Andrew Chung, our Head of Affiliates on the new EU directive
The current topic on the lips of most affiliate industry experts at the moment is the new EU directive on cookies.
Cookies are small packets of information that are stored on users PC in order track activity and store information about the user.
All major affiliate networks use cookies to track sales and report correctly in order to reward affiliates websites. It’s a fundamental part of the industry’s method of tracking. The major networks do have fail-safes in place such as alternative methods of cookie-less tracking, but cookie tracking has always been a primary method of tracking due to its ease and open use.
The affiliate industry and the behavioural retargeting industry has been keeping an eye on the new directive, keen to see how it unfolds. It could have a major effect on the industries, as behavioural retargeting has embraced affiliate marketing as of late and utilised the channel in order to make behavioural retargeting services low risk to clients, due to the cost per sale nature of the channel.
So far there has been good news; in that it’s now up to the browsers to ensure users have the option to opt out of cookie tracking. We expect most users won’t mind the cookies being active as it makes browsing the internet a more personalised experience.
We’ll need to keep a watching brief. If we do indeed notice a drop in cookie sales tracking, the whole affiliate industry may have to adapt their tracking systems, in order to effectively track sales from affiliate websites and keep the industry moving forward.
Comments