Comments on: We're Proud To Announce Our Partnership With Amazon.com, The World's Biggest Bookstore, And A Whole Lot More! http://www.popehat.com/2009/06/23/were-proud-to-announce-our-partnership-with-amazoncom-the-worlds-biggest-bookstore-and-a-whole-lot-more/ A Group Complaint about Law, Liberty, and Leisure Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:39:39 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: I Have No Intention of Following the Rules | Little Miss Attila http://www.popehat.com/2009/06/23/were-proud-to-announce-our-partnership-with-amazoncom-the-worlds-biggest-bookstore-and-a-whole-lot-more/comment-page-1/#comment-33323 I Have No Intention of Following the Rules | Little Miss Attila Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:41:48 +0000 http://www.popehat.com/?p=4879#comment-33323 [...] The Pope’s Hat has a Swiftian roundup. [...] [...] The Pope's Hat has a Swiftian roundup. [...]

]]> By: Ken http://www.popehat.com/2009/06/23/were-proud-to-announce-our-partnership-with-amazoncom-the-worlds-biggest-bookstore-and-a-whole-lot-more/comment-page-1/#comment-33319 Ken Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:15:27 +0000 http://www.popehat.com/?p=4879#comment-33319 Inasmuch as anyone can sue anyone for anything under 17200, I think the answer must be yes. Inasmuch as anyone can sue anyone for anything under 17200, I think the answer must be yes.

]]> By: Mike http://www.popehat.com/2009/06/23/were-proud-to-announce-our-partnership-with-amazoncom-the-worlds-biggest-bookstore-and-a-whole-lot-more/comment-page-1/#comment-33318 Mike Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:10:26 +0000 http://www.popehat.com/?p=4879#comment-33318 I did buy a book (Ad Nauseam) based on Patrick's rec., and I'm getting a DX via Ken's. If I don't like that shit, I can sue you all under 17200, right? I did buy a book (Ad Nauseam) based on Patrick's rec., and I'm getting a DX via Ken's. If I don't like that shit, I can sue you all under 17200, right?

]]> By: Ken http://www.popehat.com/2009/06/23/were-proud-to-announce-our-partnership-with-amazoncom-the-worlds-biggest-bookstore-and-a-whole-lot-more/comment-page-1/#comment-33315 Ken Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:58:17 +0000 http://www.popehat.com/?p=4879#comment-33315 Quite. Thus the move hews to two of our favorite themes here: (1) the Nanny State thrives upon presuming that people are idjits unable to exercise rudimentary judgment, and as a result (2) just suck it up and Obey, Citizen. Quite. Thus the move hews to two of our favorite themes here: (1) the Nanny State thrives upon presuming that people are idjits unable to exercise rudimentary judgment, and as a result (2) just suck it up and Obey, Citizen.

]]> By: Patrick http://www.popehat.com/2009/06/23/were-proud-to-announce-our-partnership-with-amazoncom-the-worlds-biggest-bookstore-and-a-whole-lot-more/comment-page-1/#comment-33314 Patrick Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:49:36 +0000 http://www.popehat.com/?p=4879#comment-33314 Indeed. And as more than one of the posts linked above point out, anyone with half a brain can tell when a blogger is getting compensation for reviews. I'll also add that your uncompensated Kindle review might not have been written under a regime of FTC regulation, nor might I have written a couple of reviews of recent books. In the end, a few FTC investigations may lead to less discussion of books and the like. Suppose you'd written unfavorably about the Kindle, slammed it in fact, and your review had spread around the web. Then suppose Amazon <em>complained</em> about your review, and the FTC opened an investigation at Amazon's request into whether you'd been paid by Sony or Apple, which sell competing products. Think corporations won't use the threat of an FTC complaint to <em>chill</em> critics of their products? Think again. Indeed. And as more than one of the posts linked above point out, anyone with half a brain can tell when a blogger is getting compensation for reviews.

I'll also add that your uncompensated Kindle review might not have been written under a regime of FTC regulation, nor might I have written a couple of reviews of recent books. In the end, a few FTC investigations may lead to less discussion of books and the like.

Suppose you'd written unfavorably about the Kindle, slammed it in fact, and your review had spread around the web. Then suppose Amazon complained about your review, and the FTC opened an investigation at Amazon's request into whether you'd been paid by Sony or Apple, which sell competing products.

Think corporations won't use the threat of an FTC complaint to chill critics of their products? Think again.

]]> By: Ken http://www.popehat.com/2009/06/23/were-proud-to-announce-our-partnership-with-amazoncom-the-worlds-biggest-bookstore-and-a-whole-lot-more/comment-page-1/#comment-33313 Ken Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:35:56 +0000 http://www.popehat.com/?p=4879#comment-33313 Yeah, this one bothers me a lot. Subpoenaing blogs to see if they are being paid for favorable product mentions is exactly the sort of cheap-to-the-government-attorneys but expensive-and-intrusive-to-citizens busy-work that agencies like the FTC love. Yeah, this one bothers me a lot. Subpoenaing blogs to see if they are being paid for favorable product mentions is exactly the sort of cheap-to-the-government-attorneys but expensive-and-intrusive-to-citizens busy-work that agencies like the FTC love.

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