<story><title>Banned from buying iPads... for life.</title><url>http://www.protocolsnow.com/2010/04/17/how-i-went-from-apple-store-newbie-to-lifetime-ban-in-one-week/</url></story><parent_chain></parent_chain><comment><author>cscotta</author><text>I&apos;m surprised by the outrage in this post.  This is a very common - indeed, necessary - practice in retail.&lt;p&gt;A friend of mine manages a high-end retail store in the area. He tells me that there are a number of people who match this buying profile.  The products either show up on Craigslist, eBay, or are moved out of state to be sold elsewhere, often in markets the retailer is unwilling or unable to enter for a variety of reasons.  Like it or not, in pretty much any retail environment, this practice is unacceptable.&lt;p&gt;He also tells me that these small groups of people will often approach customers in the parking lot as they exit their vehicle, offering them cash to enter the store, buy the goods with a few crisp hundred-dollar bills, and to keep the change.  This gray market is very real.&lt;p&gt;Beyond that, the guy admits he knew of the policy and was willingly violating it.  There&apos;s really not much room for outrage here.</text></comment>
<story><title>Banned from buying iPads... for life.</title><url>http://www.protocolsnow.com/2010/04/17/how-i-went-from-apple-store-newbie-to-lifetime-ban-in-one-week/</url></story><parent_chain></parent_chain><comment><author>thestoicattack</author><text>I have no problem with the iPad-limit policy. The annoying part was that the clerk was not able to volunteer any information at all about what the policy actually says. From the customer&apos;s tone it seems like he wasn&apos;t going to throw a fit, but it would be nice if Apple were slightly more forthcoming.</text></comment>