Gambling Affiliate Programs debuts

jetset

RIP Brian
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GAMBLING AFFILIATE PROGRAMS MAKES AN ENTRANCE

65 of the online gambling industry's top programs looking for a better management solution

After weeks of whispers that a major development has been quietly taking place in the affiliate marketing world, an announcement this week introduced what looks likely to be a powerful new force in the affiliate program sector - Gambling Affiliate Programs.

In a news release published at
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the new body was introduced, describing itself as a group of 65 of the online gaming industry's largest operators and gambling affiliate programs that have joined together to collaborate efforts to help ensure the online gaming industry will be managed and networked professionally and effectively going forward.

The reference to professional and network management in the future is being widely interpreted as a reference to the recent and very public ethical questions and corporate power struggles swirling around Casino Affiliate Programs, Affiliate Media Inc., and Effective Media Group. It is known that many programs were dismayed and embarrassed at the manner in which events involving those companies unfolded.

The news release notes that the cooperation of online gambling affiliate programs has always been a topic of interest, and in light of recent industry developments, including "...a fiasco involving one of the major networking and conferencing companies", it has now become critical that action is taken in a proactive manner.

A spokesman for the program said: "Our motive on this collaboration (sic) initiative is to simply ensure that operators, gaming affiliate programs and the affiliates themselves have a resource in place that best represents our needs and those of our affiliates and business partners.

"Accordingly, the goal is to support an entity that is aligned with our interests and will help cultivate our community in a fair and impartial manner including developing business relationships as well as optimizing networking opportunities."

He continued, "In reaching out to the rest of the community, we are actively seeking a solution that will be in the best interest for all parties involved. We are confident that by working collectively we will find a mutually beneficial solution."

Invitations were sent out to most, if not all, operators and gaming affiliate programs to join 'In' the collaboration. Programs that have confirmed their participation to take back control and encourage a fair and regulated gambling industry are:

400 Affiliates

888

Bet365 Affiliates

Betsafe Affiliate Program

Betus Partners

Betway Partners

Bodog Affiliates

BrightShare

Buzzluck Affiliate Program

C-Planet

Commission Account

Commission Warehouse

CWC Affiliates

Earn United

EarnReal

EGO - EGamingOnline

Euro Linx

Euro Partners

Eurobet Affiliates

EuropaPointGroup

Everest Affiliates

Fortune Affiliates

Galacoral

Gaming VC

GamingDollars

GamingPromo

Gnuf

Heaven Affiliates

Income Access

iNetBet Affiliate

Intertops

Ladbrokes

Lion Slots

LuckyAcePartners

Mainstreet Affiliate

Mansion Affiliates

Market-ace

Neogames

Paddy Power

PartnerLogic

Party Partners

PDCAffiliates

Pitbull Partners

PlayShare Partners

PokerStars

Prime Partners

Purple Lounge

Red Flush

ReferBack

ReferIncome

Rewards Affiliates

RomePartners

Roxy Affiliates

RummyRoyal

SportingBet Europe

StanJames

Star Partner

The Bingo Affiliates

TheBingoAffiliates

Thisisvegas Affiliates

Totesportcasino

Tower Affiliates

Unibet Partners

Virgin Games

Wager Profits

The move could represent a serious threat to the continued business prosperity of CAP/AMI and perhaps EMG, representing a new organisation through which affiliate programs and affiliates can exchange views, form a community and get together at conferences. The phrase "take back control and encourage a fair and regulated gambling industry" is especially noteworthy regarding GAP's intentions.

The certification of affiliate programs - a major source of criticism under the CAP/AMI regime - is not specifically referred to in the news release.

The organisation intends to be as transparent as possible, and will be posting updates at
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as the "reunification of a currently scattered and fractured gaming industry" progresses.
 
This is really interesting, I think if there can a set of protocols that all affiliate programs can follow, it would much benefit the industry, it creates long terms growth strategies where players, affiliates, and operators are all happy.

