1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,000 Picture this. It's the year 2022. You 2 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:10,240 just posted an honest review about a product and then over the next few 3 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:14,240 weeks, your video gets taken down. You get constantly harassed by bots and then 4 00:00:12,400 --> 00:00:18,880 on top of that, the company that made the product threatens to sue you. Sounds 5 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:23,519 pretty unbelievable and dystopian, right? Yep, sure does. And for 6 00:00:21,279 --> 00:00:29,519 HouseFresh, a small independent review site dedicated to testing air purifiers, 7 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:31,519 it's a reality right now. Within a month 8 00:00:29,519 --> 00:00:36,320 of their video review of the Puro Air 240 being posted, they got an anonymous 9 00:00:34,160 --> 00:00:41,920 tip that their review had been put forward as evidence in a pending lawsuit 10 00:00:39,040 --> 00:00:46,879 against Puro Air. Shortly afterward, YouTube pulled down their video and a 11 00:00:44,160 --> 00:00:52,000 legal letter hit their inbox requesting that HouseFresh amends their earlier 12 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:56,640 written review threatening that failing to do so would result in HouseFresh 13 00:00:54,079 --> 00:01:00,559 being taken to court for defamation. Right around this same time, House 14 00:00:58,719 --> 00:01:04,400 posted an outstanding article that we actually discussed on the WAN Show 15 00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:09,760 explaining how Google is killing independent sites like theirs. So, what 16 00:01:06,799 --> 00:01:14,400 is going on here and who is to blame? Is it YouTube for attacking whistleblowers? 17 00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:18,560 Does Piro Air have any legal ground to stand on here? It turns out that this 18 00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:22,880 rabbit hole is a deep one, including lucrative affiliate deals, Google's 19 00:01:20,640 --> 00:01:27,520 algorithm being abused to suppress real reviews, and even a big Chinese company 20 00:01:25,280 --> 00:01:32,799 that is attempting to prevent shipments of Puroair's units that has led our two 21 00:01:30,320 --> 00:01:37,119 players here into a big misunderstanding because we reached out to Pure for 22 00:01:34,560 --> 00:01:41,600 comment. And oh boy, did that raise way more questions than answers. So, it's 23 00:01:39,360 --> 00:01:46,479 time to strap in and dig deep. And who better to help me than there he is, 24 00:01:43,759 --> 00:01:50,560 Danny from HouseFresh. These guys might face more legal complaints for being 25 00:01:48,320 --> 00:01:54,399 here. Sorry about that. But they agreed to travel all the way here and share 26 00:01:52,399 --> 00:01:57,840 their story to help educate consumers and hopefully give other independent 27 00:01:56,320 --> 00:02:03,600 reviewers the benefit of their experience fighting this battle. But 28 00:02:00,079 --> 00:02:06,880 first, I need to battle this segue to 29 00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:08,560 our sponsor. I'll get you segue forum. 30 00:02:06,880 --> 00:02:12,160 Make a statement with their unique rings that contain materials like meteorite 31 00:02:10,239 --> 00:02:17,720 and ethically sourced antlers. Click our link in the description and use code LTT 32 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:17,720 for 20% off. 33 00:02:23,760 --> 00:02:31,280 HouseFresh originally took an interest in the Pure Air240 because the brand 34 00:02:28,560 --> 00:02:36,239 that made it appeared out of seemingly nowhere and yet somehow it was one of 35 00:02:33,680 --> 00:02:41,040 the best selling air purifiers on Amazon in 2023. Their review of it was pretty 36 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:46,080 normal. They discussed that while the product seemed to work fine, it was an 37 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:50,879 awful value when it was sold at $220 because as it turned out, you could find 38 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:57,200 some pretty similar looking devices on Alibaba for around 35 bucks. Well, 4 39 00:02:54,480 --> 00:03:01,680 days later, perhaps coincidentally, their video got bombarded with dislikes 40 00:02:59,680 --> 00:03:05,840 and comments that appeared to originate from Russia, a country that had rarely 41 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:09,280 shown up on their analytics in the past. When we saw the traffic from Russia, we 42 00:03:07,760 --> 00:03:13,280 didn't really understand why because we always publish our reviews in English. 