Pure Leverage is the latest division of Global Virtual Opportunities (GVO) and founder Joel Therien.

Launched in 2009, GVO have launched a number of MLM business opportunities that typically revolve around internet marketing training.

Two of the prior GVO business opportunities that have been reviewed on BehindMLM include HostThenProfit (recruitment driven web hosting) and 7 Minute Workout (retail focused fitness program).

What I’ve observed with GVO opportunities is every so often Therien (photo right) launches a new opportunity, which a loyal team of GVO distributors set about marketing.

Sometimes these opportunities bring new ideas to the table (such as 7 Minute Workout), but from what I’ve seen they’re usually just a rehash of GVO’s internet training and marketing properties, attached to different MLM compensation plans and business models.

Today we take a look at GVO and Therien’s latest offering, Pure Leverage. Read on for a full review. [Continue reading…]

As good an admission as any that there are some serious problems with Herbalife’s current compensation plan and business model, the company announced today that it ‘will more clearly identify the wholesale customers among its 3.2 million distributors from April’.

The big questions?

Will Herbalife actually cut off these wholesale customers from the income opportunity (making them true customers) and will said wholesale customers stick around after being cutoff from earning anything? [Continue reading…]

Last Saturday night I received an out-of-the-blue email from attorney and well-known MLM figure Gerry Nehra.

Somewhat cryptic in nature, Nehra’s email simply stated:

I wish to talk to and email with a person or persons controlling this web site about a recent posting. I am an Attorney specializing in the direct selling industry.

Gerald Nehra

Sending off what I thought would have been obvious given the above email was sent via BehindMLM’s “contact” form, I replied:

I’d be that person, fire away.

-Oz

I didn’t hear anything back on Sunday but yesterday morning Nehra replied, giving me a clearer picture of what it was he wanted to discuss.

A reply that left me scratching my head and wondering just how much due diligence MLM lawyers actually put into the clients they choose to represent. [Continue reading…]

In what was a completely random discovery during my daily MLM industry news and research trawl, a few days ago I stumbled across information indicating that Google might have begun cracking down on Empower Network videos uploaded to YouTube.

Following the banning of one Empower Network affiliate’s YouTube account, a thread on the Google product forums with the ensuing discussion strongly hinting at YouTube specifically targeting Empower Network.

Over the last few days I’ve been looking into the matter more and after further research, turns out this one Empower Network affiliate getting banned from YouTube was just the tip of the iceberg. [Continue reading…]

There is no information on the YourVidaViral website indicating who owns or runs the business.

The YourVidaViral website domain (“yourvidaviral.com”) was registered on the 17th of January 2013, and lists the registrant as “VidaYum c/o Jon-Petter Holen”. A contact address for VidaYum in Vestfold, Norway is also provided.

A visit to the VidaYum website (hosted on the same server as YourVidaViral) does not reveal much, with the website providing little information about the company.

Welcome to VidaYum

Cooking with Monkey Production Corporation was created to help children. By addressing the issues of health and wellness through entertainment, we plan to create a positive difference in an educational manner.

The domain registration information for the VidaYum website (“vidayum.com”) is also set to private.

Cooking With Monkey appears to be an unofficial offshoot of Wealth Masters International, which was launched by Norwegian WMI affiliates after Wealth Masters was banned in Norway.

A February 2012 post on the Norwegian blog “Pharao’s Tomb” provides some additional information on Cooking With Monkey:

With WMI officially banned and the appeal rejected, there is no future for WMI in Norway. Unless you continue the scam covered by another business name.

The concept Cooking with Monkey was created by Fred Tissington, a close business partner of Kip Herriage.

The launch was scheduled to a WMI seminar in Hawaii, and people like Becky Maes and Per Gunnar Hoem are included as advisors. However, the products seem to differ from the WMI product line.

The launch of Vidayum seems to be scheduled to May 2012, a concept based on “Nutrition – Activity – Nature – Family”. A Norwegian Facebook profile is already established, of course without any sign of who is behind the profile.

Tying Jon-Petter Holen into the picture, on his LinkedIn profile Holen credits himself as being an “M3 Master Consultant” at Wealth Masters International:

On Holen’s (photo right) personal website (“jph.no”) he claims that he has “recently retired” and “works with Cooking With Monkey”.

First and foremost my heart is with the company Cooking with Monkey.

This company has created a platform of entertainment for children, while playing they are learning about nutrition, relations and the importance of leading active lives.

Like with Disney, there is a society of fantastic illustrations, massive entertainment, and a number of fantastic characters and personalities.

All of this comes in the shape of videogames, boardgames, cartoons, bedtimestories, catchy music and much more.

Putting two and two together, it would appear that VidaYum is some sort of marketing arm for Cooking With Monkey and either officially or unofficially YourVidaViral is being launched as a separate MLM opportunity, with those involved originating from both Wealth Masters International’s Norwegian Chapter and Cooking With Monkey.

Holen’s exact role within YourVidaViral however is not clear.

Read on for a full review of the YourVidaViral MLM business opportunity. [Continue reading…]

There is no information on the Level 9 App website indicating who owns or runs the business.

The company’s website domain (“l9app.com”) was registered on the 23rd of January 2013 and lists the company “Restart Your Life” as the registrant.