Is this going to take place of CAP, or be run in a different manner than CAP? As well as I wonder how can I get in touch with the coordinator of this program.

Thanks for the info!
:)
 
CAP was a for-profit cash cow that imploded via stupidity, so I don't really consider this a replacement :D

I think (actually I hope) that the organizers of this entity are very aware of the pitfalls of CAP's mistakes, and will advance themselves in a transparent and upfront manner.
 
Well agreed!

If that is the case, I genuinely hope that the process of joining this new program is one with "checks and balances" and not just money. It keeps a set of honesty in the events transparency and validity, and helps give a "value" to the programs logo, which is placed on the operators site.:thumbsup:
 
This is really interesting, I think if there can a set of protocols that all affiliate programs can follow, it would much benefit the industry, it creates long terms growth strategies where players, affiliates, and operators are all happy.

Is this going to take place of CAP, or be run in a different manner than CAP? As well as I wonder how can I get in touch with the coordinator of this program.

Thanks for the info!
:)

I don't have any more info than there is on the link quoted in the story above, Bruce but I would select one of the participating programs and channel your enquiry through them.

It's early days still, but if the programs involved in this have thought things through they will be contacting the affiliates out there - probably through the member programs - to get them on board.

There's still a lot of organising to do to shape this initiative into a full-on practical enterprise imo - but it's a good start.
 
I am in two minds as to whether this is a good thing to be honest. Especially if run and controlled by the operators. Don't get me wrong, I believe affiliates and also the affiliate programs need more than one body/forum to represent them. With the demise of CAP there is only really the GPWA if you discount GuardDog to represent Affiliates.

However my concern is that how can an operator run community have the interests of affiliates first?

Already we are starting to see programs introduce predatory and retroactive changes to their Terms and Conditions. - Affiliate Club being the first within the last week.

What is to stop other programs doing the same if Gambling Affiliate Programs which is run by the programs themselves becomes in time the replacement for CAP?
 
However my concern is that how can an operator run community have the interests of affiliates first?

And who speaks for/represents the players? I agree that affiliates need the same protection from shady programs and predatory terms as players do, but I'm still of the mind that it all goes together hand in hand. An affiliate program can't be "reputable" if the brand it's selling is shady.

I just want to know when someone is going to open an affiliate organization/watchdog site, that puts the player first, or at the very least incorporates what is best for the player into their decision to list/certify an affiliate program? Gambling Wages is a perfect example. No one will EVER convince me that ANY webmaster should ever promote any of the GW casinos, or the related Virtual programs. Gambling Wages will never be an affy program that should be promoted or listed anywhere...until such a time that each and every outstanding player issue has been resolved. I don't care if they pay the affiliates/webmasters top commissions, pay on time every month, have the best terms available and send all their top affiliates on a two week Caribbean vacation every year......the money they pay these affiliates with is STOLEN from players.

*heavy sigh*
 
Excellent points worthy of close attention by the GAP organisers...and this nascent stage in its development is where this sort of inclusiveness can best be achieved by GAP.

Clearly the affiliates and the programs both need each other...and they both prosper from the players.

Perhaps some constructive ideas could be examined here as a guide for those concerned in bringing GAP to a practical reality?
 
And who speaks for/represents the players? I agree that affiliates need the same protection from shady programs and predatory terms as players do, but I'm still of the mind that it all goes together hand in hand. An affiliate program can't be "reputable" if the brand it's selling is shady.

I completely agree with you Pina and unfortunately for every affiliate that put's the players interests first, there are another 10 who follow the money trail first and foremost. You can actually be an ethical affiliate if promoting online gambling is deemed ethical LOL and also make a living from being so. I'd like to think I am proof of this, Simmo is another as is/was Spear to name but two others. But then again we are also players as well.

