Here's another scenario, probably in the opposite direction, that has nothing to do with sniping.

Joe Six-Pack places a $20 bid on an item. None of Joe's friends want to offend him by bidding against him, so they withold their bids. How many times have we read posts about this "strategy"? Is that fair to the seller?

That's why I believe the overwhelming amount of chips offered on ebay are of relatively common lower value stuff... and much of it goes unsold. Why risk putting up better material that can be sold at higher prices at retail?