Tag: listings
FTC fines supplement maker $600,000 for ‘review hijacking’ Amazon listings
For the first time, the US Federal Trade Commission has fined an organization for “review hijacking.” In February, the agency accused The Bountiful Company, maker of the Nature’s Bounty brand of vitamins, of deceiving consumers. Between 2020 and 2021, Bountiful abused a feature of Amazon to make it seem like some of its newer supplements had higher product reviews and ratings than they did in reality.
If you have ever bought something on Amazon, you’ve almost certainly interacted with the feature Bountiful attempted to game. Some listings include a set of icons that highlight different “variations” of that same product. For example, if you visit the page for Sony’s popular WH-1000XM5, the feature will highlight that the headphones are available in three different colors. By design, Amazon designed this feature to be narrow. Sellers are supposed to use it to showcase that a product they offer is available in a different color, size, quantity or flavor.
That’s not what The Bountiful Company did. According to the FTC, Bountiful used the feature to give newer products a boost from older, more well-established ones with different formulations. In one internal email the agency obtained, Bountiful lamented that “people did not love” one of its new vitamins but noted sales “spiked the second we variated the pages and they continue to grow.”
On Monday, the FTC said it voted unanimously to approve a consent order that carries a $600,000 fine for Bountiful and bars the company from employing such tactics in the future. “Boosting your products by hijacking another product’s ratings or reviews is a relatively new tactic, but is still plain old false advertising,” said Samuel Levine, the director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
“There’s no place for fraud in Amazon’s store. We have proactive measures in place to prevent listing abuse and we continuously monitor our store,” an Amazon spokesperson told Engadget. “Our policies prohibit reviews abuse including offering incentives like gift cards to write positive reviews. We suspend, ban, and take legal action against those who violate these policies and remove inauthentic reviews.”
According to Amazon, “more than 99 percent” of the products people view on its marketplace “contain only authentic reviews.” If you find what you think is a fake review, the company recommends tapping the “Report” button so it can investigate and take action. The spokesperson added Amazon would continue working with FTC and other enforcement agencies to combat fraudsters.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ftc-fines-supplement-maker-600000-for-review-hijacking-amazon-listings-210142185.html?src=rss
Gen5 SSDs listings finally show up on Amazon and Newegg
Apple Maps Now Allows Businesses to Customize Their Listings
Apple says these new capabilities are available to businesses in the U.S. starting today, and will be available to businesses globally in the coming months, so it will take some time for businesses to update their information. Businesses can also customize the way key information appears across the Messages app, Wallet app, and Siri interface.
Once a business has logged in to Business Connect with a new or existing Apple ID and Apple has verified the business, they can claim their location(s) and begin updating and personalizing their place card using the self-service website, free of charge.
“We created Business Connect to provide Apple users around the world with the most accurate information for places to eat, shop, travel, and more,” said Apple’s services chief Eddy Cue. “Apple Business Connect gives every business owner the tools they need to connect with customers more directly, and take more control over the way billions of people see and engage with their products and services every day.”
More information is available on the Apple Business Connect website.
This article, “Apple Maps Now Allows Businesses to Customize Their Listings” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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Where to buy an Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti today: early retailer listings from $840–$1,050
Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti emerges through Gigabyte listings and GPU die shot
Netflix is working on ‘brand-new AAA PC game’, according to job listings
Netflix has put up more than a dozen job listings on its website for Netflix Games Studio’s Los Angeles office, as spotted by Mobilegamer.biz. These listings give us a few hints about the company’s plans for the new studio. In particular, Netflix is hiring a game director to work on “a brand-new AAA PC game”. […]
Netflix is working on ‘brand-new AAA PC game’, according to job listings by Romain Dillet originally published on TechCrunch
New job listings suggest Valorant could be coming to consoles
Valorant has been a PC-exclusive multiplayer shooter since it first launched back in 2020. This isn’t unusual for developer Riot Games, who currently only has games on either PC or mobile platforms.
That said, it appears that this could all be set to change in the future, with Riot Games exploring the possibility of bringing Valorant to console players, too.
Now, rumours have been floating around regarding this ever since the Xbox & Bethesda Showcase back in June, when Riot Games announced that its games would all be available on Xbox Game Pass, with pre-unlocked Agent rosters for new players.
8 spooky Airbnb and Vrbo listings just in time for Halloween
When choosing a vacation rental, it’s important to consider all the amenities: good location, fast Wi-Fi, decent price, comfy beds. But these Airbnb and Vrbo listings offer something extra — a cold shiver down your spine, the feeling of dread, or sounds of creaking and wailing that can’t be explained.