As for Gambling Wages, I don't feel sorry for any webmaster that promotes their brands and then shouts foul when their affiliate payment isn't made. Which incidentally happens quite frequently. Yet they are listed on the main affiliate community sites. :what:

I was still working for Ladbrokes back in 2004 when I launched Online Casino Reviewer, but I hope to think I have been very selective myself personally as to who I have promoted and who I promote to this day.

The only 'rick' I made in the early days was to do a trial media buy for Traffic Sales and their Playtech Brands such as Casino Tropez. :eek:

However any affiliate worth their salt, visits CasinoMeister and other player boards and gets a handle for which are the good the bad and the ugly. This is why personally I was really pleased Bryan allowed the programs of the accredited casinos listed here to have their own space, whereby they can be contacted.
 
Excellent points worthy of close attention by the GAP organisers...and this nascent stage in its development is where this sort of inclusiveness can best be achieved by GAP.

Clearly the affiliates and the programs both need each other...and they both prosper from the players.

Perhaps some constructive ideas could be examined here as a guide for those concerned in bringing GAP to a practical reality?

Good idea Jetset. I'm always willing to contribute my two cents worth. :laugh:

It seems what I'm finding more and more though....is that "generally", most players don't seem to give a lick about this stuff. I'm very quick to blame shady affiliates for being greedy, etc....but it's becoming painfully obvious that players need to take a more pro-active role in some of this stuff as well, even if it's just voicing an opinion. Players are the lifeblood of the industry, and they should remember that. They need to speak with their pocketbooks as well as their voices. While programs like GW should never be promoted by affiliates, why do players insist on frequenting and depositing to the dirtiest group of casinos on the net? It really has become beyond frustrating for me. It may start with affiliates....but there are tons of well informed players out there, who insist on playing at places like this, EVEN THOUGH THEY KNOW BETTER.

I completely agree with you Pina and unfortunately for every affiliate that put's the players interests first, there are another 10 who follow the money trail first and foremost. You can actually be an ethical affiliate if promoting online gambling is deemed ethical LOL and also make a living from being so. I'd like to think I am proof of this, Simmo is another as is/was Spear to name but two others. But then again we are also players as well.

As for Gambling Wages, I don't feel sorry for any webmaster that promotes their brands and then shouts foul when their affiliate payment isn't made. Which incidentally happens quite frequently. Yet they are listed on the main affiliate community sites. :what:

I was still working for Ladbrokes back in 2004 when I launched Online Casino Reviewer, but I hope to think I have been very selective myself personally as to who I have promoted and who I promote to this day.

The only 'rick' I made in the early days was to do a trial media buy for Traffic Sales and their Playtech Brands such as Casino Tropez. :eek:

However any affiliate worth their salt, visits CasinoMeister and other player boards and gets a handle for which are the good the bad and the ugly. This is why personally I was really pleased Bryan allowed the programs of the accredited casinos listed here to have their own space, whereby they can be contacted.

Totally agree WebZ. And yes, I class you and the Muppet and Spear in the group of good guys, along with some others that I know, and know of. I'll never forget the Jackpot Factory debacle, and that both you and Simmo were two of the first webmasters to blacklist/rogue JPF, along with this site. And Spear was in there fighting tooth and nail as well. That incident goes a long way to prove that you can effect change, when you join together, players and affiliates.

I wasn't an affiliate anymore at the time of the JPF stuff, just a player. But I made so much noise they couldn't ignore me, as did some other players. Imagine if some of the top affiliates got together and just refused to promote programs/casinos that pull shady stuff? Coupled with some action on the part of the player as well? Money is what drives this business, I'm not totally naive. Want the programs and casinos to listen to us? Slow down their influx of cash, and I guarantee they'll take notice.

As to your comment about no sympathy for shady webmasters/affies...couldn't agree more. :thumbsup:

I think it was Lots0 who made a post a while back, about a "pipe dream" and what things would be like in a perfect (online gambling) world. I feel exactly the same way...probably not ever gonna happen, but nice to think about.
 
