Distribution:
Here is the problem as I see it.
There are two main issues I have identified. The issue of people, and the issue of fairness.
People: CCs are in high demand by two types of consumers, consumer A wants to own and cherish a click clack and has no intention of immediate resale, they appreciate them for the pieces of art they are and want to take pictures and enjoy their item. Consumer B understands that there is a large gap between retail price of a CC and what they are valued at by the community and wants to use that CC as a means to sell at a profit or trade at a profit. '
Fairness: How do you fairly distribute a resource that is in high demand? Should first time buyers have preferential treatment as they don't yet have a CC? How do you account for people who are looking to own a CC becoming upset by the people who are looking to make money?
Possible solutions:
FIFO: You can do First come first serve, but that gives preference to people who have free time on their hands and can make it to the sale at the exact specified time. With items in such limited supply that might not be the best. Does not prioritize new buyers
Random: You can do random auction, solves the problem FIFO but everyone has an equal chance of getting one and does not prioritize new buyers.
Raffle: Make people purchase tickets to get into the random drawing. This will make people who are only in it for a profit think twice about entering as they might be out of pocket if they do not win. Doesn't solve the first time buyer problem and is worse for people who want to own.
CC distribute as he sees fit: This gives priority to people who are visible in the community and/or people who are most vocal about how much they want "The squeaky wheel get's the grease"
I believe a decent solution would actually be a combination of Random and Raffle.
Have a random drawing but charge money to enter for people who have won in the past. So, if you have never won in the raffle, you get free entry, if you have won once, your entry is $5, if you have won twice, entry is $10, etc. etc.
This addresses the problem of people in it for a profit by limiting the amount of times they are likely to enter, as if they have won in the auction, the next time they enter it will cost them. It also addresses the new person problem as they get free entry to the auction.
Obviously this isn't an ideal solution, but I don't think an ideal solution exists. thoughts?
(As an aside, I have already won in an auction so I would have to pay to enter next time. Also, there are always ways to game the system, ship to different addresses, use different paypal accounts, etc.)
