While everyone is buzzing about the new Apple iTunes Affiliate Program I'm sitting here in shock about their choice of implementation partner. Apple is running their store through Linkshare, a company which is generally considered to be the technology and service laggard among affiliate networks. I don't think it would be an exaggeration to say that most affiliates and merchants hate working with Linkshare and greatly prefer CJ.
It's been a couple of years since I dealt directly with LinkShare, so I'll just pose a couple of questions and let all you folks who are excited about the iTunes store figure out the answers for yourselves:
- Does LinkShare have anything resembling a webservice, allowing you to create your own store?
- When Apple says "Link directly from your website to any song, album or artist " does it mean that you can do cool things like link from your Playlist or RSS feed?
- Will you be bitterly disappointedwhen you realize that you have to login to LinkShare, collect a pre-made tag, including a 1x1 pixel, and display it exactly as is on your website in order to get paid?
- Do you think that you will get away with removing the stupid 1x1 pixel?
- Do you think you won't get an email from someone at LinkShare saying that you've defrauded Apple because you're showing lots of sales and clicks but no impressions?
- Do you think the person at LinkShare will listen to intelligent reasoning about this?
- Or that they will return your emails at all?
I'd give the blogosphere 3-4 months before they start howling about how the iTunes store is ripping them off, not reliable, limited, etc. And I thought Apple made its product decisions based on quality!
From my experience they won't harrass you to death about the missing tracking pixels, but maybe I'm just lucky, or maybe Alibris told them to drop the issue (I raised the tracking pixel issue through them last year), or maybe there's not enough money involved in my case that they feel it matters. Whatever, I get checks every month.
Posted by: Olivier Travers on September 2, 2004 3:59 PM
I'm not sure the affiliate relationship with Linkshare can truly be classified under the rubric of "product." I mean, is Apple selling the affiliate relationship for $19.95?
All good points, but I'd consider it a vendor (maybe even partner) relationship, and I certainly don't have any insight as to the quality of all Apple's vendor relationships. I mean, I think Pepsi tastes like ass, but I didn't look down my nose at Apple when they had that Pepsi-iTunes promo. (Although that teenage girl's accent left something to be desired.)
The important issue is: why the hell didn't I hear about this? I'm leavin' money on the table with each unhyperlinked song mention!
Posted by: ANP! on September 11, 2004 3:42 PM
This is Ari Paparo's blog. It generally concerns itself with Internet product development and marketing. 