The new rules for affiliates looks to standardise software guidance and clarify industry practices following the PayPal Honey scandal.
A clear, enforceable set of standards are coming for affiliates with an industry-wide code of conduct written by veteran James Little and compliance expert Ben Edelman.
The new rules look to cover “installation disclosures, user consent, stand-down obligations, attribution fairness, and transparency requirements” to create a level playing field for everyone.
This comes after the high-profile controversy surrounding PayPal’s Honey browser extension, which saw three major affiliate networks – Rakuten Advertising, impact.com and Awin – terminate their partnership with the publisher amid fraudulent claims.
The browser extension’s purpose was to automatically apply the best coupons, promo codes, and deals to a consumer’s carts. However, the extension was later exposed for allegedly hijacking affiliate links from creators, bypassing their affiliate revenue, even in cases when there was not a better deal available.
This resulted in a class-action lawsuit from creators and affiliates, who accused Honey of taking affiliate revenue that belonged to them.
The pushback against the extension has forced the industry to re-evaluate its practices and impose a sector-wide standard.
“The past year put a massive spotlight on browser extensions in affiliate marketing, but the real issue wasn’t just a single publisher misbehaving – it was that the rules being operated under were too open to interpretation,” Little told Hello Partner.
“We’ve been working with several networks and platforms to develop something that creates real clarity – clear lines that work across the industry, not just individual network policies that differ from each other.
“We now need all networks, publishers, and agencies contributing to get this right.”
The key objectives of the new standards are: protect user intent, standardise rules, fair attribution, transparency, auditability, and to build industry trust between networks, publishers, advertisers, and consumers.
The code’s website has opened a consultation where readers can comment and discuss the rules to help “shape the final version”. The full set of rules can be found here.