If you live for the thrill of paranormal activity and gruesome ghost stories, these listings will surely delight. Otherwise, consider yourself warned…
1. A house haunted by friendly ghosts
Credit: David Bissette
This Stroud house in North Carolina is so haunted it even comes with a disclaimer:
“Several friends, family, and guests have experienced supernatural events here including: footsteps in the hallway or upstairs, the hall and basement lights turning on randomly, a door opening after being latched closed, a shadowy figure in the kitchen and dining room, glowing orbs in the living room, and even a music box that has played by itself,” the listing warns.
But don’t worry, the ghosts are benevolent by all accounts.
“None of the incidents have ever been malevolent in nature. We just accept that it is what it is, and continue on with our lives.”
2. A gothic Midwestern manor
Credit: Trey Fortner
Minnesota doesn’t exactly scream medieval, but this listing might elicit some screams from its guests.
For $90 a night, you can rent a private room in this mini castle located in St. Paul. The manor’s listing mentions the presence of the host’s pet — an apparently friendly Doberman named Scorch — and can be rented out for photo shoots, paranormal investigations, rituals, and murder mystery dinners.
3. An Edwardian nightmare
Credit: Gavin Conlan / Talliston House & Gardens
The “Haunted Bedroom” at Talliston House and Gardens is the medieval manifestation of your nightmares.
Meticulously designed to look like “the bed chamber of a seven-year-old Edwardian child,” this room is decorated with ornate wood paneling, heavy drapes, low lighting, and a bed fit for Henry VIII. If it gets too creepy in here, each room of the house has its own theme, so you can go to the Victorian living room or the New Orleans kitchen to escape the dark ages.
4. The Madness Chamber
Credit: Ian Loftus
The brief description of the “Madness Chamber” says it is “haunted and is well over 600 years old.”
The Yorkshire, UK listing doesn’t say much else, but if the wood-paneled walls of this ancient lodging could talk, they’d surely have some spooky stories to tell.
5. The Hocus Pocus house
Credit: Helynn Ospina
Live like witches in a Salem, Massachusetts listing recreated to look like the famous Sanderson Sisters’ abode.
In this cottage, you can brew up some potions, conjure a spell or two, and then jump on your broomstick to terrorize the good people of Salem. This house is so authentic to the 17th century that it wasn’t built with modern “facilities.” But fret not, a modern outhouse is just steps away.
6. A listing in the heart of the Salem Witch Trials
Credit: VRBO / Liann DiMare
The “Warlock House,” another Salem entry on this list, really leans into the town’s history as the site of the Salem Witch Trials.
The Halloween-themed house has all kinds of witchy decor, including a ouija board coffee table, a witches’ altar, a crystal ball, and even an Edgar-Allen-Poe-themed bedroom. Perfect for hosting a seance or performing other dark magic.
7. A cabin in a Texas ghost town
Credit: VRBO / Janet Eby
This listing will see your haunted house and raise you a haunted town.
Terlingua, Texas was a mercury-mining town, complete with a hotel, a commissary, and a school. But by the 1940s the mercury market had crashed, the mine was closed down, and Terlingua was mostly abandoned. What remains is a town perfectly preserved in time, which undoubtedly includes some haunted spirits from its pioneer past.
8. A log cabin frequented by a weeping ghost
Credit: VRBO / Scott Zwiers
This rustic North Carolina cabin is haunted by “Nancy the Ghost,” who can sometimes be heard weeping. The host says it’s probably just the creaking floors of the mountain dwelling, but who can be sure?
Another famous guest was former President Lyndon B Johnson. He was alive when he stayed there, but one wonders if he ever makes a paranormal visit.
A new Facebook Marketplace rule could make it harder to find legit car listings
As if buying a used car isn’t hard enough, the misleading dealership listings that clutter up selling platforms like Facebook Marketplace and OfferUp don’t make things any easier. In an update first spotted by a user on Reddit, Meta announced that it’s limiting dealerships’ ability to list cars on Marketplace, but this likely doesn’t mean those pesky listings will disappear for good (via Jalopnik).
If you’ve ever shopped for a used car online, you probably know the kinds of dealership listings I’m talking about. They often show only a car’s required down payment, or — even more annoyingly — list vehicles at $1 in an attempt to grab your attention.
But starting January 30th, 2023, dealerships will run into a roadblock when trying to post…