A product ratings & reviews platform is a technology which stores the ratings and reviews that a retailer's user base have posted to rank their satisfaction with the product they have purchased from the retailer. This data is typically moderated either by the platform vendor or the retailer's own staff and then published site. This form of User Generated Content (UGC) is known to have a positive impact on conversion because it helps the customer make a purchase decision based on people's actual use of the product. Other UGC applications include the surfacing of content that is often media posted by customers to social networks of product in use or being worn. The platforms are usually cloud based.