What is Reputational Damage Control on TripAdvisor?

In the past, when planning a trip, it was common to book accommodations and airline tickets through a travel agency, often in person at the agency’s storefront. However, nowadays, it’s becoming increasingly common for people to research reviews on websites and book accommodations and airline tickets directly. There are several large-scale review sites for accommodations and other travel-related services that operate globally. Among them, TripAdvisor is likely to appear at the top of search results for accommodations and tourist attractions, and it’s believed that many people have used it. The impact of reviews on such widely-used sites can be extremely significant for accommodations and other services. Therefore, we will explain how to manage reputational damage in the event that defamatory reviews are posted on TripAdvisor.

Explanation about TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor is a website operated by TripAdvisor LLC, based in Massachusetts, USA, which claims to be the “world’s largest travel platform”. On TripAdvisor, users can post reviews about accommodations, tourist attractions, restaurants, airlines, cruises, etc. from all over the world. In addition, you can also make reservations for accommodations and tours through the website. TripAdvisor, which started in the United States, has expanded its services to 49 countries and regions in 28 languages as of February 2020. In Japan, a Japanese website has been launched, and TripAdvisor Japan Corporation, a Japanese corporation, was established in 2008. As of February 2020, TripAdvisor has 460 million users per month, 8.6 million listed accommodations, and 830 million reviews, making it an extremely large-scale site. Nowadays, there are many opportunities for tourists from overseas to visit Japan, so reviews on TripAdvisor, which has a significant influence on travelers worldwide, can greatly affect the sales of accommodations and other facilities.

What Kind of Reputational Damage Occurs on TripAdvisor?

Negative reviews on TripAdvisor often relate to issues such as poor customer service at accommodations or restaurants, or problems with the facilities themselves, such as noise from neighboring rooms or poor Wi-Fi signal. The facility can respond to each review individually, so if the content of the posted review is true, posting a sincere apology can actually give a good impression to the viewers. However, there may also be problematic reviews based on discriminatory feelings towards foreigners, such as “I felt uneasy because there were many foreign employees,” or inaccurate speculation, such as “It seems that the rice used in the restaurant is not domestically produced.” Such reviews can give a negative impression to viewers. Furthermore, on TripAdvisor, users can rate with stars at the same time as posting a review. If a negative review is posted and the lowest rating is given at the same time, it affects the overall rating of the facility. When travelers consider using accommodations, they tend to first check the overall rating based on the number of stars. Facilities with low overall ratings are often excluded from consideration without even looking at the detailed content, which can have a significant impact on the business.

How to Request Removal for Violation of Terms of Use

When a review is posted on TripAdvisor that could lead to reputational damage, the first thing to consider is to directly request the site operator to remove the review, claiming it violates the rules set by TripAdvisor regarding review postings.

Terms of Use for TripAdvisor

The rules regarding posting reviews on TripAdvisor are somewhat complex, as they are scattered across several web pages. In summary, they are as follows. Firstly, TripAdvisor lists three instances where a posted review may be subject to removal.

In the Review Guidelines, TripAdvisor asks users to comply with its Content Policy and the following seven items when posting a review. (Reference) https://www.tripadvisorsupport.com/hc/ja/articles/200614797

• Be up-to-date
• Not be commercial
• Be relevant
• Be unbiased
• Be based on actual experiences
• Be easy to read
• Be posted on TripAdvisor

Furthermore, in the Content Policy, excluding items that overlap with the above seven, the following three items are stipulated as matters to be complied with when posting a review. (Reference) https://www.tripadvisorsupport.com/hc/ja/articles/360008133913

• Not contain content harmful to minors
• Be original content
• Respect privacy

Therefore, if you want to request the removal of a review based on a violation of TripAdvisor’s terms of use, you need to argue that it violates one of the items listed above. The items are summarized as follows.

• Posted to the wrong facility
• Violates TripAdvisor’s review guidelines
• Suspected of fraud
• Be up-to-date
• Not be commercial
• Be relevant
• Be unbiased
• Be based on actual experiences
• Be easy to read
• Be posted on TripAdvisor
• Not contain content harmful to minors
• Be original content
• Respect privacy

How to Contact TripAdvisor

If you are a facility owner seeking to remove a review, you must first register as an owner. Once you have completed the owner registration, select “Report a Review” from the “Reviews” tab on the facility management page. In the inquiry form that appears, indicate which review you want to remove and explain why you believe it should be removed, referencing the content policy and other relevant guidelines. TripAdvisor states that it may take up to two business days to remove a review.

TripAdvisor’s Stance on Review Removal

TripAdvisor is not proactive in removing reviews. This is because TripAdvisor was established with the policy of publishing the raw voices of travelers, excluding commercial purposes such as travel agencies. In fact, they state the following in a webpage titled “Content Integrity Policy”.

At TripAdvisor, we want to make individual experiences better, so we do not easily remove reviews from our site. It might be easier to introduce censorship and remove reviews that facility owners disagree with. However, this goes against our belief that we want our sincere customers to share their experiences.

https://tripadvisor.mediaroom.com/JP-content-integrity-policy

In addition, TripAdvisor has previously been criticized by the media for removing a review in which a traveler claimed to have been sexually assaulted by a security guard at a hotel in Mexico. Therefore, they will likely be even more cautious about removing reviews in the future. Consequently, even if you directly request TripAdvisor to remove a review based on a violation of the terms of use, unless there is a clear factual error or illegality, it is advisable to assume that the likelihood of acceptance is low.

