"Plain obvious" is an argument that it's not astroturfing.

It's a link to a blog on the company site, linked by someone whose profile clearly discloses they're CEO of the company.

So, in your opinion plain obvious astroturfing can never be astroturfing?

It's obvious to me because (1) I'm aware of the company, (2) know that there have been issues with their WP entries in the past (and still are, they are essentially marketing copy), and finally (3) because it just so happens that the company is Dutch and I keep an eye on the local eco-system. But it probably wasn't that obvious to you.

These guys have nice tech, but they are working the web in a way that doesn't sit right with me. If you're ok with this then no problem, let's see how you feel when HN and WP are overrun by advertising that masquerades as organic postings.

Correct. I don't think the CEO of Y can ever say "I'm the CEO of Y and here's a link to a blog on Y company website about something related to Y company that I think is worth sharing here" and have it be astro-turfing for Y. It might be advertising or even spamming. It might become too frequent or annoying or otherwise negative.

I follow TTN (and Helium), have a TTN gateway plugged in, and a dozen or so LoRa dev boards sitting around (two are within reach, albeit buried under some dust of recent disuse).

I find the LoRa tech interesting in general and a new RF distance record specifically interesting, whether it's on the TTN blog, the Helium site, on an Andreas Spiess video, or elsewhere. It sounds like you have some relevant history with the company's behavior that is shaping your opinion of their action here. We perceive their action here differently as a result.

But that's the point: they didn't say they were CEO of Y. If you didn't happen to know the name of the CEO and match that to the HN handle there is absolutely nothing either on that page, nor was there in the CEO's HN bio to advise you of those facts.

And that's now fixed for everyone else, possibly directly as a result of your noting it.

Yes, it was.