Brand ambassador and referral programs are everywhere, aiming to drive engagement and sales through influencers and loyal fans alike. But last week, Pimax crossed a line, the company publicly admitted. It was discovered the PC VR headset company was secretly aiming to launch a program that offered rewards for verifiably positive forum posts—an ostensible attempt at astroturfing that quickly unraveled.
It all started with Reddit user ‘Mavgaming1’ last week, who leaked a private conversation initiated by Pimax through its official Discord. The proposition was clear: Pimax was looking for users willing to take part in a new Community Engagement Program, which would allow them to collect points to unlock tiered rewards by posting about the company on social media.
The program, which Pimax confirmed with Road to VR to indeed be genuine before being discontinued following the leak, featured everything from $5 Steam gift cards to hundreds of dollars in discounts off future purchases of Pimax hardware. The top reward tier even offered a $1,000 subsidized trip to the company’s Shanghai headquarters.
The only thing selected participants needed to do was type up a verifiably positive post for Reddit “or any other forums you visit,” submit it to Pimax for approval, post it online, and rack up the points. Below is an excerpt from the posting guidelines given to Mavgaming1 via Discord.
Pimax is a sleazy company.