BlackBerry Messenger app for iOS and Android is fated to remain in the limelight whether BlackBerry likes it or not. After a couple of failed attempts at trying to launch the app without hiccups, the newest issue that has come BlackBerry’s way is the sudden surge in fake reviews for the application on Google’s Play Store. The Play Store is seeing a bunch of comments being posted as reviews for the official BBM app that say the exact same thing. “Thanks blackberry. Thank you so much blackberry team. I was waiting this app. Its really user friendly and smooth. (sic)” Of course, BlackBerry has said that it has no idea about these fake reviews but it isn’t helping matters for the company that has already seen a bit of a rough spot in the recent past. “We don't have any hard evidence to prove anything nefarious is going on with the app's review, but it's clear that something isn't right,” says Ars Technica. “There are plenty of companies out there that app developers can pay to leave false reviews, and Blackberry is in a dire financial position. Gaming reviews to encourage more people to install its messaging app might seem like a good idea to a company at the bottom of the proverbial well. After all, BBM could have been its own success story, not tied to the Blackberry operating system or handsets.”
Fake reviews on Play Store
The Verge is quick to point out how these reviews are soon turning into something parodies are made of. “It doesn't help that at this point, it's virtually impossible to tell how many fake reviews there actually are. Over the past couple of days, the text has become a meme of its own, and a cursory look at the site shows plenty of people with parodic variations — some of which are plausible enough that they add even more confusion. If BlackBerry wants to resolve the issue with Google, it's going to have to address more than just the actions of the spammers.”The Next Web though, talks about false reviews being a part of business. “Plenty of businesses offer false reviews for app developers, and BlackBerry wouldn’t be the first to hire other parties to post false reviews. In fact, it’s possible that a marketing firm hired by BlackBerry is doing this without BlackBerry’s knowledge. BlackBerry makes a point that there are indeed many genuinely positive (as well as genuinely negative) reviews for its new Android app. Nevertheless, the company needs to do more than just criticize what’s currently out there; screenshots of the fake reviews have appeared all over the Internet, and are largely seen as a BlackBerry joke.”Cite World agrees with the views, “Fake reviews hardly are new to the Internet – fake anything, for that matter – so this isn't exactly a major scandal. But given BlackBerry's relentless downward spiral since the BYOD revolution began several years ago, this kind of thing adds insult (and a bit of mockery) to BlackBerry's injury.""But let me just say, BlackBerry, it could have been much worse. Imagine if this comment from a 5-star review had been plastered all over Google Play: 'Awesome!! Brings me back to 2008!' BlackBerry: Bringing you back to 2008. Just what the mobile users of 2013 really want to hear.
Tarnishing BlackBerry's image
Gizmodo on the other hand refuses to believe BlackBerry could have been behind this. “But BlackBerry couldn't be that dumb, right? That would be a different (and serious!) kind of judgment lapse than putting out silly music videos. This almost definitely isn't a BlackBerry orchestrated ‘plot.’”The Examiner makes a point. “As one commenter noted, if he were a rival IM client that wanted to make BlackBerry look bad, he might post obviously gamed reviews, figuring they would be picked up.” Essentially, whomsoever put this fake review chain up, it’s damaging BlackBerry’s repute, despite a well-made application.
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