Getting a Limited on Behalf of a Friend: Right or Wrong? Why?

1. Is this right or wrong? Why?
It's fine. I don't consider it to be much different from say, purchasing multiple lottery tickets. Well, aside from the IOU parts. Maybe then it's a little bit like one of those big lottery pools people get into. I'm sure it contributes a little to server-clogging, but the servers are usually clogged ANYWAY when it comes to high-demand limiteds.

2. Would it be wrong to do if the person was a stranger and/or was paying you to do it, but OK to do because it is a friend and you care about them? Does it matter how close the friend is (i.e. a family member or super close friend, rather than just somebody you know more distantly off a forum and are a little friendly with)?

Well, you should know the person and trust them! Beyond that, I wouldn't really say it had to be a friend. Previous business associates would be great. I don't know that I personally would do it for someone who PMed me out of the blue even if they had references, but if someone else would go ahead with such a transaction, that would be fine as long as it didn't end up in the problem transaction area. That could get messy.

I can see spotting someone the paypal fees and tossing in a little extra money or gifts as thanks, but I honestly couldn't imagine that many people would have a lot more cash than that to throw around for extra chances XD. I don't think anyone here's going to be buying a personal army of bidders, and if some shoes change hands, that's not really hurting anyone.

3. Does the type of contest and the way it is run matter? For example, is it OK to do this in a lottery but not in an essay contest?
Probably not, as long as everyone has their own ideas and content. Although essays along the lines of "Why I want this doll" might suffer when written by people who don't actually feel any passion for said doll.

4. Does the contest being perceived as somehow vague or inherently unfair make a difference? For example, if lots of scalpers often win, does it make it more OK for you to try to get a doll on behalf of someone who really is going to love it and not just turn around and sell it?
Lotteries are always unfair. Not everyone gets ten million ~_^. Besides, truly dedicated resellers can and will find a way to get around any caveats supposedly aimed at putting dolls in the hands of people who "won't" sell them. Part of any collection that involves limited items is accepting that some third party somewhere is using your passion to turn a buck. You can always choose not to buy from them if you dislike the idea.

5. Do you think this really cuts into the chances of people who just submit the one entry for themselves?
No person is an island. Anyone concerned with such a thing should perhaps consider enlisting some friends or business associates.

 

I don't see a probelm with it if it's someone who will love the doll, But if it's someone who's just looking to make quick money then no. It's wrong.

I would have no problem doing it for a close friend. If it was something they really really wanted. I'd try for it and suprise them :3 I probably wouldn't do it for someone I don't know that well though, because I wouldn't want to win it for someone who's just gonna sell it off. I'd feel terrible. kinda like I cheated people that really wanted that doll out of it.

I'm not sure about the type of contest, because I've never entered one. I'm don't think it's really any different. It's still a contest.

I guess to me personally it makes it more ok. I hate scalpers with a passion. I'd want the doll to go to someone who will love it not try to make a quick buck off it.

Well as it's a lottery, it's all down to luck really. There's no guarantee you'll win. In a way every entry is just another chance someone else will get it but if there's 100's or 1000's of peopel already your chances are very slim as it is, that 1 more person isn't really gonna do much.

 

I have to admit, I'd love to go to a Dolpa and I have no Volks dolls. I can still buy clothes, eyes, wigs, etc. I can still gawk at all the pretty one offs, limiteds, and displays. I can still take a faceup class or participate in other workshops or games like their bingo. I can still meet people and maybe make new friends. And if I were so inclined, I could still plan on getting a Volks doll at the event itself, either a regular sold at the event (I'm assuming they do this?), a school head and body, a limited, a one-off, or a FCS.

Yes, the Dolpas are Volks-centric. But I still understand wanting to go even if you don't own Volks.

 

What if you win more than one doll by having other people help you? You could end up with more then one. If you don't buy them then the company my not let you enter the next one. For the cash poor this could devistate they bank balance until they get the doll and have a chance to sell it.

 

A friend and I here are going to the NY Dolpa next summer. If there are One offs we want, both of us will try for the doll. I see nothing wrong with it. If its the same doll, then we might have a problem, lol, but if it's a Tsukasa I want and Mika she wants, we'll both put our names in for them. If she wins my Tsukasa, I'll hand her the cash for him, and if I win her Mika, she'll hand me the cash to go pay for her. Nothing wrong there. We get the doll we wanted and paid. Just chances are better. (But I have horrible luck anyway.)

 

At an event like a Volks Dolpa I think if someone comes along as a guest and gets an entry ticket and is willing to use it for someone else there is nothing wrong with this. Everyone is given one lottery entry ticket to do what they like with.

