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eof [soylentnews.org] writes:

A Boston area jeweler has won a bid in court to have Yelp reveal the contact information of a reviewer. [betaboston.com]

Pageo Jewelry, based in Newton, sued a critic they identified as “Linda G. Doe” for defamation after she accused the store’s owners of selling overpriced jewelry and taking advantage of her when she was in dire financial straits. Pageo’s lawsuit has sparked news articles [arstechnica.com] – and a flurry of criticism – on several websites.

“George took all the jewelry I had ever bought there and gave me peanuts for it!!” the review reads in part. [yelp.com] George Pelz, who co-owns Pageo, responded by calling the reviewer “a Yelp Terrorist.”

The store’s owners have submitted sworn affadavits [sic] that raise doubts about the post’s authenticity, said Tim Lynch, the attorney who represents Pelz and Pam Swartz, a brother and sister who own the store. He said they only filed suit in Boston Municipal Court – and subpoenaed Yelp – after the San Francisco-based website refused to provide the poster’s contact information.

In addition to the bad image created by 'Linda G.' among his customers, additional one star reviews have appeared on the site from people who have read about the lawsuit. The Public Citizen lawyer representing Yelp said they would comply with the order and that Linda G. '"passionately believes" in her cause.'

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