This article explains the Yahoo! Local ratings and reviews system.

Ratings and reviews can help you and other locals make more informed decisions about the businesses, services, landmarks and events in your area. Star ratings provide at-a-glance information about how much other users have liked (or disliked) an item based on a 1 to 5 star scale. Reviews are short summaries written by users and third party professionals and provide details about the good and bad features of each local business or service.