1script - 3:54 pm on Aug 23, 2012 (gmt 0)

Ah yes - PAID can be a very big problem.

Still: what is the format of the review? Is it all the same text, same anchor text leading to the same destination URL or is it more like customized reviews of different products having links with different anchors leading to different product pages?

I mean, I understand that a Google engineer would instinctively wince at the notion of money changing hands in relation to a link, but paid reviews (paid both in money and in kind) are nothing new and all big brands are using them.

You can be sure than when a new product hits the market, 90%+ of the reviews are paid for because only professional reviewers would see the products before the release and you can bet they're being paid for their trouble. Unpaid user reviews are normally trailing the product release by months, sometimes years. Talking about "normal" un-hyped products, obviously. Something like a circular saw and NOT a new iPhone, hope the distinction is clear.

So, if you can divulge the format of those blog reviews, I think it would be a very useful piece of information here.