There has been some discussions about The iPhone App Review charging money for app reviews lately. (http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/03/app-store-payola/).

We got a good review at The iPhone App review, that I got nothing to complain about. The review was well written and we got a very good rating. I didn't have any influence on the review whatsoever; I didn't see it prior to publishing (in fact I only stumbled over it by accident after it was published), I didn't tell the reviewer what to write, and to my knowledge I didn't pay to get a better rating. I was actually quite happy about the review.

All in all I would say that the integrity of the reviews is probably ok, but the apps they review may be biased towards those developers that are willing to pay for a little extra exposure. One of the things that I do find curious though, is that the last 20 or so apps reviewed have a rating of between 5 and 10 on a scale of 1-10... Nothing below 5. Weird.... Well, I suppose all iPhone apps are just above average... of iPhone apps... or something.

Sure, it is not the cleanest way to review apps, but I think it is quite common. For instance, from what I have heard, it is also common practice that, if you want your product to be mentioned in a real (as in paper) magazine, you sponsor an advertisement in the magazine. Of course ads can be quite expensive...

I can also confirm the Wired article. Our payment was sent to Shaun Campell. He told wire: "I have never once sent a request for a fee to a developer to review their app". That seems to be only half the truth since we transferred the money to his Paypal account, although the request didn't come from him. On the other hand Shaun later confirms that they do receive money for "Expedited reviews". That was indeed the wording in the email I got from The Iphone App Review. I don't know how you can say you have never requested money for a review when you admit to charge for *expedited* reviews. I also don't think we really were given any other option.

I've been in touch with a couple of other sites and even a podcaster that also ask money for reviews... No names though. It is really quite a lot more common than people think. Usually, I just ignore them...

... See, the only thing I can say as a developer, is, that unless you just want a review, it isn't worth it. It has absolutely no significant impact on your sales. I thought that since The iPhone App Review is in the top 4 on Google, it would have some impact, but I couldn't tell any change from one day to the next. I even went back to look at the numbers once I saw when the review came out... Everytime we get a review I check the numbers, and every time it is the same... Nothing.

As I see it, there are only two reasons to get the reviews; 1. You can refer to them in marketing material, if people you don't know very well ask about your apps, or if you start discussions with potential partners. 2. You want a little bit more feedback than what you get from the app store reviews that are often limited to one or two words.

So to the developers who wants to make a few extra bucks... Forget the paid reviews. They are absolutely not worth it! Focus on the smaller bloggers -- They will also give you better feedback.