Hi,

I would like to throw a "plug" here for our friend BB1, He has also opened a fantastic new affilialte site...
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and it is Free For all Affiliate Programs that BB1 approves of. Imagine that Free! It is going to be the most honest and trustworthy new site out there, and i hope you all stop over and visit, say hi, and give him your support. We all now and love steve, and i hope this site is a huge success!

Thanks for letting me "plug away " for bb. lol

Triple777s
 
It seems what I'm finding more and more though....is that "generally", most players don't seem to give a lick about this stuff. I'm very quick to blame shady affiliates for being greedy, etc....but it's becoming painfully obvious that players need to take a more pro-active role in some of this stuff as well, even if it's just voicing an opinion. Players are the lifeblood of the industry, and they should remember that. They need to speak with their pocketbooks as well as their voices. While programs like GW should never be promoted by affiliates, why do players insist on frequenting and depositing to the dirtiest group of casinos on the net? It really has become beyond frustrating for me. It may start with affiliates....but there are tons of well informed players out there, who insist on playing at places like this, EVEN THOUGH THEY KNOW BETTER.

I totally agree with you on this one, Pina! As a player, I find it increasingly hard to understand the repetitiveness of players complaining about the rogues. Why do they keep playing there? With all the good info and sites out there, like Casinomeister, it is unforgivable to be giving your money to rogue casinos. It makes me almost anti-player, to be honest.
 
Hi,

I would like to throw a "plug" here for our friend BB1...
Thanks for letting me "plug away " for bb. lol

Triple777s
Not a good time to throw a in a "plug" - that's called derailing a thread.

You can make announcements of sites like these in either the Webmaster section or "Strictly Commercial". Just make it non-spammy. Thanks!
 
However any affiliate worth their salt, visits CasinoMeister and other player boards and gets a handle for which are the good the bad and the ugly. This is why personally I was really pleased Bryan allowed the programs of the accredited casinos listed here to have their own space, whereby they can be contacted.

I totally agree too, with all you said there Webzcas and I would only add that any affiliate worth their salt has also been a player for a number of years at a lot of the online casinos and they have learned in this time the ins and outs of the good, reputable ones as well as the bad ones and the way their wager requirements work for their bonus coupons and the way their processors work to expedite the players cashouts as well as their deposits.

The good affiliate also knows and can recognize when the casinos customer service department is not quite up to snuff as well and will take the time to get in touch with the casino manager there and let them know so they can hopefully make it better for the next customer.

The good affiliate will also go to bat for their customer when they feel they have been wronged by the casino in one way or the other and will try and help the customer to get rectification on the issue.

And most importantly "The GOOD Affiliate" will not, under any circumstance whatsoever Promote a known Rogued Casino, no matter what!

Another words: The GOOD Affiliate has done their due diligence research on who they are promoting.
 
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I totally agree with you on this one, Pina! As a player, I find it increasingly hard to understand the repetitiveness of players complaining about the rogues. Why do they keep playing there? With all the good info and sites out there, like Casinomeister, it is unforgivable to be giving your money to rogue casinos. It makes me almost anti-player, to be honest.

Spot on Jod, I feel EXACTLY the same way sometimes. I know there are players who really just don't know any better, or who do no research prior to playing, and I'm almost willing to excuse them to a point. But it's the knowledgeable, seasoned players who continue to give these places their money that just blow my mind. Of course, when called on it.....we hear, it's no one's business where they play, or that they've always been paid.

It may be no one's business where you play, but when you post on a public forum how great a Virtual shit hole is, you open yourself up to what comes with it, no apologies. And as far as always being paid...yeah, sure...up to a point. Wait til you hit a jackpot and get shafted up the yazoo. Or....how about the players who DON'T get paid? So as long as you get your money, you don't care that the casino you frequent rips off other players on a regular basis? They are paying you with STOLEN money.

It's all a vicious circle, and like you.....I get just as pissed at stupid players as I do at shady and unethical affiliates/webmasters. Truth be told, there are times I wanna pull my hair out (well, at least the grey ones).

