EDITORIAL: In April 2015, the PP Blog reported that a promo on YouTube put words in the mouth of President Obama and depicted him as a pitchman for MyAdvertisingPays, a cross-border scheme with promoters in common with the alleged Zeek Rewards and TelexFree Ponzi- and pyramid schemes.
“My AdvertisingPays pays its members every 20 minutes,” a mimicked voice of Obama said in the promo. “I highly recommend you to join MyAdvertisingPays.”
Like many things in network marketing, this was reckless beyond measure. MAPS, as it is known, is reminiscent of the AdSurfDaily Ponzi scheme broken up by the U.S. Secret Service in 2008. ASD, sued by some of its own members amid allegations of racketeering and described by the Secret Service as a “criminal enterprise,” thought it prudent to trade on the name of President George W. Bush to drive dollars to its $119 million scam.
It proved to be very imprudent for ASD to suggest a White House vetting and endorsement. The indictment against ASD operator Andy Bowdoin even referenced the bid to dupe members and prospects in this fashion . (Also see: “THE DAY ‘WINK-NOD’ DIED,” from the PP Blog on Dec. 2, 2010.)
MAPS Suddenly Says It Is Withdrawing From United States
After one or more MAPS’ promoters lifted footage of a Presidential address and used technology to put words in Obama’s mouth to help an MLM scheme spread its tentacles, it now has come to pass that MAPS — purportedly led by American Mike Deese of Mississippi via Anguilla, a British overseas territory — says it is pulling out of the United States.
In an announcement dated yesterday and titled “THE MOST IMPORTANT UPDATE EVER RELEASED,” MAPS more than hinted it is not wanted in America: “We are going to focus on the place where we are wanted and are making huge strides,” MAPS said.
That place is Europe, according to MAPS.
“The decision comes on the heels of a declining marketplace in the US for our company.,” MAPS said. “It simply isn’t profitable for us to remain engaged there. Over 90% of our business already comes from Europe, while we are catering to the US members by operating in US currency. It doesn’t make good business sense to continue operating in a place and expending valuable resources in a market that’s steadily declining.”
If MAPS is right — if it’s not wanted in America and if the U.S. market is steadily declining — we take this as good news that suggests MAPS perceives a serious threat from American law enforcement and class-action lawyers interested in suing under the federal RICO (racketeering) statute. Even so, it’s troubling that MAPS apparently sees a welcome mat for itself in Europe.
About 50,000 Spaniards reportedly got sucked into the TelexFree scheme. TelexFree pain, in fact, lingers across Europe and the world. It is possible that it affected 1 million people or more. MAPS currently brags that it has “209805+ Users.”
MAPS also is reminiscent of Banners Broker, another “advertising” program and a bizarre MLM “opportunity” ultimately described in Canada as a criminal enterprise. Among other things, Banners Broker thought it prudent to try to chill critics — like the Zeek Rewards, AdSurfDaily and AdViewGlobal schemes before it. (See Feb. 8, 2014, PP Blog story, “Banners Broker Cultists Rip Play From Zeek, AdSurfDaily, AdViewGlobal HYIP Scambook.”
Like the other “programs,” MAPS now is planting the seed it is lining up people to sue.
From the MAPS Oct. 15 announcement (italics added):
On a different note, it has come to our attention that there exist multiple internet-based avenues being used for defamatory and libelous speech against MAP. Through our research, we have found many, if not all, of these claims to be without merit and simply an attempt by certain individuals to exploit the MAP name in order to heighten the popularity of their own product. MAP has served demand letters upon those individuals who engage in defamatory and slanderous rhetoric, and in anticipation of litigation, has prepared complaints against all such individuals. MAP would like to emphasize and reassure you that their decision to cease operations in the United States is in no way connected to the aforementioned defamation and libel claims.
