The Apple Store is a hectic place in China, so hectic that if you try to go in for a repair without an appointment, you can expect to wait all day. No big deal. This is what the black market for Genius Bar appointments is for.
According to the Beijing Morning News, ticket scalpers are booking up all of the Genius Bar appointments at local Apple stores and then selling them online. Each time slot sells for about 10 yuan (approximately $1.60), and often the scalper route is the only way to get an appointment. The reporter who covered the story found no available openings for iPhone, iPad or iPod on Apple site but found several available for purchase on the black market. Going to the store without an appointment would lead to a day of waiting, sometimes without seeing anyone at all. Sounds like fun, right?
Which reminds us: the Apple Store can be a horrible, horrible place. But why pay good money to go to the Genius Bar, when you can scream at the top of your lungs and get internet famous for it instead? [Beijing Morning News via 9to5 Mac]