Submitted via IRC for chromas
Affiliate Links Are Ruining Gadget Reviews - OneZero
Have you ever seen an article about a gadget that offered to "find you the best price on this product" just by clicking on a link?
This is usually an affiliate link, and it's supposed to be accompanied by text saying that the poster may get a commission, both according to Federal Trade Commission rules (in the United States), and specific program terms. In the case of Amazon, a specific single-line of boilerplate is the only public disclosure members are allowed (See Section Five). Affiliate links aren't simply links to the product's website. Instead, they take you right to a retail outlet, like Amazon.
[...] If you buy a product through one of these links, the shopping site sends a small fee back to the site you came from. Affiliate programs were designed to spread the general reach of online retail. It's an automated machine that places ads all over the internet for Amazon and other stores without their sales departments lifting a finger.
[...] When a critic posts an affiliate link for a product they're reviewing, they're now earning money directly from the sales of the thing you're supposed to trust them to evaluate.
That's a big, obvious ethical issue. And it's created a snowball effect that has fed the rage, elitism, and skepticism already rampant in dedicated online fan communities.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by DavePolaschek on Wednesday December 04 2019, @01:50PM (4 children)
"Are ruining" implies that they’re not completely ruined yet. I think the correct tense would be "have ruined."
(Score: 2) by Coward, Anonymous on Wednesday December 04 2019, @02:06PM (3 children)
But "have ruined" says nothing about the present. Amazon affiliate links are nice because they are so short. This blogger likes them, even though I haven't seen a dime.
(Score: 4, Informative) by DavePolaschek on Wednesday December 04 2019, @02:44PM (1 child)
You can also use ASIN.cc to make short links. No need for affiliate links, last I checked.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 04 2019, @05:58PM
tinyurl too
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 04 2019, @02:45PM
Obligatory lmgtfy link [lmgtfy.com]
Using duckduckgo instead of google, per accepted best practice. [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Wednesday December 04 2019, @11:51PM
Yes, what ethical entanglements a reviewer engages in ought to be disclosed.
The author will readily accept demo units from a company at no cost and cannot see what the problem is with doing that, which actually has a much worse problem: one might then be sent a perfect unit and not a production one.
I've never yet seen a reviewer whose work I've trusted who doesn't come right out and say that they're doing affiliate links and that they'll get a cut of any unit purchased through them. I haven't seen "click here for the best price" style clickbait on a review. Doesn't mean it doesn't exist, just that I haven't been exposed. The sites where I see affiliate links only publish reviews of gear they either like or are putting out factual "spec" information without expressing much opinion about whether the product is "good."
At any rate, if it's honestly disclosed then there is no problem. If it's dishonest then how can you trust the author of the piece's opinion?
This sig for rent.
(Score: 2) by Rosco P. Coltrane on Thursday December 05 2019, @10:32AM
Half of the times the reviewers are shills, and there's one thing you can be sure about the links: you're almost certain to find a better deal elsewhere.