Yes thats right, multilevel marketing now is set to take on online book and CD sales/reviews. What they say is that Fanista (based in LA) is the first place "that fans can share their opinions and discover new entertainment with a community of like-minded enthusiasts, purchasing products, inviting others to join, and getting rewarded for the value they create". This all sounds well and good, but this isn't your traditional social network/review site. Instead, Fanista is a startup funded entirely by Amway...and you know what that means...pseudo pyramid scheme (not the illegal type, but a gray area none the less).

The Good
Its Amway, there can't possibly be any good in that, right?

Actually/Unfortunately these Multi Level Marketing Schemes work in real life by getting people to think they are going to get rich; by applying the concept to social reviews, where its less of "scheme" and more of a semi-smart way to build user generated content, Fanista may actually be on to something.

The Bad
First off I'm not a fan of Fanista of multilevel marketting plans because it basically encourages you to sell stuff to your friends. This is just morally annoying. Couple this with Amway's bad reputation (they've been sued by multiple governments for fraud) and you've already got a PR problem.

Also considering Fanista has deep pockets, I wasn't at all impressed with their site. In fact, I can only see the top half of any of Fanista's pages, because for some reason the page doesn't scroll down. There are also some other basic user interface problems that made my browsing experience less than ideal.

Conclusion
Fanista is user generated content meets multi level marketing, which seems like a good match (at least from a business standpoint). But, with a more detailed look, one realizes that user generated content is still just barely beyond the early adopter phase. The mass Internet world, just isn't (yet) flocking to get active with adding their opinion online. Yet multi level marketing schemes generally feed on the ignorance of someone wanting to get rich. And at this stage in the game, I don't think the early adopter tech savvy market overlaps all that much with the ignorant guy who falls prey to these pitches and thinks he's going to get rich. Besides even if the market does overlaps, and Fanista become wildly successful, I'd give them a thumbs down on principle alone.

Website: http://www.fanista.com

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