I am amazed about the sheer volume of buzz about the new FTC rules that cover paid (or otherwise compensated) blogger endorsements.
Although much of the focus has centered on product reviews, reading through the articles, Tweets and posts shows the range of issues and people potentially effected.
I have had many conversations with Anne Giles Clelland of Handshake 2.0 on the topic. See my previous post on paid blogger plugs, and her post yesterday, which references the website’s legal vetted authenticity policy.
CNET’s article from Monday includes an interview with an FTC official, who emphasizes that the rules will apply to other forms of social media, e.g. Facebook fan pages.
PR Newser has a post on 5 Popular Types of PR Tweets. Number three on the list is “non-disclosure” Tweets:
This is when someone Tweets about some a new product, service, or
campaign, but fails to disclose it’s their client. This now gets a lot
more risky with the new FTC guidelines.
I am coming to the realization that these new rules are jeopardizing the vision many marketers have of monetizing conversations by tapping into users’ social graphs (see my related posts on social graphs, If it Ain’t Social… and How the other Half Networks).
Oh well, off to see my accountant and then shrink, to have some of the only types of monetized conversations that will still be allowable once the new rules take effect in December.
