Definitely true!
I heard it a couple of times as well and indeed sometimes observe that accounts with higher reputation / Hive power / connections / followers get indeed big upvotes although their quality isn't always better when compared to newer accounts. Is it because of the higher hp? Maybe. Is it because of another reason, could be as well. Only saying, I don't know it myself. Although I heard it a couple of time that staked hp is important for curators as you mentioned as well.
Thanks to you for the great article! ;D
#freecompliments
Yes. The thing is those accounts have built their network and because most large accounts follow curation trails so they do not necessarily read content when they upvote. New people have to fight for attention through their activities so that active whales will notice them.
Thank you too for your valuable contribution :)