The Affiliate Cookie is Dead!

[Barry-xlovecam]

Sorry, but if you believe in cookies ? you are seriously kidding yourselves.

I am going to estimate, without asserting any verifying fact, that at 1/3 of your payment cookies are being rejected by the modern browsers' private browsing features or the cookies are deleted regularly manually or by some program (window wiper or other).

To make matters worse for you; http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2381650,00.asp

Adobe on Tuesday released Flash Player 10.3 beta, which provides users with greater control over the program's privacy and storage options.

Going forward, users will be able to clear local storage - sometimes known as "Flash cookies" - on versions of Chrome, Internet Explorer, Safari, and Firefox. "Cookies" are little bits of data collected about your Internet activity. They can be useful - like remembering passwords and settings on sites that you surf to frequently - but there are also concerns about targeted advertising and how much data is really collected.

Web cookies can be deleted, but management of cookies inside products like Flash are a bit more complex. Adobe said Tuesday, however, that Flash Player 10.3 Beta "integrates control of local storage with the browser's privacy settings," something the company promised in January.

As a result, "users will have a simpler way to clear local storage from the browser settings interface, similar to how they clear their browser cookies today," Adobe said. (empathsis added.)...

The writing has been on the wall for some time ? now the new flash program will allow users to easily manage their "Flash Cookies (LSO [Local Shared Objects]) Read DELETE or REJECT ....

The walls of the last "cookie refuge" have tumbled down ...



"Paint it Black," RIP

[HarryMuff]

links pulled

[digitaldivas]

yes, the affiliate model is dying a pretty long, drawn out, slow death, unfortunately.

[Barry-xlovecam]

Originally Posted by digitaldivas

yes, the affiliate model is dying a pretty long, drawn out, slow death, unfortunately.

The Affiliate "business model" is not dead or dying ? it is just that the smart sponsors are modifying the terms under which they compensate their business partners ( the affiliate).

I guess the first step is to think of the Affiliate as a "business partner." Offering just cookies for payment does not say that nor cut it anymore.

[blackmonsters]

Well, unless the surfer will change IP address between clicking my link and joining
the pay site, the IP tracking should record my sale.

[FlexxAeon]

i've yet to see a sponsor worth a damn not already have a non-cookie solution

[leg4]

This is why I suggested that AFFILIATE PROGRAMS create a Better/more caring reliationship with their affiliates.

http://www.gofuckyourself.com/showthread.php?t=1011400

[bns666]

fucking up with user's cookies is evident for a longer period of time now...

[BJ]

[CamTraffic]

Originally Posted by Barry-xlovecam

The Affiliate "business model" is not dead or dying ? it is just that the smart sponsors are modifying the terms under which they compensate their business partners ( the affiliate).

I guess the first step is to think of the Affiliate as a "business partner." Offering just cookies for payment does not say that nor cut it anymore.

The affiliate biz model is dying, sorry

[mpisexpi]

affiliate model died! and there is no money in porn for affiliater...

[DangerX !!!]

Oh snap... no more cookies?

[seeandsee]

we need direct tracking, then we need ip tracking and some much better tracking for returning people

[CaptainHowdy]

Originally Posted by digitaldivas

yes, the affiliate model is dying a pretty long, drawn out, slow death, unfortunately.

[Puremeds-J]

I'm sure TMM will stay ahead of the game and keep all your referral sales safe and secure

[just a punk]

Originally Posted by FlexxAeon

i've yet to see a sponsor worth a damn not already have a non-cookie solution

Many sponsors has a non-cookie tracking models. E.g. Royal Cash.

[u-Bob]

Sponsors that track using cookies will enjoy this in the short run because they won't be crediting their affiliates for a big part of the traffic they are sending. However, they will lose a lot of traffic in the long run as their affiliates ratios keep getting worse and worse.

[czarina]

what are systems like Epoch and CCBill doing about this, anyone knows?

[blackmonsters]

Originally Posted by czarina

what are systems like Epoch and CCBill doing about this, anyone knows?

They should be doing nothing since any system that only uses cookies is out of date
by a decade . IP tracking has been around for a long time.
Since the beginning of the internet in fact.

This question comes up all the time and the answer is always the same.

This cookie shit is becoming the new "Birther Movement".

[PR_Glen]

Originally Posted by leg4

This is why I suggested that AFFILIATE PROGRAMS create a Better/more caring reliationship with their affiliates.

http://www.gofuckyourself.com/showthread.php?t=1011400

dude, we have over 30 000 members.. I ASSURE you, we are not going to call you... down right insane to even suggest it...

If you have an issue hit us up.

[ruff]

I doubt people will be using the private browsing feature anymore than rushing out to buy porn on their mobile. Remember the script that strips out the ad banners on web pages? More Chicken Little. Cookies are going to be around for a long time. Tracking by IP, seems like it would work great on mobile devices, eh?

