What The Geek | 
06 12th, 2009| 
Have you ever gone to your favorite blog only to find that the author had written a glowing endorsement for a substandard product? There’s a good chance the author was paid for that article. It’s called word-of-mouth marketing, and thanks to the “wild west” nature of the internet, a lot of companies have been getting away with it for some time now. Behind closed doors, companies will often approach popular bloggers and offer cash or products in exchange for the blogger making some mention of the product (positive or negative) on their site. Unfortunately, many bloggers don’t have the decency to make any mention of the fact that they were paid for the post. The FTC has finally decided to step in on this issue. They plan to have paid blog posts governed by the truth in advertising guidelines they have set forth which would require the blogger to make it clear that they have been paid for their post. While I agree witht he FTC in principle, I want to see the fine print.
Tags: Advertising, law, marketing, PS3