If a company tells you not to do something or strongly advises against it then I wouldn't do it but otherwise I think its ok.

 

I'm totally ok with friends going in for limiteds for their friends. I don't see anything morally wrong with it.

And I think it's perfectly ok to combine volks lotto tickets ;3 As long as it's not done with the intent of scalping. I don't think Volks discourages the practice, either. Now, if someone was going around offering people incentives to hand over their lotto tickets... well... that might be a problem XD

 

I don't have a problem with any of it.... Obviously everyone wishes it would all be perfect and as well perfectly fair... but the world isn't like that. If it weren't for scalpers/flippers/people entering lotteries for friends, some of these dolls would never have arrived on our shores, or in our galleries.
If it were easy, I don't think it'd be as much fun.

Raven

 

No matter the reason, I don't see a problem with it.

If you want to give your friend a better chance to get a doll they'd like, or if you'd want a better shot yourself....

Let's face it. If there are 1000 tickets, and you enlist 999 of your closest friends to get tickets as well... there is STILL a chance that the 1 person you weren't with would get it. They would have a 1/1000 chance regardless of whether or not you enlisted help.

It doesn't necessarily change the odds.

 

To get right to the point.
If a person enters a contest and wins the prize.
The prize is then their personal property and whether or not they sell or give it away immediately is their choice alone.

So no, I see no problem.

Though I will say I'd be a bit disappointed or annoyed if someone had a dozen people agree to enter a contest for said reason, but I wouldn't dispute it or consider it unfair. Just annoying.

 

I'd much rather a person enter a contest hoping to give a friend a better chance at a doll they want then people that enter the contest just to have something to immediately flip to make a fast buck gouging people.

 

1. Is this right or wrong? Why?

I think it can be either, the circumstances make all the difference.Circumstances that make it wrong:
a) Extremely limited pool
b) Your friend is recruiting everyone and their brother to help. She already has other people signing up for her.

Circumstances that are iffy:
A) Not so limited pool
B) He/She is only recruiting you in addition to themselves

Circumstances that make it fine:
A) Is this doll even limited? (Large pool)
B) She lacks a credit card, address in the right country etc. and so only you are entering on her behalf (she is not in the pool again)

2. Would it be wrong to do if the person was a stranger and/or was paying you to do it, but OK to do because it is a friend and you care about them? Does it matter how close the friend is (i.e. a family member or super close friend, rather than just somebody you know more distantly off a forum and are a little friendly with)?

I thinkthis should be limited to super close friends if for no other reason than safety. I don't want to ship a doll and never see the money for it. Besides, I would feel a moral obligation to make sure the doll wasn't scalped. For a forever home, fine. For resale, not even for my own mother.

3. Does the type of contest and the way it is run matter? For example, is it OK to do this in a lottery but not in an essay contest?

I would never enter my own work for someone else. It just doesn't feel right to me, especially if I'm better then my friend at whatever the contest requires. A flat out lottery would be fine.

4. Does the contest being perceived as somehow vague or inherently unfair make a difference? For example, if lots of scalpers often win, does it make it more OK for you to try to get a doll on behalf of someone who really is going to love it and not just turn around and sell it?

I won't lie, it shouldn't but it does.

5. Do you think this really cuts into the chances of people who just submit the one entry for themselves?

Yes, but to be the morally ambiguous person that I am, I'm not friends with them. I would love to pretend I'm such a upright moral person that I feel everyone I've never met is as important to me as the people I love, but that's not me. Now, if I ever met a person who had lost that lottery, I would feel guilty.

 

1. I think it's fine. I wouldn't say it's particularly "right" or "wrong" because I see very little morality involved here - you're basically doing a friend a favor.

2. It just wouldn't happen if the person was a stranger. Again, this isn't morality so much as, do I trust this other individual enough that they wouldn't shaft me last minute and leave me with a massive bill for something I don't particularly want? Closeness matters enough so I trust that they wouldn't screw me over.

3. Type of contest does matter a bit more. Lottery is complete chance and not skill based, so I have no qualms. It does start getting into moral grounds for me when it's based on skill because then it's a greater investment of time and energy for all parties - then I'd actually feel bad for edging someone else out if they would've had a better chance of winning had I not participated due to differences in skill. (not saying that I'm better or anything! purely as an example)

4. Doesn't make much of a difference to me either way. If someone I care about really wants this doll and needs my help and I trust them, I'll do it regardless of scalpers or what not.

5. It's still all chance. You could have ten people helping you out and still not get it despite the higher probability because that's what it is - probability and not a guarantee.

