New Proposed Law To Stop Christmas Grinch ‘Toy Scalpers’ in NYS

A proposed law hopes to put an end to 'toy scalpers' who use 'Grinch Bots' to snap up the most popular holiday toys to sell them online for outrageous markups.

New York State Senator Chuck Schumer has proposed “Stopping Grinch Bots Act Of 2018” which would prevent cyber scalpers from snapping up popular toys from online retailers by using the same kind of bot technology used by ticket scalpers. These computer bots allow scalpers to purchase large quantities of toys, creating a shortage for consumers. Parents and grandparents are then forced to turn to sites like eBay to purchase popular Christmas gifts for prices that, in some cases, 1000% markups.

So THAT explains why you can't find that LOL Surprise House to save your life! 

Last year, Schumer’s office searched online for some of the top holiday toys: WowWee Fingerlings, Super Nintendo entertainment system NES Classic Edition, the L.O.L. Surprise! Doll and the Barbie Hello Dreamhouse Playset.

• Fingerlings, which typically sell for $14.99, were out of stock online at Toys-r-us, Walmart, and Target. However, the item was available for sale on Amazon and eBay for as much as $1,000 each – an increase of 6,571% over its retail price.
• Super Nintendo entertainment system NES Classic Edition, which sells for $79.99, was out of stock online at BestBuy, Game Stop, and Target. However, the item was available on Amazon and eBay for as much as $13,000 each – an increase of 16,152% over its retail price.
• L.O.L. Surprise! Doll, which sells for $9.99, was out of stock online at Toys-r-us, Target and Walmart. However, the item was available on Amazon and eBay for as much as $500 each – an increase of 4,905% over its retail price.
• Barbie Hello Dreamhouse, which sells for $300, was out of stock online at Toys-R-Us. However, the item was available for sale on Amazon and eBay for as much as $1,500 each – an increase of 400% over its retail price.

What happened to the good old days of waiting at Toys R Us to fight your fellow parents for a Cabbage Patch Kid?

What Christmas present have your paid too much to get for your kid?