plugone70

Hi guys - I am new on here but am an avid DVD/blu ray collector. I typically buy my dvds from amazon/best buy, but recently purchased Law and Order the Complete Series from EBAY. I had read about the many counterfeits on ebay, but this seller had great feedback and even claimed in his profile that all of his product is authentic and not counterfeit. I received the set today and noticed that the dvds are supposed to be dual layer. However, my computer says they each hold 4.19GB, suggesting to me these are single layer. Also, if I hold them up to the light I can almost see right through them. Other than than, the set looks legit - but it is very troubling that the dvds read as 4.19 GB. Any thoughts as to whether I may have been sold a fake? Thanks in advance. FYI - I have sent a message to the seller and plan to initiate a return if he doesn't respond very soon.

DJariya

Do you have a picture?

This is what the legitimate release packaging looks like

plugone70

I do have pictures but can't figure out how to post them on here. The casing looks exactly like the picture you posted. Again, the thing that is troubling me is that the dvds are supposed to be dual layered, but only show 4.19GB. If you can tell me how to post the pics, I will do so. Thanks for your response.

plugone70

For whatever it's worth, I e-mailed the seller and he immediately offered a complete refund. I checked some of my other universal complete series dvd sets and none of them were 4.19GB. They were all 7 something gb per disc. I am convinced this set is a fake - a good one - but fake nontheless. This was the second time I tried to buy dvds on e-bay, and have been burned both time. Never again.

davidh777

I've heard that big TV sets are prime candidates for bootlegs.

Regulus

Tell me about it.

Unless it's a "Made on-Demand" DVD (Warner Archive among others) if the disk has a purplish tone (As well as a hand-written label) It's most likely a bootleg.

Norm de Plume

Upload the pictures from your computer to Imgur (or similar site), and post within [img] tags.

PileOfFudge

I wasn't aware until perusing this site that ebay has known issues with sellers duping customers with bootlegged TV DVD sets. I purchased a set of Boris Karloff's Thriller on there several years ago from a seller that had a 100% feedback rating with over 500 transactions. Paid half the price for what they were going for on Amazon and other online retailers at the time. Makes me wonder now if it's indeed a legitimate release.

PhantomStranger

It's a bootleg. That is how the sellers with counterfeit merchandise usually operate on eBay, they will immediately refund your money if you raise suspicions. Which is how they end up with perfect feedback despite selling bootlegs.

No Hollywood studio would use single layer DVDs for a complete set of that size.

I've warned people before, but virtually all of the complete DVD sets on eBay are fakes. Feedback is utterly meaningless in these cases. Unless it's a private seller obviously selling their personal collection, I avoid all DVD sets on eBay. The same mostly applies to larger CD sets as well.

SterlingBen

He is too new for that but he could post a link to the pic I think.

plugone70

Thanks for the responses. I knew about ebay, but decided to take a chance on this seller, because he advertised that all of his products were legitimate and he didn't sell any bootlegs. The price was in line with what I thought someone would charge as well (not too cheap). You could never tell from inspecting the case, artwork and discs. They look very real. The dead give away is that fake dvds are always single layer. The key is to put them into a computer, and if they read as 4.XX, then they are single layer and generally fakes. If they read 6 to 8 gb per disc, then they are probably real. I can't believe this guy has the guts to advertise he doesn't sell bootlegs and then sells bootlegs. I'm done with ebay.

PhantomStranger

There are far fewer Blu-ray bootlegs on eBay, the higher replication costs prevent most pirates with that format. The only Blu-ray bootlegs one has to worry about are Disney movies, particularly the vaulted titles.

Norm de Plume

Yes, he could post a non-hotlink (whatever that is called).
I'm not a regular ebay user, but I think all of my transactions have been OK and aboveboard. If you have any concerns, just ask beforehand, and scrutinize the product description.
Believe me, I'm not a shill for ebay (I hate it), but I wouldn't necessarily give up on it outright. Sometimes there are good deals to be found.

Alan Smithee

Another thing to check discs for on your computer is region coding and CSS encryption- all major-studio discs at least have CSS encryption and most US discs are coded for just region 1, a few are coded for regions 1 through 4 at the most.

Is that picture of discs seized by a police department?

snowdogmama

I bought one of these sets last April. I paid about $100 for it on auction. It was advertised with free shipping. Most of the sets were going for about $50 more, but I got lucky. It was advertised as new. I researched the seller as much as I could before I bid on it.

What I got was a factory set but it was a retailer return. Some discs had fingerprints, some had scratches, a couple of cases were mildly dirty. It was shipped priority mail. But the weight paid was one pound. I had a few of the seasons already and comparing all the discs they appeared identical. My set appears to be factory, as well as I can tell.

The seller was using several IDs and was selling a variety of different tv series. The address was in New York and when I researched the return address he was using, it was a mailing center.

I think this seller was selling factory, I just wonder how he got that many copies? A hijacked truck? Warehouse pallets that were lifted? His feedback indicates that most of the product was shrink wrapped and appeared new.

I have watched my set and all discs are perfect.

PhantomStranger

What they term in retail as inventory shrinkage. Most retail theft is done from the inside before it ever hits the shelves. Shipments go missing, packages get routed incorrectly, etc.

kstublen

Wait, there's a Dallas: Complete Series set? You know where I can get that from?

creekdipper

It's a problem both for buyers & legitimate sellers.

The bootleggers usually undercut the sales of the legitimate releases, making it hard for people wanting to sell off their unwanted sets & getting anywhere near a reasonable price (why buy a like-new used copy at half-price when someone else is selling a "sealed" copy at the same price)?

Used to be that bootlegs were easy to spot due to cheaper materials (packaging, graphics, discs, etc.). The misspellings on the covers & inserts were hilarious. Now they've gotten much better at producing fakes, including the "stickers" on the outsides & other things that used to signify legit copies.

I learned my lesson on complete sets when I got a Twilight Zone set (then bought a BD set for a little bit more). I sold the DVD set at our local flea market but got a call from the buyer wanting a refund due to defective discs). I honestly thought they were scamming me (either wanted to watch it free, had buyer's remorse, or found it cheaper elsewhere). After refunding, I took the set home & was horrified to discover that the discs were indeed defective. I found a legit set, compared the two, and verified that I had sold a bootleg. Needless to say, I was mortified & knew I needed to apologize to the buyers for the inconvenience (it was a birthday gift for the husband), especially since I had been pretty brusque with them since they didn't want a replacement (which I could have provided, but I can't blame them after seeing the unplayable episodes). Ate crow, felt guilty, and learned a valuable lesson. Still feel badly about not trusting the customers.

Anyway, it's really hard to trust some of these outfits. Like someone said, they'll refund your money rather than risk bad feedback unless they're preparing to get out of Dodge after scamming a bunch of people (I've seen that a couple of times, too).

Sad that everyone gets hurt by these thieves, but it's the same reason you have to verify identity at stores & banks.