43 00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:17,760 And the down votes just didn't stop. Every day it was 10 down votes. 10 down 44 00:03:15,519 --> 00:03:21,840 votes. And it just carried on. The next development was the anonymous tip that 45 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:27,200 House Fresh's review had been put forward as evidence in a class action 46 00:03:24,159 --> 00:03:29,280 lawsuit against Puroair in California. 47 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:35,040 That was followed 2 days later by the removal of their video from YouTube for 48 00:03:31,840 --> 00:03:36,799 quote counterfeit policy violation. And 49 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:42,159 then three days after that, they received an email from Puroair's lawyers 50 00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:46,640 requesting that HouseFresh amends or remove statements from their written 51 00:03:44,239 --> 00:03:51,440 review. When HouseFresh failed to amend the review, high five, by the way, 52 00:03:49,040 --> 00:03:56,159 Piroair's lawyers sent them a pre-action protocol letter, which is the first step 53 00:03:53,519 --> 00:04:00,799 toward filing a defamation suit. Almost immediately, things went from bad to 54 00:03:58,319 --> 00:04:06,159 worse. One week after they responded to Pureaware, HouseFresh received a DMCA 55 00:04:03,439 --> 00:04:10,239 removal notice and Google preemptively pulled their written review from their 56 00:04:07,599 --> 00:04:16,160 index. What that means is even if you went out of your way to search Puroair 57 00:04:12,640 --> 00:04:17,759 240 househ, it would not show up in your 58 00:04:16,160 --> 00:04:21,680 search results. When we first saw that DMCA notice, that's when we started to 59 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:26,000 worry because YouTube is meant to be our plan B after our site was decimated in 60 00:04:23,759 --> 00:04:29,680 Google search. So, the DMCA rules mean that anyone can make a complaint to 61 00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:34,880 Google and if it matches the automated system, the page is taken out of the 62 00:04:31,840 --> 00:04:36,639 search and you have to make an appeal to 63 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:39,680 have a human look at it, but it takes at least a couple of days for someone to 64 00:04:38,240 --> 00:04:44,479 look at it. Because the system is automated, you can actually hire people 65 00:04:41,600 --> 00:04:48,000 for less than $10 to get any page removed. Our critical review couldn't be 66 00:04:46,400 --> 00:04:52,560 found in Google anymore, and this was a battle we were already dealing with in 67 00:04:49,520 --> 00:04:54,800 the SEO competition. Obviously, that's a 68 00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:59,199 lot to digest and it raises so many questions. Who the heck is Pureaware and 69 00:04:57,360 --> 00:05:02,720 why did Google take the video down and then shadowban a perfectly normal 70 00:05:01,280 --> 00:05:08,800 product review? Let's start with the first part. Pureware and their 240 unit, 71 00:05:06,080 --> 00:05:14,080 which I happen to have right here with me. But since I personally know very 72 00:05:12,000 --> 00:05:21,600 little about what makes an air purifier good or bad, Danny will be helping me. 73 00:05:17,759 --> 00:05:23,600 Oh, he brought the very similar one that 74 00:05:21,600 --> 00:05:28,080 can be purchased factory direct from China. So, oh, we're each going to tear 75 00:05:25,919 --> 00:05:33,360 down one of these with a focus on their differences and uh maybe more 76 00:05:30,639 --> 00:05:39,520 importantly their uh similarities. Step one, hold on, hold on. Step one. 77 00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:43,360 Oh. Oh, no. I think Pure's got a case here, man. That's a completely different 78 00:05:41,440 --> 00:05:46,800 sized outer carton. Breathe with confidence. 