Nikestore launched one of the most lauded in their efforts to combat bot-usage and add-to-cart services. Their surprise checkout verification hit users attempting to purchase either the Air Jordan 3 “Infrared 23″ or the Nike Kobe 9 Elite “Perspective” with a set of photos to connect words to or a math equation to prove that they were indeed human.
A couple more pieces of the puzzle as far as Nike’s attempts to thwart automatic purchasing and eliminate sneaker-related chaos are Nike’s putting an end to the era of midnight releases and their introduction of massive restocks featuring a load of coveted items from a particular season. The abolishing of midnight releases was mostly a safety issue, with early morning releases being easier on managers at Nike and the various big-box retailers. Nikestore was also affected though; sneakers were now available at 8AM EST rather than midnight.