Canada’s competition watchdog sanctioned Bell’s parent company, BCE, because employees wrote glowing reviews for company products.

Canada’s competition watchdog sanctioned Bell’s parent company, BCE, because employees wrote glowing reviews for company products.
Photo Credit: Galit Rodan/Canadian Press

Telecom fined $1.25M for fake online reviews

Canada’s Competition Bureau has fined BCE Inc. $1.25-million because staffers wrote glowing online reviews of its products and services without revealing they were employees. A law to maintain and encourage competition among businesses came into effect in Canada in 1986. The bureau is an independent agency which enforces the law.

Employee reviews affected star rating

The reviews and ratings were made online in November 2014 immediately after BCE launched its Bell and Virgin mobile apps. The Competition Bureau said that the reviews “created the general impression that they were made by independent and impartial consumers and temporarily affected the overall star rating for the apps.”

Online reviews questioned

This legitimacy of online reviews is increasingly being questioned because reviewers often remain anonymous. The ruling against BCE was the first the Competition has made involving deceptive online reviews

The bureau noted that BCE removed the reviews shortly after the issue came to light. The corporation agreed to pay the fine and also pledged to ensure employees and contractors know not to rate or review the corporation’s products online.

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