Restart Your Life appears to be a separate MLM company launched in 2011. On their website, Restart Your Life describe themselves as ‘a privately held dietary supplement company‘. Restart Your Life operate out of the US state of South Carolina.

Restart Your Life is headed up by CEO and co-founder Joyce Cordell, however it is unclear whether she is running Level 9 App or not.

The “administrative contact” details for the Level 9 App website domain list an “Olie Clapp”, who is credited on the Restart Your Life website as being the company’s “Chief Information Officer”.

Again, the extent of Clapp’s involvement in Level 9 App is unclear.

Despite the inherent links to Restart Your Life, Level 9 App for now appears to be being offered as an individual MLM opportunity. Read on for a full review. [Continue reading…]

There is no information on the Global Hangout website indicating who owns or runs the business, with the company’s “About Us” page only offering up the following vague paragraph:

Our management team is composed of experienced business leaders and technology developers that have established business protocols that will support the Company’s growth objectives and the products emerging technology while providing world class service.

Global Hangout’s website domain (“globalhangout.com”) was registered on the 15th of November 2012, however the domain registration information is set to private.

As always, if an MLM company is not openly upfront about who is running or owns it, think long and hard about joining and/or handing over any money. [Continue reading…]

Using the old “invest with us, do pointless tasks for us and we’ll pay you a ROI with new investor money each week” business model, it comes as no surprise that authorities in Brazil have launched an investigation into TelexFree.

On the 11th of January the Brazilian Bureau of Consumer Protection (known as Procon), after receiving numerous enquiries about the business and having launched their own investigation, put out a press release (in Portuguese) advising it had ‘detected evidence of crimes‘. [Continue reading…]

These guys know what I have and are terrified and desperate.

Rest assured (Bidify Fraud) will not go offline until there is creditable news reports that all of these guys are headed to jail.

-Albert Liske, former CEO of Bidsson

Just over two weeks ago explosive allegations uploaded with tangible proof began appearing on the “Bidify Fraud” website. The content initially appeared to be published by former Bidsson CEO Albert Liske, which was later confirmed to be true.

In a rush to silence Liske and put a stop to his continued publishing of damning evidence against the business practices of Bidify and Bidsson, Bidify turned to their lawyers over at Thompson Burton who put out a public statement on what they referred to as “mudslinging”.

The statement failed to address any of the specific allegations Liske had made against the company. Instead, dismissing Liske as a “disgruntled executive” and attempting to shift attention away from his claims, the Thompson Burton statement concluded with

Bidify is prepared to fight to protect its business model and user base from false and malicious attacks. By way of litigation, the truth will be revealed about Liske’s true intentions.

Shortly after the publication of the statement, Bidify escalated their efforts to silence Liske (who continued to publish information on Bidify and their in-house business practices) by having Thompson Burton’s Cole Dowsley send him a cease and desist letter.

If Liske didn’t comply with the request, Thompson Burton threatened to “engage in further legal action”.

Liske’s response?

Will I cease and desist? Certainly not! I will not rest until members start receiving refunds from these Criminals.

In fact I welcome the litigation they are threatening and will counter sue them on behalf of all the members who have invested into this scam.

That was on January 29th and true to his statement above, Liske continued to publish insider information against Bidify.

His last post on Bidify Fraud was a pair of amusing YouTube videos poking fun at the Ponzi scheme nature of the company:

The videos were embedded in a Bidify Fraud article on February 4th but were taken down less than 24 hours after. The Bidify Fraud article with the embedded videos was pulled from the site.

In what is obviously the result of an ongoing dialogue between Liske and Bidify following on from Thompson Burton’s cease and desist request, today Liske reneged on his vow above, announcing that Bidify Fraud would be going offline for good.

In an announcement that went live sometime in the last 12 hours, Liske wrote:

On February 11th, Bidify and I reached an amicable resolution.

As part of this resolution, neither party exchanged anything of value. I did not pay them; they did not pay me. We both decided it would be best if we went our separate ways and conducted our businesses accordingly.

I’m hopeful that in time, they’ll continue to honor their commitments to the older affiliates by paying their money back with Bidsson profits.

This website will cease to operate in 72 hours as per the settlement arrangement.

Ruling out a financial settlement, Liske’s cryptic message only fuels the mounting controversy surrounding Bidify and its Bidsson penny auctions. [Continue reading…]

Destination Travel Resorts operates in the MLM travel niche and market a series of third-party travel club memberships.

Destination Travel Resorts do not reveal where they operate out of (company’s website domain registration is set to private) but reveal that they are headed up by CEO Johnny Bolton (photo right).

On his LinkedIn profile, Bolton (crediting himself as “President” of Destination Travel Resorts), lists the company as operating out of the “greater Los Angeles area” in the US.

MLM history wise, Bolton appears to have gotten into the industry with Global Resorts Network, leaving the company in August 2008 to co-found “MOR Vacations”.

MOR Vacations sells “members only resort vacations” and doesn’t appear to be MLM. Bolton left MOR Vacations in January 2010 and joined “Ionways” in May 2010.

Ionways market water ionizers with Bolton serving as Vice-President of sales until May 2011.

On his Destination Travel Resorts company bio, the company states Bolton ‘retired from the business world in 2011‘ and ‘has come out of retirement (to) launch Destination Travel Resorts‘.

Read on for a full review of the Destination Travel Resorts MLM business opportunity. [Continue reading…]