Speak Asia launched its revamped website last night, despite missing three self-imposed deadlines for the update. The company's new online presence introduces a shopping portal. This marks a significant shift in its operational focus following prior regulatory scrutiny.
The main addition to the website is this shopping portal, which looks much like the previous site. Speak Asia encourages members to buy electronics here using "rewards points" earned from completing surveys.
Before regulators intervened, Speak Asia operated by generating surveys without actual client commissions. The company paid members using subscription fees from both existing and new members. Participants could earn a small amount, typically $7 to $20 USD per month, by filling out these surveys. But most of Speak Asia's panelist revenue came from recruiting others into the company.
Following regulatory investigations, Speak Asia has attempted to reposition itself as a consumer portal. The new website prominently features something called "Yug."
No operational history for "Yug" in any other global market appears to exist. The only mentions found online are questions from Speak Asia members asking about its identity. Yug appears to be a rebranding of third-party manufactured products, possibly sourced from China or a similar region.
Currently, the Speak Asia website offers only two products for sale. These are a 32-inch LED TV priced at $428 USD and a 22-inch LCD TV for $225 USD.
Both televisions bear the "Yug" brand. Little is known about the product quality or the accuracy of the suggested retail prices. Since these are third-party branded items, Speak Asia could set any price and publish it on their website.
Many other product categories are available for preview, but all are listed as "coming soon." They lack prices or further availability details. Browsing the catalogue often results in server runtime errors, which typically require restarting the session.
Speak Asia now refers to its traditional "surveys" as "ads." This change likely stems from a lack of market interest, despite the company's claims otherwise.
The "why join?" section of the new website claims that Speak Asia members "earn Performance rewards in terms of product referrals, savings on special prices, referral earnings (subscriptions) and surveys (Ad viewing)." Viewing an ad and completing a survey are distinct activities. And the company now presents them as the same.
Many product categories on the site are still listed as 'coming soon,' without prices or availability details.