How was swoopo "outright lying" about their product? Did you ever actually visit or use Swoopo? They explained the rules clearly on the site and with a dozen or more auctions running on the front page of the site, I think this qualifies as showing how it works right on the front of the bottle.
I think you're also misunderstanding what qualifies as gambling, at least in the U.S. (international law I'm not as familiar with) Look no further than bigdeal.com, a site that operates exactly like Swoopo and is based in the U.S. It is venture backed with a few million dollars. I suspect before making that investment there was some due diligence in this auction mechanism and it was found to be legal. People in this thread are throwing around "gambling" and "scam" but I'd still challenge anyone to cite any portion of the law which specifically makes a penny auction "gambling."
Do people lose money if they don't win, yes. Does that piss people off? Of course. But that still doesn't mean it's gambling or a scam.
If it's not for you, don't play it. Simple as that.
"Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods." - Wikipedia
Sounds like an apt description of Swoopo if, according to the MSN Money quote above, any "strategy" is equally ineffective. Recall that "the law" and what governments choose to enforce of it are not the final say on word definitions ...
I think you're also misunderstanding what qualifies as gambling, at least in the U.S. (international law I'm not as familiar with) Look no further than bigdeal.com, a site that operates exactly like Swoopo and is based in the U.S. It is venture backed with a few million dollars. I suspect before making that investment there was some due diligence in this auction mechanism and it was found to be legal. People in this thread are throwing around "gambling" and "scam" but I'd still challenge anyone to cite any portion of the law which specifically makes a penny auction "gambling."
Do people lose money if they don't win, yes. Does that piss people off? Of course. But that still doesn't mean it's gambling or a scam.
If it's not for you, don't play it. Simple as that.