There's been a bit of a hoohah recently about penny auction sites. A gambling expert at Nottingham Trent University (I'm guessing he's an expert through his study of gambling addicts, rather than a seasoned blackjack player) has asked the Gambling Commission to look into them, having possibly encountered desperate, penniless, hollow-eyed souls who can't stop bidding. A representative from one such site, madbid.com, refutes the notion that it's a gambling-like experience, claiming that "This is definitely a game of skill, and would not fall under any circumstances under the definition of gambling."

Well, I've just had a go. I didn't have to call on any of my incredibly deep resources of logic, common sense or manual dexterity. But I did blow £6.50 in about 15 seconds – and the only upside to the experience was giggling in disbelief at this incredibly cunning way of pandering to people's greed and raking in huge amounts of money.( Read more... )