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Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

Jim -- they've basically admitted that they destroy bidding records once an auction is over. That is a bad, bad thing. So going forward they will be more - but not totally - transparent. That's a good thing but not so good as to ameliorate concern over past destruction of bidding records which would, coincidentally, erase evidence of shill bidding.

Look, Mastro is the leader, the biggest auction house out there. They should be at the forefront in providing transparency. Most of the small auction houses are a total joke in my opinion and cannot be trusted in any way -- Barry's is the only one that I'll even bid in anymore. But for Mastro, REA, Sotheby's -- all of these guys should have total transparency. Why should we stand up and applaud something that should have been given to us years ago?