[bns666]

Originally Posted by czarina

what are systems like Epoch and CCBill doing about this, anyone knows?

i heared ccbill is preparing something big for 2035 (right after they done something big in 1990s)

[iamtam]

actually this is good for affiliates. remove cookies from the mix, replace with no-leak tours and proper id passing, and the correct affiliate who sent the traffic will get paid for the traffic. the end of cookie stuffing would be good for the average affiliate.

[pornguy]

Originally Posted by ruff

I doubt people will be using the private browsing feature anymore than rushing out to buy porn on their mobile. Remember the script that strips out the ad banners on web pages? More Chicken Little. Cookies are going to be around for a long time. Tracking by IP, seems like it would work great on mobile devices, eh?

thats one of the tricky things.. They like to turn those things on for you and not really explain what it does.

I recall back in the day AOL was all about setting the parental controls like that. Then one day they hid them to make it harder to switch them off.

[ruff]

Originally Posted by pornguy

thats one of the tricky things.. They like to turn those things on for you and not really explain what it does.

I recall back in the day AOL was all about setting the parental controls like that. Then one day they hid them to make it harder to switch them off.

So far as I'm aware, the major browser require you to enable the privacy feature. A lot of mainstream sites rely on cookies as well. The browsing experience basically sucks with the privacy feature enabled. So I don't see it becoming popular enough to impact my affiliate sales.

[Rochard]

Maybe the pay per click model will come back.... That would be nice.

[cordoba]

Originally Posted by Rochard

Maybe the pay per click model will come back.... That would be nice.

Isn't that tracked by cookies as well?

[ruff]

What would happen to Google without the cookie?

[signupdamnit]

Originally Posted by ruff

So far as I'm aware, the major browser require you to enable the privacy feature. A lot of mainstream sites rely on cookies as well. The browsing experience basically sucks with the privacy feature enabled. So I don't see it becoming popular enough to impact my affiliate sales.

No it won't impact your sales as a sponsor. In fact you will actually gain more sales from your affiliates without having to pay them. Even without cookies you'll still get credit for surfers who join your sites. It's the affiliates who get ripped off.

You say it shouldn't negatively impact your affiliate sales but it definitely will not be having a positive impact on affiliates. Even if the number is 5% that's still 5% more that the affiliate is losing and sending the sponsor for free without compensation. 5% here, 5% there, 5% a year ago, 5% when this browser enables the feature by default etc and before you know it the affiliate is losing 30% of sales sent while the sponsor laughs all the way to the bank with what used to be the affiliate's money.

It's almost like having an account with a bank who will not credit you for any deposits if the last digit of the minute during which the deposit transaction is made is a 1, 2, or 3. This would be considered outrageous and unacceptable. It's time for affiliates to demand some changes.

[ruff]

Originally Posted by signupdamnit

No it won't impact your sales as a sponsor. In fact you will actually gain more sales from your affiliates without having to pay them. Even without cookies you'll still get credit for surfers who join your sites. It's the affiliates who get ripped off.

You say it shouldn't negatively impact your affiliate sales but it definitely will not be having a positive impact on affiliates. Even if the number is 5% that's still 5% more that the affiliate is losing and sending the sponsor for free without compensation. 5% here, 5% there, 5% a year ago, 5% when this browser enables the feature by default etc and before you know it the affiliate is losing 30% of sales sent while the sponsor laughs all the way to the bank with what used to be the affiliate's money.

It's almost like having an account with a bank who will not credit you for any deposits if the last digit of the minute during which the deposit transaction is made is a 1, 2, or 3. This would be considered outrageous and unacceptable. It's time for affiliates to demand some changes.

Well, I won't argue with you about that, without cookies the affiliates definitely will be hurting. To clarify, although I do have a sponsor program, I am derive a great deal of my income from my affiliate sales of others programs. What I think is that it will be insignificant. I don't think there will be a wholesale use of the privacy feature. The people that want to use it are not there in big numbers in my opinion. Try using a browser with the privacy feature enabled for a day or so. It's so utterly inconvenient, that you would switch back as soon as possible. In the corporate environment where you would find users that could use this function, the IT dept has already pretty much made porn inaccessible.

Tracking by IP is no better, obviously that only works with static IP addresses and even those change unless the customer is paying a fee for it. I don't even believe there is static IP addresses for mobile. So when you get down to it, there actually is not a better tracking solution than the cookie. So much Internet commerce relies on it, that until everyone is assigned a permanent IP address, nothing much is going to change.

Just imagine usernames/passwords, I use a ton of them and several programs to manage them. With the privacy feature enabled, I have to remember the user/pass for every single site I go to and, believe me, that is going to get old in a hurry.

[blackmonsters]

[Fat Panda]

ccbill is stuck in the 1990s

[woj]

the flash part is non-news, I don't think any adult sponsor uses "flash cookies" for tracking, do they?

[Markul]

Originally Posted by ruff

Well, I won't argue with you about that, without cookies the affiliates definitely will be hurting. To clarify, although I do have a sponsor program, I am derive a great deal of my income from my affiliate sales of others programs. What I think is that it will be insignificant. I don't think there will be a wholesale use of the privacy feature. The people that want to use it are not there in big numbers in my opinion. Try using a browser with the privacy feature enabled for a day or so. It's so utterly inconvenient, that you would switch back as soon as possible. In the corporate environment where you would find users that could use this function, the IT dept has already pretty much made porn inaccessible.

