Well perhaps Circuit City operates differently that Office Depot does. At Office Depot, they dont purchase it to begin with. They just open the box and put it on the shelf. The store never "buys" the product, therefore, the customer who buys it is the first owner. I dont know why any other place would do anything differetly. Seems like a waste for the customer.
BTW, i work at office depot once a week. When i sell an "ex-demo" they always get their rebates so I do know first hand.
