"Buy it Now" and the insatiable book-buyer

A few months ago, there were numerous reports devoted to an increasingly noticeable eBay trend: full-scale businesses offering products at a fixed price("buy it now") instead of for auction.   (Some sellers also use "or make an offer," which at least gives buyers a chance to haggle.)  EBay's books categories currently host such recognizable brick-and-mortar names like Powell's, in addition to online companies like Buy.com and an ever-growing supply of what appear to be stores devoted to remainders. Many other smaller secondhand dealers with a brick-and-mortar presence also do considerable eBay business (something that has been true for some time).  How does this affect academic purchasers of all things bookish?

My own experience suggests the following:

1. It's now much easier to find scholarly monographs on eBay.  Academic texts have always been eBay's weakest suit, especially with the rise of Amazon's secondhand books option.  Within the last year, there has been a noticeable increase in listings devoted to university press books (Oxford, Cambridge, etc.), most of them relatively up-to-date.  
2. Not all of those monographs come equipped with decent descriptions.  The downside of sellers listing thousands of books is that the would-be buyer frequently comes across loosely defined (to be generous) assessments of what those books look like.  Some sellers describe everything as "acceptable," even when the book is in new condition; others describe the book's condition one way in the subheadings and another way in the listing's body (!); others can't be bothered; others are remarkably creative where creativity is not called for (i.e., "brand new," if by "brand new" we mean "some unattended kid in a bookstore picked it up and used it to play football in the aisles").  Amateur sellers don't necessarily have the greatest track record either--the notorious "in good condition for its age" being a case in point--but they are at least more likely to give some sort of detailed description. 
3. Most books are priced roughly the same as secondhand books from Amazon.  Sometimes, the sellers are identical.  Otherwise, though, the books are usually neither more nor less of a bargain.  
   
4. However, many sellers price books at retail value.  I don't see the point in this.  Why would I buy a book at full price (or nearly full price) when I can just as easily buy it from another online dealer (Amazon, Labyrinth, etc.) and with more confidence that the book will really be a new book?
5. The curse of antiquarian pricing continues.  Many years ago, the proprietor of O'Gara and Wilson commented to me that "academics are a pragmatic bunch." When it comes to monographs, we'll find a way to cope if the dj is missing or the book is ex-lib (especially if the book is at a fraction of the retail price).   Monographs are for use, not for sitting on shelves. But as a general rule, we have certain limits.  There seems to be an assumption--on both eBay and Amazon--that a twenty-five year-old monograph should be treated like, say, a first edition of Ulysses.  For most academics, this is not a valid assumption.