Isn’t the first time I talked about FTC(Federal Trade Commission) and how they trying to tax affiliates and internet companies in order to regulate blogging. In a nutshell, the regulation consists of making bloggers disclose any payments, free gifts, or anything they receive because they using blog to promote a company or product.
Here is a piece of the article available at FoxNews.
The FTC said Monday its commissioners voted 4-0 to approve the final Web guidelines, which had been expected. Violating the rules, which take effect Dec. 1, could bring fines up to $11,000 per violation. Bloggers or advertisers also could face injunctions and be ordered to reimburse consumers for financial losses stemming from inappropriate product reviews.
The FTC don’t specific how must disclose a payment as a result within the blog or site. The only thing Rich Cleland(assistant director of the FTC’s advertising practices division) said, is that disclosure must be “clear and conspicuous,” no matter what form it will take.
Of course, these new rules will create new questions such as on how will the FTC regulation affect blogs that using different methods to make money online or most important, how we can specify if a blog has been created just to make money through affiliate programs or other methods.
When Payperpost was launched, they have not required the full disclosure that were sponsored posts, but now does, while Linkworth still allows you to do not disclosure that are sponsored posts.
However, the new regulation start on december 1st, but still there are many points to resolve, in order we can take an immediate action.