99.99% 79 00:05:45,759 --> 00:05:50,720 efficiency. See, I bet you don't have that. I don't have anything. Look at that. You got none here. I'll fix that 80 00:05:49,039 --> 00:05:55,360 for you. Here, hold on. I got you. I got you. 81 00:05:52,880 --> 00:06:00,160 Problems brand air purifier. It's got 99. Fun fact, by the way, this HEPA 14, 82 00:05:58,479 --> 00:06:04,479 that's removed from their website and the Amazon listing. Oh, really? But the 83 00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:08,319 99.99% that's still there? I think that's still there. Oh, okay. Wow. 84 00:06:05,840 --> 00:06:12,080 That's That's 50%. They get 99.99% 85 00:06:10,240 --> 00:06:15,919 50% of the time. This is something I jumped on a call and chatted with 86 00:06:13,440 --> 00:06:20,319 Puroair about both the verification of the HEPA 14 claim, but also why they 87 00:06:18,639 --> 00:06:26,880 removed it from their website. They mentioned that they were actually battling lawsuits and FTC claims done by 88 00:06:24,720 --> 00:06:31,280 a very dominant Chinese competitor, one that often challenges several of Piro's 89 00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:35,039 claims. And because of these claims, they found that from a marketing 90 00:06:32,800 --> 00:06:40,560 perspective, they saw no real benefit from fighting a possibly expensive case 91 00:06:38,080 --> 00:06:45,039 for a term that didn't seem to impact their sales. It kind of does call into 92 00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:48,560 question if they were even using HEPA 14 filters in the first place since all 93 00:06:46,880 --> 00:06:52,880 they should need to do is show their certification for any filter that uses 94 00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:57,600 it. But we kind of know how well the legal system works. So, and it might 95 00:06:55,759 --> 00:07:01,520 seem weird that I add this note here, but I'll be back later to explain a bit 96 00:06:59,599 --> 00:07:05,840 more about why this Chinese competitor actually plays a much bigger role in 97 00:07:03,840 --> 00:07:11,280 this than you might think. Well, you've got BKJ23A 98 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:13,440 and I got BKJ 23A the second. Oh, well, 99 00:07:11,280 --> 00:07:18,479 that's completely different than But I'm sure I have stuff that you don't. Look, 100 00:07:15,039 --> 00:07:20,639 I get $15 off HEPA 14 filters, not to 101 00:07:18,479 --> 00:07:23,840 mention a 2-year limited warranty and user manual. Yeah, I don't have Yeah. 102 00:07:22,240 --> 00:07:28,960 What do you get? You get nothing. Yeah, you really did though. Get absolutely no 103 00:07:26,319 --> 00:07:32,720 manual or anything. No, sadly not. No, no, nothing. So, the Chinese factory 104 00:07:31,199 --> 00:07:37,039 just assumes you're smart enough to figure it out. Oh, I've got some Chinese 105 00:07:34,639 --> 00:07:42,400 words. Oh, yeah. On the bag. Well, that's that says uh do not put over your 106 00:07:40,160 --> 00:07:45,280 head and try to breathe. Oh, wait. Hey, look at that. Yeah, that's totally 107 00:07:43,599 --> 00:07:49,840 different. Mine's black. Yeah, this is white. And mine has the perforations at 108 00:07:48,240 --> 00:07:54,960 the bottom and yours has them at the top. No, it's just upside down. 109 00:07:53,199 --> 00:07:58,720 I can see why you guys thought it might be similar. Oh, well, mine has a sticker 110 00:07:57,360 --> 00:08:03,599 here. Tip it over. I want to I want to have a look here. I want to have a look here. Okay, so we've got a little 111 00:08:01,039 --> 00:08:07,280 honeycomb thing like the sensor. And this is really interesting. There's a 112 00:08:05,199 --> 00:08:12,000 little bit of a flaw in the mold where the plastic flows around these holes. 113 00:08:09,759 --> 00:08:16,240 And you can actually see that it's the same on both of these units. So, not 114 00:08:14,319 --> 00:08:21,680 only is the design extraordinarily similar, they clearly come out of the 115 00:08:18,160 --> 00:08:24,319 exact same mold. And there would be no 116 00:08:21,680 --> 00:08:28,560 reason for two factories to shoot plastics into the same mold, allegedly. 117 00:08:27,039 --> 00:08:33,279 Thank you. Now we're looking at the bottom. See any similarities? 118 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:39,360 Yeah, it seems like the Yeah, the same design basically and the same foot like 119 00:08:35,360 --> 00:08:42,880 the little feet. Ah, yes. You say that, 120 00:08:39,360 --> 00:08:45,040 but can yours do this? 121 00:08:42,880 --> 00:08:49,200 Right. Okay. Well, okay. So, they are both packaged in plastic. Yeah. so that 122 00:08:47,519 --> 00:08:53,680 they don't get used in the fac like in the warehouse. But tell me this, Danny, 123 00:08:51,680 --> 00:08:59,600 if that is your real name. Sounds made up to me. Does yours say pioware on it? 124 00:08:56,720 --> 00:09:04,720 No. No. Nothing. Huh. Otherwise, it looks the same, doesn't it? I just found 125 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:09,680 a difference. This piece right here uses a different mold on these two units. 