The review website Yelp is being accused again of extorting small business owners — but this time the business owners say that Yelp used the guarantee of positive reviews to get free products for their events. The Chicago Tribune has a quote from the owner of a cupcake shop who says that Yelp “guaranteed us good reviews on the site if we catered one of their parties for free.”
yelp
Pizzeria Employees Wear T-Shirts With Quotes From Nasty Yelp Reviews
By 3.4.09
Here’s a little bit of brilliance — a pizzeria in San Francisco has taken quotes from nasty 1 star reviews on Yelp! and make them into t-shirts for their employees to wear. We love this.
Companies Accuse Yelp Of Review Extortion, Yelp Says No Way
By 2.20.09
Some San Francisco companies have accused the review website Yelp of manipulating reviews, either in exchange for buying advertising or as punishment for refusing. Yelp flat out denies the charges. They say that the posting and removal of reviews are determined solely by an algorithm and that their sales staff has no access to the reviews. But in this detailed article published this week in the East Bay Express, several restaurants cite phone calls and emails that they say indicates otherwise.
How To Not Get Sued For What You Said On Yelp
By 1.23.09
Recently, angry chiropractors and dentists have sued Yelp reviewers for defamation, loosely defined as “publicly telling mean lies that hurt more than feelings.” Apparently, no one takes the internet seriously, until all of a sudden someone does. Here’s what anyone who leaves comments online should know about defamation.
Pediatric Dentist Sues Parents Over Negative Yelp Review
By 1.13.09
California dentist Yvonne Wong has sued two parents who complained in a review on Yelp that their child received mercury fillings and left Wong’s office feeling light-headed from laughing gas. Wong claims “it never occurred to her to contact the boy’s parents” before filing her libel suit, although the dentist clearly doesn’t have the best counsel. Her lawyer also tried to sue Yelp, apparently unaware that web sites publishing third-party content are protected under federal law.
Chiropractor Sues Patient Over Negative Yelp Review
By 11.25.08
Chris Norberg left a negative review on Yelp after he got into a billing dispute with chiropractor Steven Biegel. Instead of quietly fuming like most people who get bad reviews on Yelp do, Biegel sued Norberg for defamation. Can you really sue someone for a negative online review?
