Deceptive reviews on e-tail sites are not a new problem. A RetailWire story/discussion last August, for example, looked at individuals who offered to write favorable reviews for companies at a price.
Now comes a New York Times article that says a seller of cases for tablet devices, VIP Deals, offered to rebate Amazon consumers $2 a star for reviews they gave its Vipertek brand premium slim black leather case folio cover. With a five star review, consumers could get the $10 case for free.
According to the Times, the average of the 335 ratings given for the case on Amazon was 4.9.
Federal Trade Commission rules require full disclosure of any relationship beyond the standard buyer and seller arrangement when endorsements are involved.
"Advertising disguised as editorial is an old problem, but it's now presenting itself in different ways," said Mary K. Engle, associate director for advertising practices at the F.T.C, told the Times. "We're very concerned."
Amazon removed reviews associated with the VIP Deals product after seeing documentation from the paper.
