Webcast auctions.

Webcast auctions run at scheduled times and are operated by the auction company. At the published start time the webcast opens and an auctioneer works through the catalog in real time, with online bidders following along beside the bidders on the floor.

The auction is organized into rings. Each ring runs its own sequence of lots, and a ring has at most one active lot at a time — the lot currently on the block. You watch the active lot, see the current ask, and bid the moment you're ready.

While a ring is open you can place a bid at the current ask, competing in real time with the floor. The clerk runs the lot and their calls are authoritative: they open the lot, set each ask, take bids from the room and from online, and call the lot sold or passed.

• Open and ask: the clerk opens the lot and posts the amount the next bid must meet.
• Sold or pass: the clerk decides when a lot sells and to whom, or passes it when it doesn't meet the seller's terms.
• Webcast conditions apply: network timing or a clerk's review can affect whether an online bid is taken before the lot is called.

You don't have to wait for the webcast auction to act. Many webcast lots accept a prebid — a maximum you leave ahead of time. When the lot reaches the block, your prebid competes for you up to that amount as the clerk opens the bidding, so you stay in contention even if you can't be at the screen the moment the ring reaches your lot.

Webcast bidding is approved in advance. Register for the auction and let the auction office approve you before the scheduled start; approval for one auction does not carry over to another.

• Watch the schedule and join the room when the webcast opens.
• Keep your registration and any required escrow in good standing so you're clear to bid the moment your lot comes up.