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On October 5th, 2009 the FTC published and released to the public its final revisions on guides governing endorsements and testimonials.
What does this means for the Bloggers of the world that have affiliate links on their sites?
So, If are promoting a product by endorsing it you will have to state that you get paid by the product owner if purchase is from your affiliate link. quite simply, the viewers on your site will now see that you are affiliated with the products you are promoting because you will now have to state it were they can see it. I will more than likely give it like this, “Thaks for checking this out, just an FYI, if you buy from my link here, I will get a little commission so I’ll just say Thanks in advance. A really good idea to get legal information on this is to Google legal forums and start searching for the right answers on line. I am definitly not a lawyer and have no education in legal counsel. “That’s right, this is a little disclaimer.”
This new ruling goes into effect on Dec. 1st, 2009. This is not a bad thing for those of you that are honest bloggers. What can be bad is if you do not pay close attention to these new rules.
David Goldman, staff writer for CNN Money notes in his article released on October 6th, that the existing rules carry a fine as high as $11,000 if product endorsers and reviewers don’t comply.
Frank Kern did an amazing job writing a post on this subject also. Google him if you don’t already know him. The information in his post is off the hook with tid bits from an attourney he is friends with.
So, do yourself a favor and go to the Federal Trade Commission site and read the entire article.
Personally, I think it is great for bloggers that are truthful and want to give great content to help consumers make informed decision on a purchase. Additionally I think it will cut down on the deception out there and give the consumers a better sense of security and good feelings about buying on line again.
Alrighty then, I’ll see you in the forums!