126 00:09:07,360 --> 00:09:14,080 Wait, no, it probably doesn't. It's probably a large mold that they shoot 127 00:09:12,080 --> 00:09:18,640 plastic into and it makes multiple pieces. So it would be a one in two or a 128 00:09:16,720 --> 00:09:21,600 one in three or a one in four chance of getting the exact same piece. So yeah, 129 00:09:20,480 --> 00:09:25,440 that doesn't prove anything. So we should have bought eight then. Yeah, we should have bought even more. Wait, how 130 00:09:23,680 --> 00:09:30,959 many of these did we buy? You can talk to accounting. 131 00:09:27,519 --> 00:09:33,040 Oh, this has an open unauthorized seal. 132 00:09:30,959 --> 00:09:36,480 No guarantee. Yeah. So one of the things they probably don't want you to see is 133 00:09:34,720 --> 00:09:40,640 that in their original marketing they said they asked scientists from MIT and 134 00:09:38,800 --> 00:09:44,320 Harvard to design it. Oh, so they don't want us to get their technology 135 00:09:42,080 --> 00:09:47,920 potentially. Well, I would like to see their technology. Where's my screwdriver 136 00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:51,040 at? These molds are slightly different, too. Actually, we've got the P13. I 137 00:09:49,920 --> 00:09:58,399 don't know if that this one hasn't got it written on it. And this one has like a bit of texture there. I'm getting very 138 00:09:55,120 --> 00:10:00,560 curious about why they clearly use the 139 00:09:58,399 --> 00:10:05,040 exact same molds for some parts and why they use different molds for others. 140 00:10:02,160 --> 00:10:09,200 These ones use the exact same mold. I'm looking for little imperfections. Like 141 00:10:07,120 --> 00:10:13,279 there's a little blemish right here and that blemish is on this one, too. So, 142 00:10:10,959 --> 00:10:18,240 these are the exact same mold, but these ones are not bizarre. Actually, here's a 143 00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:22,000 theory. This is an early version of the handle for our Noctua edition 144 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:26,880 screwdriver. And you can see there's kind of some swirls. So, when you add 145 00:10:25,120 --> 00:10:30,480 dye to the plastics, even if you're using the same plastic, it can change 146 00:10:28,880 --> 00:10:35,279 the flow characteristics of it a little bit. And also, different colors will 147 00:10:32,959 --> 00:10:38,399 show these kinds of lines more or less than others. Microsoft discovered this 148 00:10:36,720 --> 00:10:41,760 the hard way when they released a white version of the Xbox Series X. They 149 00:10:40,399 --> 00:10:45,839 actually had to completely redesign the mold in order to do that because the 150 00:10:43,920 --> 00:10:50,240 black version hid them, but the white version was covered in little whirls and 151 00:10:47,839 --> 00:10:53,440 little marks. Anyway, my point is that could be a reason why they would use a 152 00:10:51,920 --> 00:10:58,240 different mold for some parts on one versus the other, depending on how it 153 00:10:55,600 --> 00:11:02,320 flows. With that said, they don't seem to care that much about their mold 154 00:10:59,519 --> 00:11:06,079 quality anyway. So, allegedly, okay, now that's going to tell us a lot once Danny 155 00:11:04,160 --> 00:11:12,160 catches up to me here and makes his way to this control PCB. Oh my goodness. How 156 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:16,720 many screws does this take? Ah. Oh my god. It really does look the same, 157 00:11:13,920 --> 00:11:20,640 doesn't it? So, I'm clear. These guys got mad at you for saying that this and 158 00:11:18,640 --> 00:11:26,160 this are seem to be the same thing. Yeah. Allegedly. Allegedly. Allegedly. I 159 00:11:24,240 --> 00:11:30,000 mean, they're the same thing down to the like off-kilter mounting of this 160 00:11:27,839 --> 00:11:35,519 resistor. Okay. But these are going to be totally different. 20 BJ 238. 