Commerce Commission takes two review sites to court over paid rankings
The Commerce Commission has started court action against two websites, Top Reviews and Auckland Magazine, over what it calls misleading paid online rankings.
The Commission announced the case on 5 October under the headline "Commission takes court action to stop misleading paid online rankings". It alleges that both sites keep approaching New Zealand businesses about favourable rankings while presenting their reviews as independent and impartial. No court has ruled on these allegations.
The summary on the Commission's news page doesn't say which court the case was filed in, which law the Commission is relying on, or what orders it is seeking. It includes no response from either website.
The case comes two months after a penalty for fake reviews. On 6 August the District Court fined Brand Developers Ltd, which trades as The TV Shop, $1,104,000. Law firm Simpson Grierson's August 2026 competition and consumer law update reported that the company had told staff to post more than 473 positive reviews of its products without saying they worked there. It also suppressed or withheld thousands of low-rated customer reviews.
According to Simpson Grierson, the Court found the review conduct was deliberate, systematic and driven by senior management.
The penalty covered more than reviews. The TV Shop told customers that its own warranties, money-back guarantees or internal policies governed their rights, and that remedies under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 weren't available to them. It also advertised its Air Roaster Pro with a "free" or "bonus" accessory pack that always came with it, so customers were paying for it anyway. More than 5,000 units sold while that offer ran. The Court said the company's approach to customer rights amounted to "the highest level of carelessness". The fine included discounts for cooperation and remorse. Simpson Grierson still counts it among the more significant recent Fair Trading Act penalties.
Brand Developers faces a second, separate case. In December 2025 the Commission filed District Court proceedings, which are still undecided, alleging unconscionable conduct in the sale of high-value products to vulnerable customers.
A third matter also involves reviews. Simpson Grierson reported that the Commission is investigating 41 complaints, none of them yet tested, against NZ Muscle over alleged Fair Trading Act breaches, including a complaint that it showed only positive reviews on its website.
Simpson Grierson's advice to businesses is that online reviews should be genuine and balanced, and shouldn't be filtered in a way that misleads consumers. It expects the Commission to treat manipulated reviews as serious consumer harm.
The Commission's claims are against the two websites, not the businesses they approached. Neither the Commission's announcement nor Simpson Grierson says whether anyone who paid for a placement is under investigation.