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Microsoft denies it pays rep managers to post positively about the Xbox One on Reddit

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 08 Jun 2013 3:30 User comments (4)

Microsoft denies it pays rep managers to post positively about the Xbox One on Reddit

Earlier this week, a poster with the name "mistysilver" made a large post on Reddit claiming that "reputation managers" were being paid by the software giant Microsoft to post positively about the upcoming Xbox One console.
The post said Microsoft employees were voting down any negative comments and voting up or adding pro-Xbox One comments across the popular social news site. In the post, (which has since been taken down), Silver introduced himself by saying "I work for a marketing firm in Redmond that has a contract with Microsoft. I can't say specifically which division, but suffice to say we are not involved with the Xbox." While at Microsoft, the poster says he saw an employee "mass-downvoting a ton of posts and comments, and he kept switching to other tabs to make posts and comments of his own. I couldn't make out exactly what he was posting, but I presumed he was doing RM (reputation management) and asked my boss about it later. According to my boss, MS have[sic] just brought in a huge sweep of SMM managers to handle reputation management for the Xbox One."



Microsoft was quick to deny the story, saying "There is no coordinated or sanctioned effort by Microsoft employees, or anyone paid by Microsoft, to unduly influence Reddit or other online forums." As mentioned, after the denial, mistysilver's post was removed.

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4 user comments

18.6.2013 18:36

I wouldn't be surprised one bit.

28.6.2013 20:03

Unless there's proof (or admission), it's all hearsay, like lame fanboy/hater flamewars.

39.6.2013 01:50

Does anyone actually believe this isn't common practice with all large corporations? With billions on the line launching a new product, why wouldn't they use every tool available? It's not just Microsoft, they all do it. Anyone who thinks otherwise is probably too stupid to think outside of what they read on the internet. Is this even news? I thought that this was common knowledge.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 09 Jun 2013 @ 1:51

49.6.2013 02:22

It certainly is a common practice amongst large companies not just limited to the Gaming Industry, I hope those RM's are getting paid very well as they managed to have someones post removed which has the stench of corporate corruption written all over it.

I really wanted to like the new xbox but everyday there just seems to be another reason not to buy it.

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