Pimax Apologizes for Secret Social Media Incentive Program Amid Astroturfing Concerns

Man, brand ambassador gigs are popping up everywhere, aren’t they? Everyone trying to push their stuff through influencers and fans—feels like some sort of social media game show. But get this: Pimax, the PC VR headset folks, kinda tripped over their shoelaces with a wild scheme. They straight-up admitted it. They were trying to sneak in a program to score points for upbeat forum posts. I mean, come on, really?

So here’s how the debacle went down. This Reddit user, ‘Mavgaming1’ or something, blew the whistle. Dude stumbled onto a convo on Pimax’s Discord, of all places. Pimax was rallying folks for some “Community Engagement Program”, basically saying, “Hey, chat us up online, say nice things about us, collect points, and maybe win stuff.” It was kind of like collecting virtual brownie points for swag. Honestly, it sounds like a toddler’s playbook for making friends.

Anyway, Pimax kinda admitted this whole thing was real to Road to VR before they hit the panic button and shut it down. The prizes were all over the place—little gift cards here and discounts there. But the biggie? A $1,000 trip to Shanghai HQ. No joke, right?

All you had to do was draft a glowing post for Reddit or some forum, send it to Pimax for a thumbs-up, post it, and bam—watch the points pour in. Mavgaming1 even shared Pimax’s playbook on how to write these feel-good stories. They suggested stuff like “Your First VR Experience with Pimax” or maybe “Tips for Getting the Best Experience with Pimax”. My first thought? Yeah, sounds like marketing-by-numbers.

And then they tried to make it rain with redeemable points for happy comments on their social posts. The whole thing was like this weird scheme to fake grassroots love for their VR gear—the Crystal Super, Dream Air, and who-knows-what-else they’ve got under the hood.

Pimax later claimed the whole thing was rogue employees going off-script, not an officially backed stunt. Real damage control mode. They said only a handful of messages went out, caught just in time. Personally, it felt like they dodged a legal bullet.

Jaap Grolleman, their comms head (he’s been steering their ship publicity-wise for a while), said something like, “These messages circled under the radar on Discord—oops.” He stressed they never forced anyone to play nice in reviews or press.

But this was a mess. Could’ve been some dicey territory legally, especially with those marketing laws. The FTC is pretty clear: no sneaky pay-for-play reviews without telling folks what’s up. That goes for places like the UK and the EU too—they don’t mess around with that stuff.

Long story short, it was a marketing hiccup Pimax probably didn’t need. Maybe next time they’ll just, you know, let their products do the talking.