Is there any proof that they are actually removed? How many genuine and well-written 1-star reviews are removed alongside them? I enjoyed the story but policing user content is hard.
If I was Yelp and acting in good faith that data would already be public
There’s a thing called yelp sort. It’s on by default. They refuse to say how it works so it can work any way they like. The sales person marks the restaurant as ”owner didn’t pay” the top reviews get removed from yelp sort and the star calculation. The negative reviews get prioritized, the top positive reviews get ignored, hidden or just plain buried. The business goes from four and a half stars to three and a half stars. (I’m sure the actual name of the flag more deniable)
Business drops noticeably. Sales person calls back a week later.
This practice has been documented at least five times in the press. Yelp is a know extortionist company. I’d love to see a hactivist or disgruntled sales person publish the code or screen shots.