Tracking by IP is no better, obviously that only works with static IP addresses and even those change unless the customer is paying a fee for it. I don't even believe there is static IP addresses for mobile. So when you get down to it, there actually is not a better tracking solution than the cookie. So much Internet commerce relies on it, that until everyone is assigned a permanent IP address, nothing much is going to change.

Just imagine usernames/passwords, I use a ton of them and several programs to manage them. With the privacy feature enabled, I have to remember the user/pass for every single site I go to and, believe me, that is going to get old in a hurry.

[Barry-xlovecam]

Really now ...

0000000: 00bf 0000 0069 5443 534f 0004 0000 0000  .....iTCSO......
0000010: 0009 7061 7970 616c 4c53 4f00 0000 030b  ..paypalLSO.....
0000020: 746f 6b65 6e06 810d 4c34 4274 6452 505a  token...L4BtdRPZ
0000030: 7933 5350 7531 4d35 6345 7066 3850 4c57  y3SPu1M5cEpf8PLW
0000040: 2d6d 7956 3955 512d 6c37 7968 3334 3572  -myV9UQ-l7yh345r
0000050: 7030 7971 7570 4a33 3253 664a 3379 6938  p0yqupJ32SfJ3yi8
0000060: 2d43 6671 7345 4367 5578 3168 3057 000a  -CfqsECgUx1h0W..

[Barry-xlovecam]

VistaPrint.com;

0000000: 00bf 0000 005f 5443 534f 0004 0000 0000  ....._TCSO......
0000010: 000b 6461 7461 5374 6f72 6167 6500 0000  ..dataStorage...
0000020: 0000 0776 6973 6974 6f72 0200 0c35 3332  ...visitor...532
0000030: 3638 3133 3331 3133 3100 0004 6461 7465  681331131...date
0000040: 0200 2153 6174 2046 6562 2031 3220 3032  ..!Sat Feb 12 02
0000050: 3a30 353a 3438 2047 4d54 2d30 3530 3020  :05:48 GMT-0500 
0000060: 3230 3131 000a                           2011..

I have intentionally selected a few mainstream sites ...
It is not my intention to start a shooting war ...

[2MuchMark]

Not sure, but I think that ADobe is talking about the Cookies stored in Flash, not in the browser. Yes, Flash tracks surfers too.

When you clear your cookies in IE for example, you are clearing your web cookies. Any cookie-like info collected from Flash remains in place when you only clear your web cookies.

Adobe's update announced now makes it easier to clear your flash cookies.

That being said, the affiliate model sucks anyway. Demand for higher and higher commissions and more and more tools and hosted-everything coupled with the fickleness (sp?) of most affiliates make the affiliate model less and less interesting for program owners. It is much cheaper and easier to buy ads these days, and has been for years.

[pornmasta]

omg porn is dead ! again...

[Barry-xlovecam]

I don't think "porn is dead" nor the "affiliate business model" is obsolete. However, I do think that we all need to rethink our marketing strategies realizing the slippage of our affiliate's revenue directly related to our tracking processes.

As far as those sponsors claiming perfect tracking ? make some test buys ... and see ???

[Barry-xlovecam]

I have some good news for our Affiliates and our future Affiliates, with all cookies disabled our PHP sessions will record your affiliate ID and your referred customer account will be tied to your affiliate account for a guaranteed lifetime revshare.

The only time HTTP cookies are needed is for return visits that are type-ins and of referred customers that have not registered. If they use your links the PHP session will capture the ID. If the customer logs in to their account you are credited with any sale.

IP's change (DHCP) and also their U-A (user-agent [browser signature]) can change, I don't consider that a reliable method. Feel free to test this — I did to verify this before posting — PASSED (we checked the database to make sure).

We have followed this PHP session since our Affiliate Program started in 2004 ...

So catch a whale with ACWM.biz and Xlovecam.com
Good Hunting!



Picture taken by us in Maui, HI USA — ? P. K. 2010

We value our Affiliates as respected business partners and strive for an ethical relationship.

[notime]

Recall posting about it in 2009 when it was in the making still.
https://gfy.com/fucking-around-and-business-discussion/938964-eu-opt-installing-cookies.html

[ajrocks]

Cookie monster is stuffing your cookies!

[FlexxAeon]

this thread is funny

[just a punk]

No prob. There are many way to set up a cookie even if user has them disabled. E.g.: http://samy.pl/evercookie/ - the affiliate programs can use this script.

But do they really want it?..

[woj]

Originally Posted by cyberxxx

No prob. There are many way to set up a cookie even if user has them disabled. E.g.: http://samy.pl/evercookie/ - the affiliate programs can use this script.

pretty elite, good stuff

[ShellyCrash]

Originally Posted by FlexxAeon

i've yet to see a sponsor worth a damn not already have a non-cookie solution

[Barry-xlovecam]

Cookies are bullshit ...