Auction websites provide a very dynamic virtual marketplace where consumers can shop online for almost anything from houses and cars to stamps and memorabilia. The consumer-to-consumer marketplace further gives internet users the opportunity to sell their new, refurbished or unwanted items in either an auction or 'buy now' format.

Online shopping and auction websites have seen phenomenal growth over recent years and are becoming increasingly popular. Although there are certainly a number of factors that attribute to the phenomenal uptake of Online Auctions, one of the reasons for its increased popularity is undeniably related to the fact that consumers thrive on adrenalin. Once bidders get hooked on the sense of winning and scoring a bargain, they very often start to become addicted to the counter-strike syndrome.

One online bidder confessed that after only 30 wins, he had become addicted to online auctions. Another bidder sheepishly admits that she is becoming addicted to Online Auctions and often wakes up during the very early hours of the morning to make sure that she wins her bids. To ensure that she does not miss out on her win she lines up all her PC's and laptops and then just before the auction is about to end she enters her final bid amount just split seconds before the auction ends. She then hits the enter key on every one of her computers (which she probably bought on bulk at an online auction) to make sure that she gets her final bids in before anyone else has the opportunity to. (That is of course if they were even awake at that ungodly hour.) Has she never heard of an automatic bid feature?

Bidding just got easier: Most auction websites have the automatic bid feature which is a fantastic little invention that bids on behalf of bidders if a bidder is not able to be online during the auction or is unable to track the auction. This feature allows bidders to just sit back and let the automatic bid do the bidding for them so that they do not have to wake up at 3am in the morning to bid on their most desired items. It bids on a particular item with the specified bid increment amount to meet the current highest bid amount. It will bid on the bidder's behalf only up to the amount that has been specified as the maximum that the buyer is willing to pay for the item. The system does not immediately up your bid to the maximum amount that you are prepared to pay; instead it will bid higher only to meet the current highest bid amount. The bidder enters the maximum bid amount and clicks on the bid now button. The system then bids for them the moment someone else has outbid them or at the end of the auction in order to meet the reserve price. Every time the automatic bid feature places a bid on behalf of a bidder, the bidder is notified by email communication.

So why do people become addicted to Online Auctions? As technology advances and man continues to thrive on many things that he can devour wholeheartedly, it is only natural that a certain form of addiction may arise. We are not talking about some substance abuse; rather we are referring to the type of addiction in the form of a compulsion or an urge to continuously repeat actions often with very little regard for the consequences that may follow. Online shopping is not only incredibly convenient, it is fun too. Participating in and winning an Online Auction is a very rewarding experience. In an auction, you can never actually purchase an item unless you have won it in a bid. The highest bidder wins the auction.

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