The Japanese Supreme Court has upheld a lower court decision ruling against restaurants that claimed unfair downgrading of their scores on the gourmet site Tabelog.
In a landmark ruling, the Japanese Supreme Court confirmed a reversal that denies the claims of restaurants that their ratings on the popular gourmet review site Tabelog were unjustly lowered. The Supreme Court's first petty bench, led by Chief Judge Tohru Sakai, rejected the appeal from the restaurant owners, affirming a decision from the Tokyo High Court that had already dismissed their case. The ruling confirms the lower court's findings which favored Tabelog's practices, effectively allowing the site to maintain its scoring algorithms that are based on user reviews.
The lawsuit revolved around the changes made to Tabelog's scoring algorithm in May 2019, which the plaintiffs, operating a chain of Korean BBQ restaurants called KollaBo, argued had caused a significant drop in their ratings. Initially, the Tokyo District Court sided with the restaurants, finding that Tabelog's actions amounted to an abuse of dominant position, violating antitrust laws, and ordered substantial damages. However, this ruling was overturned in the subsequent appeal, where the High Court determined that the algorithm's adjustments served a reasonable purpose and did not pose a significant hindrance to the restaurants' competitive standing in the market.
The Supreme Court's decision clarifies the legal standing of gourmet review sites in Japan, particularly regarding the algorithms used for rating restaurants. It sets a precedent that emphasizes the balance between consumer perception and the operational discretion of review platforms like Tabelog. This outcome also raises questions for other businesses that might similarly rely on algorithm-driven evaluations, as it may affect how they address their online reputations in the competitive restaurant industry.