161 00:11:33,920 --> 00:11:39,279 Mhm. Yeah. Oh, no. That is different. Mine has a totally different QC date. 162 00:11:37,360 --> 00:11:44,000 Yeah. QC is different. So, actually, I don't even know if that's a date. What 163 00:11:40,480 --> 00:11:45,519 What date code would 66 be? Evil one. 164 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:51,839 Well, there's only one reasonable conclusion. After Piroair did all of 165 00:11:47,839 --> 00:11:53,839 that MIT research, this Chinese factory 166 00:11:51,839 --> 00:11:57,519 copied them. That's probably why we got a video removed. Then, seriously, 167 00:11:56,160 --> 00:12:00,720 obviously, this is not how you guys would test an air purifier, right? Just 168 00:11:59,279 --> 00:12:05,200 like ripping it apart immediately. So, how do you test them and make sure that 169 00:12:02,399 --> 00:12:08,240 this is HEA or not HEPA or activated charcoal or, you know, whatever? How do 170 00:12:06,639 --> 00:12:13,200 you tell if it's good? Well, the main thing is just using it. So, we fill our 171 00:12:10,560 --> 00:12:16,959 test room in our home with incense smoke. We fill it up for 30 minutes and 172 00:12:15,360 --> 00:12:21,839 then we track it with a purple air sensor that tracks the level of PM1, 173 00:12:18,720 --> 00:12:23,440 2.5, and 10 and then see how quickly it 174 00:12:21,839 --> 00:12:29,040 takes to to remove it because that's the main reason why you would get an air purifier to see how quick it can remove 175 00:12:27,120 --> 00:12:34,320 these tiny particles from the air. Right. So, it's like a dehippifier 176 00:12:31,440 --> 00:12:38,240 sort of device for your space. Yeah, I suppose. So, sure. Right. And that is 177 00:12:36,560 --> 00:12:43,200 definitely the kind of review that you would want to see when you Google pure 178 00:12:40,000 --> 00:12:45,760 rare 240 reviews. So why did Google pull 179 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:49,600 it? So it might look like there's loads and loads of websites, but it's actually 180 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:53,200 16 companies that dominate the vast majority of search terms that people 181 00:12:51,360 --> 00:12:57,279 search for. That's why you see the same images and even the same recommendations 182 00:12:55,200 --> 00:13:01,440 from different publications owned by the same company. And HouseFresh has more on 183 00:12:59,680 --> 00:13:05,120 their hands these days than just the legal battle with Pureaware. They're 184 00:13:03,200 --> 00:13:09,200 also fighting a search engine battle. Even before their review was removed 185 00:13:07,200 --> 00:13:13,519 from Google's index, they discovered that search terms like best air 186 00:13:11,440 --> 00:13:19,120 purifier, which used to drive significant traffic to their site, just 187 00:13:15,760 --> 00:13:21,279 bring up garbage top 10 air purifiers 188 00:13:19,120 --> 00:13:27,120 articles now. And these are often written by people or AIs that have never 189 00:13:24,720 --> 00:13:31,760 tested or even touched the products that they're recommending. Oh, fun fact, by 190 00:13:29,360 --> 00:13:37,519 the way. I got bamboozled into buying incompatible windshield wiper blades for 191 00:13:33,839 --> 00:13:39,839 my car by just such a list. But Lionus, 192 00:13:37,519 --> 00:13:44,399 you should have known better, right? Well, not necessarily. See, many of the 193 00:13:42,800 --> 00:13:49,360 publishing companies behind these listicles will go out and acquire 194 00:13:47,120 --> 00:13:53,920 trusted websites, ones that Google favors over lesserk known sites. Then 195 00:13:51,920 --> 00:13:59,279 they'll immediately make cuts to expensive things like, you know, product 196 00:13:56,639 --> 00:14:04,399 testing and writers. And then they'll use that brand and profit off of it 197 00:14:01,760 --> 00:14:09,680 until it becomes worthless. Then they move on to the next one. Wait, profit? 198 00:14:06,959 --> 00:14:13,040 Profit? How? Well, these listical sites have affiliate links, the exact same 199 00:14:11,839 --> 00:14:18,480 kind that you would find in the description of our videos. In fact, there's one there right now. You click 200 00:14:16,399 --> 00:14:24,720 our link to private internet access, sign up for a VPN that will mask all of 201 00:14:20,720 --> 00:14:26,079 your uh Linux ISO downloads, and LT gets 202 00:14:24,720 --> 00:14:30,320 a commission. Well, there's nothing inherently wrong with that. But how a 203 00:14:28,480 --> 00:14:34,720 website goes about it can dramatically impact the user experience. On 204 00:14:32,639 --> 00:14:39,199 HouseFresh's page, for