Hi, Andy.
First let me introduce myself: My name is Robert, and I’m the product marketing manager for enthusiast graphics at AMD: desktop gaming GPUs, AMD CrossFire, and AMD Eyefinity.
I was reading around the Internet and saw that you’d posted an article regarding a comment I made in a Reddit thread concerning the AMD Advocacy Program. It seems I didn’t adequately capture what I intended, so I hope I can make myself more clear on email. J
The Advocacy Program is an extension of AMD’s preexisting New Product Review Program (NPRP), which sends hardware samples to established websites (like ABT) for the purposes of independent third-party analysis. We hope to make these same inroads with new communication channels, like bloggers, YouTube reviewers and Twitter users, all of whom provide a unique and knowledgeable perspective that could add to the audience of independent reviewers already looking at our products in traditional press outlets. There are dozens of users with extremely large networks, an interest in technology, and no mechanism by which they might have access to open and honestly review a product in the same way that you might be able to as an established journalist.
We demand complete transparency in disclosing product sources, which is an FCC requirement in the US, the jurisdiction of our corporation. That is the same standard to which we hold all reviewers, advocacy program or otherwise.
More personally, I have a zero-tolerance policy for shilling as a 10-year forum moderation vet at another hardware review site. I’ve disclosed my affiliation there. I also disclosed my affiliation on the Reddit thread, as you saw. And I haunt the Overclock.net forums where again my affiliation is public. And on Twitter, where my affiliation is again disclosed. The same is also true for Google+, and Facebook, and any other location in which I might make product recommendations.
I expect the same from everyone in our marketing departments, and so does our legal team. J
Thanks for your time,
Robert
Robert Hallock
Product Marketing Manager
AMD Radeon™ Graphics