Well, here is the definition of what constitutes a reverse auction from The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply. CIPS defines it in the following manner:
Reverse auctions
The opposite of the usual kind of auction in which potential buyers compete to bid the price up. In a reverse auction, which has come into its own with the Internet, suppliers bid the price down.
David
From the Reverse Auction Research Center: http://reverseauctionresearch.blogspot.com/
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