Entries tagged with “affiliate program” from Tools of Change for Publishing
"Amazon Tax" Moves Forward in New York
Mac Slocum
January 14, 2009
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A judge has dismissed lawsuits from Amazon and Overstock.com challenging New York's "Amazon tax," which was enacted last year. From the Associated Press:
The law applies to companies that don't have offices in New York, but have at least one person in the state who works as an online agent -- someone who links to a Web site and receives commissions for related sales.
In this case, "agent" is synonymous with "affiliate." Amazon and other online retailers share a cut of revenue generated by affiliate referrals. If further appeals go against Amazon and, as expected, other states jump on the sales tax bandwagon, affiliate programs of all sorts could take a major hit.
The AP notes that the law applies to "companies that have $10,000 or more in New York sales." There's some confusion around this $10,000 figure -- does it apply to companies that run affiliate programs (e.g. Amazon) and generate $10,000 or more in New York-based sales, or does it refer to affiliates who earn $10,000 through revenue share agreements? According to Law.com, the company that sells the products is held to the $10,000 standard. As such, a company could not skirt the law by cutting off individual New York-based affiliates before they reach $10,000 in referral sales. To avoid collecting New York sales tax altogether, companies would have to limit the combined income from all New York affiliates to less than $10,000.
Watch the YouTube Video, Buy the Product
Mac Slocum
October 8, 2008
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YouTube's Content ID service, something we've covered in the past, gives publishers two options for handling unauthorized videos: the material can be removed from YouTube or it can be turned into advertising/revenue opportunities.
An article in today's New York Times shows which option Google prefers -- Content ID can now be used to associate "click-to-buy" links with video clips:
Music labels could choose to place the e-commerce links next to their own videos or on videos uploaded by users, whose images or soundtrack they identified using YouTube's Content ID system, which allows content owners to find unauthorized material on the site.
Click-to-buy links are shown below the video player on YouTube pages. It's unclear if this functionality will be integrated into videos embedded on external sites since this would require some sort of revenue share between the content owner, YouTube, the retailer and Web sites that publish embedded clips.
Links are currently limited to iTunes and Amazon products and are only viewable by U.S. visitors. YouTube says expansion plans are in the works.
Amazon Challenges New York's "Amazon Tax"
Mac Slocum
May 1, 2008
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As expected, Amazon is challenging New York's recently passed sales tax statute. From Amazon's filed complaint (pdf):
Because some independently operated, New York-based websites post advertisements with links to Amazon and are compensated for these advertisements, Amazon is now presumed to have engaged in "solicitation" under this statue ... despite the fact that Amazon lacks any physical presence in New York and that no solicitation by Amazon actually exists. This presumption is effectively irrebuttable. Accordingly, Amazon seeks a declaratory judgment that the Statute is invalid ...
(Via Shelf Awareness)
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