NVIDIA is conducting B2B sales in certain regions. Otherwise, resellers are putting forward mechanisms to limit the number of cards per household, and so on. However, this is not the case in all regions of the world. And we’re already starting to see RTX 5090s for $7000 on eBay…Scalpers are back!
Scalpers already at work, RTX 50s already on eBay!
What scalpers actually do is buy up stocks of cards at low cost, or at least at the right price. They empty the stocks of ‘honest’ shops and resell their goods on eBay, driving up the prices. There are several ways of doing this, either by using software that automates purchases, or by having direct links with certain retailers, which allows them to have ‘guaranteed’ stocks.
And finally, how do you recognise a scalper? Quite simply, by the price of the equipment, which is often higher than the retail price, even when supplies are out of stock. Secondly, you have no way of getting back in the event of a problem. Since scalpers do not accept returns, they will always blame the manufacturer.
In short, at launch, if you want to buy a card, you have no choice but to hurry up and hope you’re one of the few to find a card in stock at the right price. Or you’ll have to wait several weeks, or even months, before you can buy your holy grail, while the supply chain works itself out. In either case, avoid these people, as you’ll only be fuelling their business , and you’ll be the loser in the whole affair as it’s a scam. Even if we understand that it’s frustrating not to be able to buy your card on the day.
