You can't be for sure that is the problem. You could have taken a hit because of something else, like low quality. Believe it or not, that can make a big difference, both ways. If you get a quality bonus it can shoot you to the top. But that's another subject all together.
As far as I can tell, duplicate content is basically exact content HOWEVER what most people don't know is, they think they are being slick by using sponsor content only on their website and renaming it and Google won't know but what they don't know is it only takes 1 person to report that site and if someone else ranks below them in the search engines for the same keyword, and you know that site that is above you is doing that, wouldn't you report them just to make your site go up and theirs go down? Of course you would.
So long story short, let's say you have a nice little website and all you have on there is a bunch of affiliate galleries. Google will punish you like there is no tomorrow for that. I don't care what you rename the files, it won't matter. They know it's affiliate content and that is why you have to make an effort to be TRULY UNIQUE.
I looked at your website - well the link in your signature and seen it's pretty much the same crap as at every other site so as you have your website design right now, of course you are going to be hit for a penalty and rightfully so.
You probably also got a high bounce rate penalty too.
What makes your site unique from the 1400 trillion other sites out there offering the same shit?
Is any of your content unique?
Do you make any effort at all to provide SOMETHING - ANYTHING different and special?
Without meaning to be mean, you are what they call a waste of google space. You are a spammer. Your site has no socially redeeming value in terms of search engine value. You have someone else's content (legally or not doesn't matter to Google) and make some new site with the same content as easily found on 10 bazillion other sites.
And as such you provide the Google surfers nothing new or unique in value and that is very probably what gave you the big hit.
Is there really nothing you can think of that might make your site different and unique? Haven't affiliate content on it's own isn't a automatic dooms day with search engines however having only that crap is. You need to think outside the box and start think of EXTRA things you can do that makes your site different.
Start improving the quality of your site. Start thinking of other things you can offer to your surfers so they will want to hang at your site more and I think you'll start to find you'll do better in the search engines as well.
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