[jacquesm]

Bricklink was acquired from the mother of the guy (who died) that started it by some asian 'entrepreneur' who then turned around and sold it to Lego, whose only long term interest always was shutting it down. The secondary market hurts their sales for new sets, or so they believe.

[pimlottc]

Why the scare quotes for 'entrepreneur'? From what I can tell, the purchaser was a legitimate and very successful software publisher, one of the richest men in South Korea. Furthermore, he ran the site for 6 years before selling it to Lego, actively developing new features like the free Studio design software. It sounds like he only sold it due to personal financial issues after a failed software deal [0].

I agree that Lego owning BrickLink created a big conflict of interests but there doesn't seem to be anything shady about how they acquired it.

0: https://pulse.mk.co.kr/news/english/9084691

[teruakohatu]

> The secondary market hurts their sales for new sets, or so they believe.

I think the secondary market drives sales. People need to believe that the overpriced sets they are purchasing, never open, and stash in the attic will make them a fortune on the secondary market one day.