A lot has been written by journalist and academia about the prevalence of fake reviews on internet review sites such as TripAdvisor. There are several companies selling positive fake reviews for $5 to $10 per each published one.
Now, TripAdvisor is partnering with American Express to authenticate some reviewers.
I saw this piece on IHT (International Herald Tribune) yesterday that is the global edition of the NY Times. I cannot, however, find the article itself on nytimes.com website.
American Express card members can link to their TripAdvisor and a message “American Express Card Member Review” will be shown next to their review.
Conclusion
But, does this really help with fake reviews? The fact that you have an American Express card memebr doesn’t mean that you have actually visited the hotel or restaurant that you are reviewing about. Also, some businesses may just start paying more for fake reviews done by these Amex members
I have left few hotel reviews on TripAdvisor, but stopped mostly doing them after TripAdvisor for one reason or another didn’t publish a review that I made about Holiday Inn Express. No reason for non-publication was given.