Quite a few decades ago, when I worked at a high-end dealer in DC, I met a guy who wrote reviews for a few of the popular rags of the day. He told me that, if you tended to write positive reviews, a manufacturer would ship a product to you for evaluation and instead of returning the reviewed item to the manufacturer, they would offer to sell it to the reviewer at a huge discount. The reviewer would then be free to sell the unit and reap whatever profits they could, further adding to their compensation. He told me that he once reviewed a speaker from a major manufacturer and they offered to charge him 20% of retail, instead of returning them...a quick couple of hundred bucks more for him!
I read this review about reviewers
https://www.13thnote.net/2020/07/25/the-fckd-up-nature-of-the-audiophile-audio-industry/
An interesting take on what's happening in the industry today.
It was Simon Price's personal experience, but I wonder if it's happening more often than not?
An interesting take on what's happening in the industry today.
It was Simon Price's personal experience, but I wonder if it's happening more often than not?