Core Insights - The "Double Eleven" shopping festival has started earlier than ever, extending the promotional period to 31-57 days across various platforms [1] Group 1: Promotional Strategies - Major platforms have adopted different promotional strategies: JD.com and Douyin launched on October 9, with JD focusing on "immediate sales" and Douyin offering direct discounts and consumption vouchers [3] - Taobao/Tmall is using a "pre-sale + immediate sale" model, starting pre-sales on October 15 and immediate sales on October 20, featuring multiple discounts [3] - Pinduoduo will kick off its promotions on October 16, emphasizing time-limited coupon grabs and cross-store discounts [3] Group 2: Consumer Reactions - A significant backlash has emerged regarding perceived price manipulation, with consumers claiming that final prices after pre-sale deposits are often higher than immediate purchase prices [3][5] - The hashtag "AvoidDoubleEleven" gained traction, with over 2.34 million views, indicating widespread consumer dissatisfaction [3] - Reports of price increases before discounts have led to accusations of deceptive pricing practices, with some consumers expressing frustration over the lack of genuine savings [4][5] Group 3: Platform Responses - In response to consumer complaints, Taobao's customer service stated that pricing is set by merchants, but the platform will intervene if price manipulation is detected [7] - Merchants participating in "Double Eleven" promotions are subject to platform subsidies, which some are allegedly exploiting by raising prices before offering discounts [7] - The platform acknowledged challenges in completely eliminating price manipulation and stated that they do not take responsibility for price discrepancies arising from promotional activities [7]