 

Its not something I would ask anyone to do but I don't see anything wrong with doing it. I have never had anyone ask me to do something like that.

 

1. Is this right or wrong? Why?

I don't get why you'd do that in the first place; if you can pay, why would you have someone else go in to buy your doll? Unless, if they're like me, they have no credit card, PayPal, etc., and are using you - who have one of those things - as a 'vessel' of purchase. I don't see anything wrong with it at all. It's just a question of do you care that they'll have one and you won't? Do you not have a doll of your own? In the latter, I'd say to not go for it. I think if you can't take yourself away, emotionally, then don't do it. But if you can, or you really aren't crazy about the doll your friend wants, do it.


2. Would it be wrong to do if the person was a stranger and/or was paying you to do it, but OK to do because it is a friend and you care about them? Does it matter how close the friend is (i.e. a family member or super close friend, rather than just somebody you know more distantly off a forum and are a little friendly with)?

I think you're kind of pimping yourself if you allow a stranger to do it - that's how I really feel. You know your friend, and you know how they are; what happens when the stranger decides they don't want the doll and you're stuck trying to find a way to pay for it?

I think the stranger has a lot of guts to ask - and trust - another stranger to go through with it. Couldn't you turn around and say this is your doll, because it's in your name? (I can hear all those judge shows screaming out 'promissory notes!' - or a contract) It's too risky on all sides.

Unless it's a *trusted* family member or friend (and you know in your heart if they can be trusted), Just. Don't. Do. It.


3. Does the type of contest and the way it is run matter? For example, is it OK to do this in a lottery but not in an essay contest?

I think so; in an essay contest, you're being chosen upon merit - what you wrote, and how passionate you seemed. It seems like another form of plagiarism: submit a paper you wrote, and donate the money to a friend because the friend asked you to? Or worse - put her name on a paper you wrote so they get the money. Not good!

But with doll lotteries, it's all about money, and it's totally random. You're not given a chance to explain 'Why I should have this doll". No one in state-wide lotteries get to explain why they should get the millions, either. It's not about merit, just luck. As far as the company's concerned, they get money, and the doll goes to someone.


4. Does the contest being perceived as somehow vague or inherently unfair make a difference? For example, if lots of scalpers often win, does it make it more OK for you to try to get a doll on behalf of someone who really is going to love it and not just turn around and sell it?

From what I said, it's never been not ok, or less ok. Scalpers should be dealt with, somehow. But you doing what you suggested isn't going to make you bad, or seem equal to scalpers.


5. Do you think this really cuts into the chances of people who just submit the one entry for themselves

I'm sure most people try to submit more times. If you can do it, most are going to try. If they stopped you from doing that, and there were rules that said: "If it's discovered that you have entered more than once, you will not be allowed..." then don't do it. But if you can put more tickets into the pot, you're going to do it.

 

1. Is this right or wrong? Why? I don't consider it particularly right or wrong, it's a case-by-case issue for me.

2. Would it be wrong to do if the person was a stranger and/or was paying you to do it, but OK to do because it is a friend and you care about them? Does it matter how close the friend is (i.e. a family member or super close friend, rather than just somebody you know more distantly off a forum and are a little friendly with)? I wouldn't accept payment to put in for a doll for someone else, I would only do it if I didn't want any dolls for myself and if I knew the person extremely well.

3. Does the type of contest and the way it is run matter? For example, is it OK to do this in a lottery but not in an essay contest? I think this is alright if the contest is a lottery, but not if it is a contest of skill. I wouldn't use my skills to help anyone else, I feel that this would be cheating because they could win a doll based on my skill rather than their own. Contests of skill are supposed to be for fun as well, and it takes the fun out of taking part if people are using other entrants to win.

4. Does the contest being perceived as somehow vague or inherently unfair make a difference? For example, if lots of scalpers often win, does it make it more OK for you to try to get a doll on behalf of someone who really is going to love it and not just turn around and sell it? I don't think so. If I really wasn't interested in getting a doll but I was with someone who really did, I'd be happy to use my lottery number on their behalf. I don't really consider scalpers a motivation for me. I would be annoyed if my lottery number was the winning one and after all that my friend didn't actually keep the doll, but ultimately they still paid for the doll and it's theirs to do with what they want.

