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24 Dec, 2014

TripAdvisor fined in Italy over false reviews | GulfNews.com

Rome: Italy’s antitrust authority has slapped a 500,000 euro (Dh2.2 million) fine on TripAdvisor for failing to do enough to prevent false reviews.

The move follows complaints from hoteliers of negative and, in some cases, defamatory reviews regarding their businesses. Italy is the world’s fifth largest destination for international tourism with about 46m international visitors in 2013.

The regulator said TripAdvisor, whose website allows readers to leave reviews of restaurants and hotels around the world, should stop “publishing misleading information about the sources of its reviews”, adding that the practice started in 2011. It gave the company 90 days to respond.

Read the rest: TripAdvisor fined in Italy over false reviews | GulfNews.com.