Outrageous O2 grey market practices!!

[Anonymous]

So I buy a Sony Xperia z5 Compact from the o2 shop in Preston and am pretty happy with it. Notwithstanding the first one I had had a technical issue it was dealt with pretty efficiently. At the time I wanted to buy a cover but the store said their stock had been 'uplifted' by head office!.  I went back a week later to see if the cover I wanted the Sony scr44 in black was in stock but again nothing doing.

The black one is pretty sought after, and  I assumed you must have just run out of stock... till I found this...

O2 Official Ebay store run by Kondor ltd

Where you are flogging them out at nearly £40 for the black ones but only £16 for the coral ones.

I guess it wont be long before o2 get into the ticket touting, and market trading business!!

I have put in a complaint!! 

[Anonymous]

Licencing of valuable brands is fairly common. Virgin group licences their brand to Liberty Global who trade as Virgin Media, but otherwise are unconnected. I don't imagine the arrangement with Kondor will be known in detail to many outside of the buying team and marketing dept. at O2 

In terms of proof : the cover is not available in the retail shops as it was uplifted. I have that from the staff in store. The direct channels don't have any either. The black covers are getting increasingly hard to obtain and are rising in price, yet Kondor have many. Kondor can sell them at whatever price they like or best price they can get - O2 have to set a fixed price, and run the risk of being left with a lot of what will eventually become unshakeable stock...

[Anonymous]

Unsale-able

[MI5]

Surely that's just business supply and demand?

[gmarkj]

Yes and no.
I think the issue here is that rather than sell the covers themselves at the price advertised, o2 are allowing Kondor to sell them at whatever price they can - which is the whole point of ebay really.
While legal and aboveboard, it is a little dubious morally and leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

Or was that the McD's breakfast I had today...

[Cleoriff]

For me, it's more to do with the site designed to look as if it's O2. It uses their logo and has Telefonica on the home page. Even if it has an affiliation to O2, it seems shady practice to sell goods which are unavailable directly from O2  Some of us are used to Ebay.....others are not. I just think it's misrepresentation...

[MI5]

Maybe O2 want it to look like their site.

[Cleoriff]

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@MI5 wrote:
Maybe O2 want it to look like their site.

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It will be interesting to hear what @Toby finds out for us...

[Toby]

Hi guys,

This eBay page is an official O2 one, so there's no need to be concerned about the page itself. However, I'm more than happy to share your thoughts on improving it in terms of design or in terms of official brand recognition. All ears

[Cleoriff]

I am not talking about improving it in terms of design @Toby but I do think @Anonymous hit the nail on the head in post 5 when they said this ....

"I think it's pretty suspect that the stock of this case was so comprehensively uplifted from retail shops and the direct channels, whilst the handset is still on sale, and now only Kondor with an O2 badge have them available. The only colour that is widely available is coral - so those are going everywhere for 15 notes... The black version is trending at 50 quid! I think O2 have sold this stock to Kondor to turn a quick buck on the rising market".

I think this is poor (shady) practice if honest...

[jonsie]

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@Cleoriff wrote:

I am not talking about improving it in terms of design @Toby but I do think @Anonymous hit the nail on the head in post 5 when they said this ....

"I think it's pretty suspect that the stock of this case was so comprehensively uplifted from retail shops and the direct channels, whilst the handset is still on sale, and now only Kondor with an O2 badge have them available. The only colour that is widely available is coral - so those are going everywhere for 15 notes... The black version is trending at 50 quid! I think O2 have sold this stock to Kondor to turn a quick buck on the rising market".

I think this is poor (shady) practice if honest...

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I agree, it's not a question of improving the site more a question of dubious profiteering.