The SFWeekly reported that, "The internet's all in a tizzy the past few days thanks to a Wednesday ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, which said that review site Yelp could manipulate its ratings for money.

"...(Although) there is no hard evidence that it does engage in such behavior, either — all the court ruling said was say that such behavior wouldn't be illegal if the review site decided to try it.

"...But it is a reminder that Yelp is a massive, publicly traded corporation whose goal is to make money. Yelp is not a public service, as much as we treat it as such sometimes. It is not just like getting a recommendation from a friend, as much as it positions itself that way. We have no rational reason to believe that the company will be 100 percent fair about business ratings and placement just because it seems like the right thing to do.

"Take your Yelp reviews with a grain of salt from now on, as you should have been doing all along."

Deb Gaber