instance, they give their honest review, which might 205 00:14:37,199 --> 00:14:43,440 include a recommendation, but often doesn't, and they say, "Hey, if having 206 00:14:41,920 --> 00:14:47,760 heard all of that, you still want to buy it. Here's the link." Well, if you've 207 00:14:45,760 --> 00:14:51,920 ever scrolled through a top 10 listicle, you'll know it goes more like this. Buy 208 00:14:50,320 --> 00:14:55,920 this, please. Buy this one. Buy this, guys. Use my link. These pushy sales 209 00:14:53,839 --> 00:14:59,519 tactics are just the tip of the iceberg, though. According to Househresh, 210 00:14:57,519 --> 00:15:04,880 commissions in the air purifier category are generally around 3%. But in 211 00:15:02,079 --> 00:15:11,120 Puroair's case, they are much higher. How high are they? Wait 212 00:15:08,320 --> 00:15:15,760 percent. If I was an unscrupulous AI listical mill, I would be very 213 00:15:13,040 --> 00:15:21,199 interested in percent commission on a $230 product. But come on, minus. You 214 00:15:19,519 --> 00:15:25,519 might say, people are going to see that high price and just buy something else 215 00:15:23,920 --> 00:15:30,320 on the list, right? Well, you'd think that, but what if everyone was 216 00:15:28,160 --> 00:15:35,199 complicit? What if every item in the damn listicle was selected purely to 217 00:15:33,120 --> 00:15:39,279 maximize commission rather than to maximize air purity? Now, you see the 218 00:15:37,600 --> 00:15:44,399 problem. And you've got to consider the category of product, too. People who are 219 00:15:41,600 --> 00:15:48,000 passionate about blenders, for instance, might immediately know that some random 220 00:15:46,480 --> 00:15:53,199 brand isn't worth it when they can just get a Vitamix at Costco for 400 bucks. 221 00:15:50,880 --> 00:15:59,680 But like, who's passionate about air purifiers? me. 222 00:15:57,279 --> 00:16:04,800 Exactly. So, by strategically selling products in low passion categories, 223 00:16:02,320 --> 00:16:09,839 these brands can mostly stay under the radar of enthusiasts and reviewers and 224 00:16:07,360 --> 00:16:15,040 their high prices can actually create a perception of value for the uninformed 225 00:16:12,720 --> 00:16:20,560 consumer. Then they leverage that perceived brand value and they discount 226 00:16:17,600 --> 00:16:26,399 it creating a perception of savings and a sense of urgency to buy. That is the 227 00:16:23,519 --> 00:16:30,720 playbook that Puriair used to rocket to number one on Amazon. Lucrative 228 00:16:28,639 --> 00:16:34,160 affiliate deals drive recommendations which drive profits which drive 229 00:16:32,399 --> 00:16:39,360 affiliate deals and money printing machine go. 230 00:16:36,480 --> 00:16:43,519 And while yes, it's easy to shame Pure Air since this is the company that has 231 00:16:41,279 --> 00:16:47,360 sued a reviewer. But they are far from the only company that might try these 232 00:16:45,440 --> 00:16:50,800 tactics in order to climb up the rankings ladder. And there's also 233 00:16:48,720 --> 00:16:55,360 nothing inherently wrong with using an offshore factory in order to manufacture 234 00:16:53,120 --> 00:17:00,000 a product for the western market. But using the markup that you make as a way 235 00:16:57,920 --> 00:17:05,760 to leverage your position in the review space, that is not okay. Now you've got 236 00:17:02,880 --> 00:17:10,559 the full picture. Pureaware buys cheap products, sells them at a big markup, 237 00:17:08,319 --> 00:17:15,199 and then leverages their cash to go after negative reviewers with fake 238 00:17:12,720 --> 00:17:19,120 counterfeiting complaints. Luckily, HouseFresh had insurance that helped to 239 00:17:17,039 --> 00:17:22,480 cover some of their legal fees, but they aren't out of the woods yet. Just when 240 00:17:20,720 --> 00:17:26,240 they thought this saga was over, they received notice that their insurance 241 00:17:24,160 --> 00:17:31,280 provider will not renew their coverage if they continue doing reviews. Well, 242 00:17:29,360 --> 00:17:34,880 continue doing they're a reviewer. So, what does that mean? Because this is now 243 00:17:32,880 --> 00:17:38,559 deemed high- risk, our insurance company won't provide us coverage. But we're not 244 00:17:37,039 --> 00:17:43,679 going to stop doing reviews because I think it's important that there's independent voices like ours telling 245 00:17:41,600 --> 00:17:48,720 consumers what works and what doesn't. The good news is there's no legal active 246 00:17:46,000 --> 00:17:52,799 case for the Puro Air240 review, but we're still talking to our lawyers just 247 00:17:50,400 --> 00:17:58,000 in case, which is great. But the thing to remember here is that Purawware and 248 00:17:55,039 --> 00:18:03,600 HouseFresh are just small players in a much bigger game. This impacts everyone. 