The Italian government has unveiled a draft law aimed at regulating online reviews for hotels, restaurants, and tourist attractions, seeking to eliminate fake or compensated reviewers.
This legislation, pending parliamentary approval to become effective, imposes several requirements on potential reviewers, such as the necessity to provide verifiable identification and evidence of their visit to the establishment they wish to review.
Reviews must be submitted within two weeks of the respective visit and can be removed if deemed inaccurate, or, in any event, two years after being posted.
The bill does not clarify who will determine the validity of a review’s claims.
Support for Italian enterprises
“Today is a significant milestone for safeguarding our businesses,” stated Tourism Minister Daniela Santanche.
While fake reviews are currently illegal, enforcing this prohibition presents challenges. The proposed legislation recommends assigning the responsibility of reviewing and imposing potential fines to Italy’s competition authority.
Some industry groups have welcomed the draft regulations, though concerns regarding privacy and the possibility that the prohibition of anonymous reviews could substantially decrease online feedback for hotels and restaurants were raised.
“Fake reviews threaten fair competition among businesses as they can significantly affect sales, and they mislead consumers,” remarked Michele Carrus, chairman of the consumer advocacy group Federconsumatori.
“It was essential to tackle this issue. Finding the right approach is challenging, but I am optimistic that we can achieve a satisfactory resolution during the parliamentary discussions,” he added.
