“Billion Dollar Bully” Yelp Keeps Pressure On Businesses
Despite bad publicity and lawsuits, Yelp continues to tank ratings in order to punish those who won’t advertise.
Despite bad publicity and lawsuits, Yelp continues to tank ratings in order to punish those who won’t advertise.
Jonathan Taplin, former music and film professional, tells first-hand what the new rentier economy of Internet aggregators like Google and Facebook has done to the creative arts, journalism, and democracy.
Yelp uses the power of its rating system to bully small businesses into buying their expensive advertising; if they decline, so do their ratings.