249 00:18:01,200 --> 00:18:07,440 Even if HouseFresh can get insurance, what can they do about bot brigading or 250 00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:12,320 video takedowns? It's no secret that YouTube's copyright system has been open 251 00:18:09,200 --> 00:18:14,240 for abuse for years. And in many cases, 252 00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:20,080 it takes more time and resources to fight these things than it ends up being 253 00:18:16,240 --> 00:18:22,400 worth, unless you just really care about 254 00:18:20,080 --> 00:18:26,400 air purification. Since we want to continue reviewing air purifiers, we 255 00:18:24,480 --> 00:18:31,360 wanted to review the larger Puro Air 400. But when we sent over questions 256 00:18:28,720 --> 00:18:35,760 that we had, we received an email from their lawyers. Really? 257 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:40,880 After everything that happened, HouseFresh still contacted Pureawware 258 00:18:38,640 --> 00:18:45,280 about their new device, as they should. And Pureware, apparently, having learned 259 00:18:43,039 --> 00:18:50,240 nothing, basically threatened them again, saying, "Stop with your fixation 260 00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:54,400 with Puro Air." Oh, did we reach out to Pureware for this? Yes. Oh, and we're 261 00:18:52,960 --> 00:19:00,880 currently in talks with them. We are in talks. What does that even mean? I'll give an update now. After I jumped on a 262 00:18:58,559 --> 00:19:04,559 call with two higherups, including the CEO at Pureware, I don't necessarily 263 00:19:03,200 --> 00:19:08,400 think that they are the devil in disguise or anything. It's clear that 264 00:19:06,320 --> 00:19:12,240 they just found a way to play the system and gain some ground. But I think many 265 00:19:10,880 --> 00:19:15,600 people would do the same thing if they could. But why does it seem like they 266 00:19:13,919 --> 00:19:20,640 have such a chip on their shoulder for HouseFresh? Well, you remember how I mentioned a Chinese competitor earlier? 267 00:19:19,039 --> 00:19:24,160 It turns out that Purer has been battling a company called Lavoy, a 268 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:28,880 company that makes a variety of home products, including air purifiers. Lavoy 269 00:19:26,799 --> 00:19:34,480 has opened court cases, FTC investigations, and even managed to hold 270 00:19:31,280 --> 00:19:36,240 cargo shipments at ports against Pureair 271 00:19:34,480 --> 00:19:40,640 in order to prevent them from entering the Western market. And from Pure's 272 00:19:38,400 --> 00:19:45,600 perspective, the timing of Dany's negative review about the 240 unit, 273 00:19:43,120 --> 00:19:50,400 along with HouseFresh's positive reviews of some Lavoy units made them suspicious 274 00:19:48,240 --> 00:19:54,799 that Houserfresh is simply just another attack vector. Puro Air still seems 275 00:19:53,039 --> 00:20:00,160 convinced that Houserfresh is in bed with Lavoy. So, we asked Danny to clear 276 00:19:57,200 --> 00:20:05,600 the air and he said, quote, "We have as much of a relationship with Lavoy as we 277 00:20:02,320 --> 00:20:08,160 do with Winx, Coway, Smart Air, Xiai, 278 00:20:05,600 --> 00:20:12,640 Dyson, and many other brands. We have even asked Pure Air to present proof of 279 00:20:10,320 --> 00:20:16,960 this in multiple legal communications, and they never did because there is no 280 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:21,360 proof. It would be like saying that LT is funded by NVIDIA because we reviewed 281 00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:25,760 their graphics cards." Ouch. Danny must read our subreddit. Anyways, none of 282 00:20:23,679 --> 00:20:28,960 that changes the fact that they tried to sue a reviewer. It doesn't matter if 283 00:20:27,679 --> 00:20:33,760 they think it was an attack from a bigger player. And while we never found 284 00:20:31,360 --> 00:20:38,640 solid evidence about who sent the bot brigades and even the DMCA takedown, 285 00:20:36,240 --> 00:20:42,559 that is also not okay for any company to do or abuse. And I think there's some 