Big Threat to Affiliate Marketing?

[d33man]

A little law has (almost) been passed in Europe whereby you need explicit consent from your website visitors in order to drop a cookie(s) on their machine.

So for example, if you wished to drop a cookie for your Google Analytics website monitoring, you can only do so with the visitors consent, otherwise you're not allowed to track them. Imagine if most reject it, how will you ever know how many visits you've had? [edit: aside from going back to monitoring server logs.... eeek!]

Ok so now more importantly, when this law takes affect in 2011, does it mean that in order to earn commission from an affiliate link, the customer needs to explicitly agree to the cookie drop? Great news for merchants as it will reduce AM commissions.

BAD NEWS FOR US?

Consent will be required for cookies in Europe | Pinsent Masons LLP

Be keen to here your views unless its just me that is VERY concerned by this EU law...

D

[Travel Pixel]

I've read about this in NMA. It did concern me quite a bit actually and I'd like to hear a range of opinions about it IF it is passed from people on the forum.

Imagine having to ask EVERYTIME a cookie is going to be dropped from the affiliate website to the user's browser. Massive move to CPC?

Eeek

[tomj]

Hmmmm, you'd have thought Googles Attorneys would have been all over this lobbying like crazy already....

[tomj]

I'd imagine a lot of Terms and Conditions with strict Privacy policy disclaimers are going to be needed....

[Dazza30]

Surely the networks are aware of this, and creating contingency plans just incase it does happen

[thebusiness]

Be keen to here your views unless its just me that is VERY concerned by this EU law...

This site uses cookies - if you don't like that then go elsewhere - more details (or words to this effect)?

Wouldn't just putting that on your homepage solve the problem?

[realfun]

So if we put a message saying "This site uses cookies to improve your browsing" of sorts, then they have one again on the merchants site this would work in theory?

RF

[Grockle]

Isn't Pinsent Masons the name that always crops up when somebody receives a threatening letter for having things like obsolete banking links on their site?

[kcheung]

before i got into affiliate marketing i set the privacy settings on my computer to alert me when ever a cookie was placed so i could approve each one...seriously, if that happened and you had to have the users consent each time a cookie was dropped, the internet would come to a stand still.

privacy policies already contain this information in relation to the use of cookies, i really can't see it getting worse than that...though i think the networks ought to be doing more so we're less reliant on what is 'ancient' technology.

[LawyerAffiliate]

Although I agree this is potentially quite damaging to the affiliate business, I think it is a wait and see. Implementation is not due until 26th April 2011 and I would wait to see UK Govt. proposals before getting too worried.

[d33man]

So if we put a message saying "This site uses cookies to improve your browsing" of sorts, then they have one again on the merchants site this would work in theory?

RF

yes! but, for example, my site attracts a number of the 55+ market who are (in general terms) technophobes. Something like this will put people off, thinking that cookies allow websites to 'spy' on what you're doing which in turn makes users think the website can read their personal details etc.

I can imagine a large majority of internet users simply rejecting cookies because they don't know (and don't want to know) what they are.

As someone else mentioned, it could transform AM into a PPC rather than a CPA model

[d33man]

Although I agree this is potentially quite damaging to the affiliate business, I think it is a wait and see. Implementation is not due until 26th April 2011 and I would wait to see UK Govt. proposals before getting too worried.

I think that if I was a Network I would be analysing this right now and looking at plan B, C and D. If I was a merchant and the AM channel was a large factor to my success I would be keeping a keen eye and consulting with my media agencies on the what ifs. And as an Affiliate Marketer I'd want to know the Networks I work with are thinking about this seriously enough in case it does come into effect.

At the end of the day it may come to nothing - better to be prepared?

[findlite]

I wouldn't panic. Everything uses Cookies including Facebook. Hotmail and EwTube

I don't think some berk's in Europe will stop that . Either there will be another way to track stuff or people won't care.... after rejecting cookies you realise just how much of the internet depends on them and switch em back on!

[matty281k]

doesnt affiliate future track without cookies? http://www.affiliatefuture.co.uk/mai...sp?NewsID=3571

[scriptmonkey]

Everything uses Cookies including Facebook. Hotmail and EwTube

Not European sites, therefore, immune from this particular brand of stupidity, however, imagine trying to police this and you will instantly see that its a no-go. No need to panic