... the biggest issue, is the two weeks free VIP given to anyone submitting a review. The irony of people objecting to pay $30-$50 for VIP while spending hundreds if not thousands on the hobby is not lost to me either.
But as long as 2 weeks free VIP for submitted reviews remains in force, you will continue to have the headache of false reviews, revenge reviews, etc.
The thing is, as we all know, the reviews are the bread and butter and revenue source for TER. Without the reviews, TER has no readership. without readership, TER has no pagehits, and without pagehits, they generate no advertising.
During my time as Moderator, the issue was discussed many times, and there were some good ideas for altering the business model, and changing the way submitted reviews were rewarded. That all ended when TER went Euro, and apparently, the business model remains the same.
PS - Props to Curvy Carly for posting the steps shes taken in successfully dealing with TER on this issue. There used to be a procedure posted on the Suggestions & Policy as well as the Newbie boards but all those procs have been re-written since then