5. Do you think this really cuts into the chances of people who just submit the one entry for themselves? Of course it does, otherwise why would anyone do this? It is intended to increase someone's chances of winning the doll they want after all. I would refuse to put in my lottery number on behalf of someone else if they'd recruited the rest of the table for the cause as well. I think that if you have three entries for your doll (yourself and two friends) that's more than enough chance, considering other attendees may be doing the same thing also. Any more than three entries and I think that starts to become unfair, regardless of the size of the gathering. There could be fifty people there or a hundred and I would still think that recruiting lots of people to help you is crass.

 

LOL necroed thread Mai Turn....

1. Is this right or wrong? Why?
I don't perceive it as wrong... its a legitimate entry not a false one and say there are 100 tickets and thanks to your friend you have 2.... that's still only a 2% share in the possibility of winning so no I dont think its wrong.

2. Would it be wrong to do if the person was a stranger and/or was paying you to do it, but OK to do because it is a friend and you care about them? Does it matter how close the friend is (i.e. a family member or super close friend, rather than just somebody you know more distantly off a forum and are a little friendly with)?
I think its less relevat if its someone you dont know.... Whats to stop someone at a Dolpa from walking around the room and saying to 30 people "can you enter on my behalf?" that I think would be a little sinister but for a close or remote friend/family member it would be an act of charity I guess...

3. Does the type of contest and the way it is run matter? For example, is it OK to do this in a lottery but not in an essay contest?
A lottery is based on pure chance so thats permissable - an essay is based on merit and skill.... if its not your skills that win the contest you have no right to the prize. No gray area here... it would be like having Dolce and Gabbana design and make you a dress to enter an amateur fashion design contest in your name... Serious no no!!

4. Does the contest being perceived as somehow vague or inherently unfair make a difference? For example, if lots of scalpers often win, does it make it more OK for you to try to get a doll on behalf of someone who really is going to love it and not just turn around and sell it?
Its always better to see a doll go to a loving home rather than a profiteering scheme. I would have no issues in helping a friend win a doll they have always lusted over that I have no personal interest in, I would have major issues however in helping someone win a doll only to have them flog it on ebay for double what they paid!

5. Do you think this really cuts into the chances of people who just submit the one entry for themselves?
At the end of the day it still comes down to pure luck and probability - The percentages are so marginal its hardly worth being concerned about... but every little bit DOES help so if having 2 out of a thousand chances floats my friends boat... I'd lend them my ticket

 

1. Is this right or wrong? Why?
I don't think there's anything wrong with it. If you enter, regardless of whether it's for a friend or not, and you won the prize, then you can do whatever you like with it.

2. Would it be wrong to do if the person was a stranger and/or was paying you to do it, but OK to do because it is a friend and you care about them? Does it matter how close the friend is (i.e. a family member or super close friend, rather than just somebody you know more distantly off a forum and are a little friendly with)?
I don't think this matters. If a scalper pays people to enter for them, that is going to seriously cut their profits, based on the sheer amount of people they're going to have to hire just compete with everyone else who enters once.

3. Does the type of contest and the way it is run matter? For example, is it OK to do this in a lottery but not in an essay contest? Not really. It only matters in the sense that each entrant of the contest needs to submit their own essay. In that case, they're actually putting forth more effort than if they had just clicked a button or filled out a form to enter.

4. Does the contest being perceived as somehow vague or inherently unfair make a difference? For example, if lots of scalpers often win, does it make it more OK for you to try to get a doll on behalf of someone who really is going to love it and not just turn around and sell it? To be honest, if people think scalpers always win, and they get upset over it, I'm more inclined to see that as being jealous, rather than the situation being unfair.
It's gambling. It's a risk. It's never fair.

5. Do you think this really cuts into the chances of people who just submit the one entry for themselves?
Not really. I think it's more accurate to say they've resigned themselves to losing by only entering once. I've always just thought it was common knowledge that if you actually wanted to win, you had to enter more than once.
Still, the sheer number of people who enter these lotteries means that getting your friends to enter barely increases your chances at all, and that a scalper is going to have to shell out a lot of cash if they want to pay enough people to have a truly unfair advantage.

 

I think it's fine, I mean, I'd totally ask a friend to enter for me if I wanted to get a limited and couldn't. However- this may be my opinion only because I want very few limited dolls, and generally have no use for most of them. That said- I honestly don't see anything wrong with this, since any number of people might be out doing the exact same thing trying to get the doll. It's all about how much you want it. No one's going to die because they can't get a doll they really want, and if you can get it and you want it just as much, then you were just the lucky one.

 

I don't think its always wrong. Like in my case my first was limited and a freind got it for me. BUT i payed her back in full plus interested before I got my fantasia. See I coudln't do it in three month layaway at the time i needed a lil longer so she got it and I payed it off. but i think it depends on right on wrong on the situation