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Replies

By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 04/09/2026

Remember: Amazon doesn't just *sell* search placement; they *auction* it. Every time you run an Amazon search, the company conducts a special kind of auction called a "sealed-bid second-price auction" (SBSPA): en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vickrey... 53/

en.wikipedia.org

Vickrey auction - Wikipedia

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By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 04/09/2026

Under an SBSPA, bidders secretly tell the auctioneer the *very highest price* they're willing to pay. The auctioneer then charges the highest bidder a price equal to the *second-highest* bid, plus one cent. 54/

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By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 04/09/2026

This may seem unnecessarily complicated, but it's actually a clever solution to one of the major problems with traditional, "open call" auctions (where bidders call out the prices they're willing to pay until one bid emerges victorious). 55/

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