8 ms·

You are correct that there are laws against fraud. The issue is that the expression of one's opinion, however biased, cannot constitute fraud under US law. If

You are correct that there are laws against fraud. The issue is that the expression of one's opinion, however biased, cannot constitute fraud under US law. If there are demonstrably false statements of fact in each and every one of the more than 1,000 reviews that they are suing over, then and only then will this lawsuit be successful.

mgkimsal 11y ago
maybe some of these reviews had statements about purchases that didn't happen? "i bought this book last week and I love it so far" "my favorite part was when the dog rescues the cat" (no dog in the book)
travisp 11y ago
Amazon contacted many of these users and the people targeted in the lawsuit were offering guaranteed 5 star reviews and/or to let the purchaser write the review. Given that Amazon actually contacted many of these users, it may not be so hard to be successful with the lawsuit. Amazon is claiming breach of contract and violations of several Washington state laws (including the Consumer Protection Act). If you read the actual lawsuit, there are examples of things like: 1) a user who claims to have 100 different Amazon accounts and will guarantee whatever star rating is requested, and asks the purchaser to provide the product review 2) being willing to receive an empty envelope to create a fake shipping record for a "verified purchase" review. However, actually getting damages against the users is fairly unlikely, particularly since the users may not be US based.
CydeWeys 11y ago
The FTC regulates advertising with a much stricter scrutiny than free speech. There are few limits on what opinions you can express, but there are many limits on what you can advertise. I'm not saying that the FTC is involved in regulating online reviews, but the precedent seems to be set here. Especially given that these reviews are compensated, it seems clear to me that we're talking about regulation of advertising, not restriction of free speech.
- DanBC 11y ago
  In the US: https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftc... In the UK: https://www.asa.org.uk/News-resources/Media-Centre/2014/Making-ads-Clear-The-challenge-for-advertisers-and-vloggers.aspx#.ViPE6NKrS01 https://www.asa.org.uk/News-resources/Media-Centre/2014/Maki... See, eg, http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/nov/26/youtube-ad-oreo-banned-advertising-lick-race http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/nov/26/youtube-ad-oreo...
deleted 11y ago
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mgkimsal 11y ago

maybe some of these reviews had statements about purchases that didn't happen? "i bought this book last week and I love it so far" "my favorite part was when the dog rescues the cat" (no dog in the book)

travisp 11y ago

Amazon contacted many of these users and the people targeted in the lawsuit were offering guaranteed 5 star reviews and/or to let the purchaser write the review. Given that Amazon actually contacted many of these users, it may not be so hard to be successful with the lawsuit. Amazon is claiming breach of contract and violations of several Washington state laws (including the Consumer Protection Act). If you read the actual lawsuit, there are examples of things like: 1) a user who claims to have 100 different Amazon accounts and will guarantee whatever star rating is requested, and asks the purchaser to provide the product review 2) being willing to receive an empty envelope to create a fake shipping record for a "verified purchase" review. However, actually getting damages against the users is fairly unlikely, particularly since the users may not be US based.

CydeWeys 11y ago

The FTC regulates advertising with a much stricter scrutiny than free speech. There are few limits on what opinions you can express, but there are many limits on what you can advertise. I'm not saying that the FTC is involved in regulating online reviews, but the precedent seems to be set here. Especially given that these reviews are compensated, it seems clear to me that we're talking about regulation of advertising, not restriction of free speech.

DanBC 11y ago
In the US: https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftc... In the UK: https://www.asa.org.uk/News-resources/Media-Centre/2014/Making-ads-Clear-The-challenge-for-advertisers-and-vloggers.aspx#.ViPE6NKrS01 https://www.asa.org.uk/News-resources/Media-Centre/2014/Maki... See, eg, http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/nov/26/youtube-ad-oreo-banned-advertising-lick-race http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/nov/26/youtube-ad-oreo...

deleted 11y ago

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