Review bombing is an internet phenomenon where a large number of people post negative user reviews online in a coordinated effort to significantly lower the public rating and harm the sales or popularity of a product, service, business, or piece of media (like a movie or video game).
Key Characteristics
Coordinated Action: It involves a surge of negative reviews, often one-star or the lowest possible rating, over a short period.
Motivation: The reviews are often driven by extraneous grievances—meaning they are less about the actual quality of the product/service and more about unrelated issues. Common motivations include:
Protesting a perceived political or social issue related to the content, creators, or company.
Disagreements with corporate decisions (e.g., pricing, changes to a franchise, or platform exclusivity).
Trolling or organized harassment campaigns.
Impact: Review bombing is effective because low aggregate scores can discourage potential customers, leading to revenue loss and damaging the reputation of the target.
Common Targets
This tactic is frequently seen on platforms that rely heavily on user scores, such as:
Video Games: Steam, Metacritic, or console stores.
Movies/TV Shows: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, or streaming service reviews.
Businesses: Yelp, Google Reviews, or TripAdvisor.
Books: Goodreads.
A common pattern in media is targeting content that champions minority groups or features progressive themes, with the negative reviews focusing on these non-quality-related aspects.
The Indian film industries most actively attempting to restrict or regulate film reviewers are those in the South Indian cinema hubs, particularly Tamil (Kollywood) and Malayalam (Mollywood) cinema.
Their primary method of restriction is seeking an embargo or ban on all online and social media reviews, especially those posted on YouTube and X (Twitter), during the crucial first few days of a film's release.
1. Malayalam Film Industry (Mollywood)
The Malayalam industry was the first to see a court-backed regulation on film reviews.
The Request: Filmmakers and associations, including the Kerala Film Producers' Association (KFPA), petitioned the Kerala High Court to regulate vloggers and social media reviewers who they allege engage in "review bombing" and extortion.
Court Action (Key Precedent): The Kerala High Court has taken steps to address this. In its updates, it has introduced specific guidelines, including a provision for a 48-hour embargo period (and at one point, 7 days) between the theatrical release of a movie and the posting of reviews by social media influencers.
The Rationale: The industry argues that negative "first day, first show" (FDFS) reviews, often recorded right outside the theatre, are malicious, spread quickly on social media, and are designed to deliberately sabotage a film's initial box office collections.
2. Tamil Film Industry (Kollywood)
The Tamil industry is also actively seeking legal intervention and has demanded theater restrictions.
The Request: The Tamil Film Active Producers Association (TFAPA) has been the most vocal body. They have filed a writ petition in the Madras High Court seeking a direction to the government to ban online reviews of movies for the first three days from the date of their theatrical release.
Actions & Demands:
They have strongly urged theatre owners to ban YouTubers from recording audience views within cinema hall premises to prevent "First Day, First Show (FDFS) Talk."
The associations cite major films being "affected" by malicious reviews, including recent big-budget releases.
Court Stance (Current): While the Madras High Court has issued notices to government bodies on the matter, a judge refused to issue an interim direction for a ban, acknowledging that reviews, even critical ones, are a part of the freedom of speech and expression.
3. Telugu Film Industry (Tollywood)
Producers in the Telugu industry have also expressed similar concerns and are discussing formal action.
The Concern: Telugu producers and the Telugu Film Directors' Association (TFDA) have also voiced strong concerns about the "YouTube review culture," alleging that some online critics are purposefully assassinating new films and their makers' careers.
Action: The TFDA has held meetings to address the issue and plans to approach it in a formal, organized manner, following the legal and regulatory discussions seen in the neighboring states.
These industries believe that a brief "cooling-off period" is essential to allow genuine word-of-mouth to develop and for audiences to form their own opinions before a potentially biased or malicious review can cripple a film's vital opening weekend.
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