Reviews Expressing Concern Over a High Number of Foreign Employees

Our Review Guidelines and Content Policy require that all reviews posted have “relevance”. This is a compliance matter designed to exclude personal opinions on politics, ethics, religion, social issues, etc., which are not directly related to the services of accommodations and similar facilities, in order to be useful to travelers who view the reviews. Therefore, for example, a review stating “I felt uneasy because there were many foreign employees” cannot be said to be directly related to the services provided at the accommodation or similar facilities. Such reviews are based on prejudice or discriminatory feelings towards foreigners, and as such, we would request their removal on the grounds of “lack of relevance”.

Rumors that the rice used in the restaurant is not domestically produced

Our review guidelines require that posted reviews are based on “actual experiences”. This is intended to eliminate uncertain reviews based on rumors or hearsay. Therefore, for example, a review stating “I heard from a friend that the rice used in this restaurant is not domestically produced” is merely posting a rumor heard from a friend. Unless the poster has personally visited the restaurant and confirmed this, such a review would not be based on an “actual experience” and would be subject to removal.

Examples of Cases Where Removal Requests are Made on the Grounds of Illegality

Defamatory posts are not only a violation of the terms of use, but can also be considered illegal. A typical example is when defamation is established. Defamation is generally established when a fact that lowers a person’s social reputation is posted. However, defamation is not established if the posted fact is true or if there is a legitimate reason or basis to believe it is true. We provide a detailed explanation of the requirements for establishing defamation in the article below.

https://monolith.law/reputation/defamation[ja]

For example, a review on TripAdvisor that became an issue, stating “A security guard at Hotel A sexually assaulted a guest,” can be evaluated as a fact that lowers the social reputation of the hotel and its employees, as it pertains to a criminal act. Therefore, if the content of this review is baseless, there is a possibility that defamation could be established.

Removal by Provisional Disposition

As mentioned above, it is often the case that direct removal requests for reviews on TripAdvisor are not accommodated. In such cases, it is necessary to file a provisional disposition, a simplified court procedure, with the court. We provide a detailed explanation about the provisional disposition seeking the removal of posts in the article below.

https://monolith.law/reputation/provisional-disposition[ja]

Identifying Posters through Provisional Dispositions

If actual damage occurs due to a review on TripAdvisor, or if the review is considered malicious, you may consider seeking damages (compensation) or filing a criminal complaint. To do this, it is necessary to identify the poster. The procedure to identify the poster is called a ‘Japanese sender information disclosure request’.
In a sender information disclosure request, you first obtain the IP address and timestamp corresponding to the problematic review from the site operator, and use this information to identify the Internet Service Provider used for the post. Then, you request the disclosure of the poster’s personal information from the Internet Service Provider. Unlike the removal of reviews, the identification of the poster leads to the disclosure of highly confidential personal information, so they will not respond to direct inquiries. Therefore, it is common to use legal proceedings from the beginning in a sender information disclosure request. We explain the details of the sender information disclosure request in the following article.

https://monolith.law/reputation/disclosure-of-the-senders-information[ja]

International Jurisdiction

One issue to be aware of when proceeding with litigation against TripAdvisor is the matter of international jurisdiction. This arises because TripAdvisor LLC, which operates the website, is a foreign company, and it is a question of whether a lawsuit can be filed against TripAdvisor LLC in a court within Japan. In conclusion, in the case of TripAdvisor, there is at least a Japanese site for residents in Japan. Therefore, it can be said that it is a “business operator in Japan,” and based on Article 3, Paragraph 3, Item 5 of the Japanese Civil Procedure Law (quoted below), it is considered possible to file a lawsuit in a Japanese court.

Japanese Civil Procedure Law Article 3, Paragraph 3
The following lawsuits can be filed in Japanese courts when the conditions set forth in each item are met.
(Omitted)
Five: Lawsuits against those who conduct business in Japan (including foreign companies that continuously conduct transactions in Japan (referring to foreign companies as defined in Article 2, Item 2 of the Companies Act (Law No. 86 of 2005 (Heisei 17))).
When the lawsuit is related to the business of the person in Japan.

However, in order to file a lawsuit in a Japanese court, it is necessary to carry out procedures in English, such as obtaining a qualification certificate equivalent to a Japanese commercial registration from Massachusetts, USA, where the headquarters of TripAdvisor LLC is located. This process is more time-consuming and complicated than filing a lawsuit against a company within Japan. As for identifying the poster, there is a time constraint due to the short period that internet service providers keep logs. Therefore, if you are considering identifying the poster on TripAdvisor, you need to start the procedure more quickly. For more details on international jurisdiction, please refer to the article below.

https://monolith.law/reputation/against-facebook-amazon[ja]

Summary

Given its global reach, TripAdvisor has a significant influence in the tourism industry. Therefore, if there are problematic posts, it is necessary to immediately consider how to handle them, including legal proceedings. Furthermore, dealing with websites operated by foreign companies like TripAdvisor requires communication in English, demanding a high level of expertise. For this reason, we recommend consulting with an experienced attorney for measures against online defamation.