286 00:20:40,320 --> 00:20:48,080 learnables for YouTube here as well. Any system where you can hire someone as 287 00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:50,559 cheap as 10 bucks to take down a video 288 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:54,400 is a broken system. So, what's the conclusion here then? Well, the good 289 00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:57,760 news is that there is a happy ending to the Househresh story, which we're going 290 00:20:55,600 --> 00:21:02,880 to get into in a bit. But the bad news is that this whole listical affiliate 291 00:20:59,760 --> 00:21:05,200 thing is still 100% a problem. And the 292 00:21:02,880 --> 00:21:09,760 only solution to it is slow, painstaking, one person at a time 293 00:21:07,760 --> 00:21:14,159 education. So, if you have someone in your life that you know trusts these 294 00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:19,440 listical websites, grab a share link to this timestamp to help them identify a 295 00:21:16,480 --> 00:21:24,720 real review versus a clickbait list. Step one. Hey, it's okay to use these 296 00:21:22,400 --> 00:21:29,039 listicles, especially for inspiration, but you should always search up the 297 00:21:26,960 --> 00:21:33,360 individual model numbers somewhere else before you buy, like on Reddit or on 298 00:21:31,520 --> 00:21:38,000 YouTube. Also, you're going to want to read or watch more than one review. 299 00:21:36,320 --> 00:21:42,240 Ideally, more than five. Because the thing is, user reviews can be 300 00:21:39,840 --> 00:21:46,559 manipulated, and media reviews can be manipulated, but it takes a pretty 301 00:21:44,240 --> 00:21:51,360 well-coordinated effort to manipulate everything and bury every negative take 302 00:21:49,039 --> 00:21:55,360 on your product. Step two, look at how hard they're shilling. This might sound 303 00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:58,559 obvious, but if they're pushing the purchase button in front of you before 304 00:21:56,960 --> 00:22:01,440 you've even had a chance to read a single word about the product, maybe 305 00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:05,760 it's time to find someone else who looked into it. A great way to know if 306 00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:10,000 someone has really put in the work is to see if they took their own photos or 307 00:22:07,840 --> 00:22:14,799 collected their own comparative data rather than just listing manufacturer 308 00:22:11,840 --> 00:22:20,159 specs. Finally, step three, do a quick sanity check on who wrote the article. 309 00:22:17,120 --> 00:22:22,240 If it's someone, ideally a real person, 310 00:22:20,159 --> 00:22:26,000 who has built a career on consumer trust and verified testing, I can almost 311 00:22:24,320 --> 00:22:30,559 guarantee you that they'll do a better job than some anonymous entity on a 312 00:22:28,320 --> 00:22:36,240 website that reviews everything on planet Earth. So, the happy ending for 313 00:22:33,039 --> 00:22:37,600 Houser Rush, then it seems like for now 314 00:22:36,240 --> 00:22:42,240 they're out of the woods. We're going to have their channel and their Patreon linked down below, by the way, so you 315 00:22:40,480 --> 00:22:46,159 guys can go and support them. Thanks for listening to us. And if you want to find 316 00:22:44,240 --> 00:22:50,880 out more about HouseFresh, you can now use Google to find us. No one, no matter 317 00:22:49,039 --> 00:22:54,960 how big or how small, should be allowed to be shoved around for speaking the 318 00:22:53,039 --> 00:22:59,679 truth if they're putting in the work to back it up. But what I will shove you 319 00:22:57,039 --> 00:23:03,919 into is the segue to our sponsor, Thorum. In just a week or so, it'll 320 00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:07,440 officially be summer, and that means weddings galore. As you can imagine, 321 00:23:05,679 --> 00:23:10,799 rings are a hot commodity around this time. So why settle for a plain old band 322 00:23:09,360 --> 00:23:15,039 when you can get something extra special? Thorum makes unique rings from 323 00:23:12,720 --> 00:23:19,200 exotic materials like World War II rifle stocks, whiskey barrels, and even 324 00:23:17,200 --> 00:23:23,360 genuine meteorite. Each ring comes with a free silicone activity band and an 325 00:23:21,440 --> 00:23:27,039 American walnut wood ring box. 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