MSI subsidiary accused of 'scalping' NVIDIA RTX 3080 for $600 over retail

What you need to know

• Starlit Partner, an MSi subsidiary, has been accused of selling the RTX 3080 for an inflated price.
• An eBay listing from Starlit PArtner listed an MSI RTX 3080 for almost $600 above retail price.
• The listing has since been removed, and refunds should be offered.

MSI subsidiary Starlit Partner has been accused of "scalping" the NVIDIA RTX 3080 for almost $600 over its normal retail price of $760. An eBay listing, which has since been taken down, listed an MSI GeForce RTX 3080 GPU for $1,359. A Reddit post flagged up the overpriced card and relationship between STarlit Partner and MSI, which led to backlash across the web (via The Verge).

MSI released a statement on Twitter today that confirms that Starlit Partner is an "individual sales subsidiary working under MSI." The statement explains that Starlit Partner normally sells refurbished items as opposed to new items like the RTX 3080. MSI states that the RTX 3080 became available through Starlit Partner due to an error.

People who purchased the RTX 3080 for an inflated price have two options. They can receive a full refund or opt to receive a refund of the difference between what they paid and what the card retails for. It's worth noting that MSI specifically states that "Starlit Partner has been instructed to contact the individual customers who purchased these graphic card products." That means that customers will have to communicate with Starlit Partner rather than MSI.

MSI also states that it will "enforce a stricter policy to avoid situations like this happening again."

The RTX 3080 is one of the best graphics cards you can buy and is in very high demand. It sold out almost immediately when it became available. The ensuing shortage contributed to an escalated second-hand market.