Back in February, Google penalized Overstock.com in search results, after the site’s pages had ranked near the top of results for dozens of common searches, such as “vacuum cleaners” and “laptop computers”. The Wall Street Journal exposed the story as …

There is an interesting trend of big brand sites getting busted for gaming Google, and gaining mainstream media attention lately. A couple weeks ago, JCPenney was busted for paid links, then Forbes attracted some similar attention.

Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle has vetoed a bill that would have required online retailers such as Amazon.com and Overstock.com to collect and pay sales tax on their affiliate programs within the state.

Earlier this week both Amazon and Overstock had notified affiliates in the state that they would be ending their programs there due to the new tax requirements.