Alex Trelinski
SPAIN’S anti-monopoly commission, the CNMC, has cleared Amazon, Booking Holdings and Tripadvisor of posting or facilitating fake reviews on their websites.
A complaint had been filed by the Organisation of Consumers and Users(OCU) back in November 2019.
The OCU argued that the three platforms made it easier for some users to publish ‘reviews previously agreed with the sellers, manufacturers and service providers offered or recommended on the platform’ in a practice that sought to ‘increase their sales or generate brand image’.
The CNMC said it found ‘no indication that the platforms have participated in or facilitated the publication of these false opinions’.
It added that the companies took measures to detect bogus reviews and that they collaborated with ongoing investigations.
The CNMC did however spot evidence of a violation of consumer protection regulations with ‘sellers and intermediaries’ contacting users to publish a false rating in exchange for cash or the product they wanted to buy.
The OCU complaint has therefore been passed onto the Directorate-General for Consumer Affairs to look at further.
An Amazon spokesperson said his company acts against fake reviews on its websites.