I totally agree too, with all you said there Webzcas and I would only add that any affiliate worth their salt has also been a player for a number of years at a lot of the online casinos and they have learned in this time the ins and outs of the good, reputable ones as well as the bad ones and the way their wager requirements work for their bonus coupons and the way their processors work to expedite the players cashouts as well as their deposits.

The good affiliate also knows and can recognize when the casinos customer service department is not quite up to snuff as well and will take the time to get in touch with the casino manager there and let them know so they can hopefully make it better for the next customer.

The good affiliate will also go to bat for their customer when they feel they have been wronged by the casino in one way or the other and will try and help the customer to get rectification on the issue.

And most importantly "The GOOD Affiliate" will not, under any circumstance whatsoever Promote a known Rogued Casino, no matter what!

Another words: The GOOD Affiliate has done their due diligence research on who they are promoting.

Excellent points all Rob. Honest to God, there should be an affiliate certification process. The way it is now, any Joe Blow can throw up a cheap website, and join any and all affiliate programs in existence. I've often thought that maybe the affy programs should take a bit of responsibility as well....like maybe a vetting of affiliate applications, and/or a pre-screening of the applicant's website(s). Yeah, like that's gonna happen, lol.

I'm sure we all have some great ideas, but this human condition called greed (and sometimes just plain ignorance) comes into play. Too many newbies to this industry look at being an affiliate as some "easy money". They're not interested in the ethical side of things, or the betterment of the industry as a whole, just as most players aren't really interested in anything except do they get paid if they win.

Such potential for this industry...and I keep waiting with bated breath for some real breakthroughs to be made in the ethics/regulation department.

I'll be watching this newest venture closely, and keeping my fingers crossed.
 
I cannot see how such an organization can possibly be in the best interests of affiliates or players.

Compare it to, say, if auto manufacturers worldwide were to form an association. Obviously their primary interest is to increase their own profits. How would they accomplish this? Lower overhead, meaning lower wages for factory workers and possibly lower manufacturing standards.

In such a case, affiliates are the factory workers facing lower wages and players and the end consumer who experiences deflated quality of product.

* * *

On the one hand, it's nice to see affiliate programs and online gambling interests appear interested in industry ethics, and be proactive in forming a group.

On the other hand, it's not hard to see such a large group of affiliate programs coming together to support each other in blanket predatory terms.
 
Honest to God, there should be an affiliate certification process. The way it is now, any Joe Blow can throw up a cheap website, and join any and all affiliate programs in existence. I've often thought that maybe the affy programs should take a bit of responsibility as well....like maybe a vetting of affiliate applications, and/or a pre-screening of the applicant's website(s).

Well, there's one useful suggestion. It's interesting to see the different perspectives posters have of this industry development, especially in light of the calls for programs to withdraw from CAP et al.

It seems to me that that is what the programs are effectively doing here, filling the possible vacuum with a replacement body.

I think the point coming through these posts is that to be truly successful and representative GAP needs to be inclusive in the true sense of the word, with no one faction dominating another.

How to achieve that...or indeed is it achievable at all?

A balanced management team/committee/board from relevant sectors? Independent management ? Maybe something else not yet considered or tried?

Without diminishing its importance, I'd like to get away from the past, individual complaints and obviously essential fundamentals like integrity here and think about constructive, practical ways in which a new outfit like this could be made to work for everyone displaced or disillusioned by the events of the last few weeks.
 
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Regulation, I'll take almost any type of regulation

Hi,

First I would like to make it clear I'm talking from an operators point of view.

I think regulation and unity are great in this newly formed industry. Whether it is in the form of the CAP community, which despite whatever recent events, The COMUNITY (all the wonderful posters, not any particular business) over there has helped in outing the most egregious offenders (888, Cpays, etc) and helped unity affiliates in hard times. I mean no matter what you think of the owners of CAP, it is a thing of beauty when competitors can get together and help each other out (meaning competing affiliates helping each other).

Whether it is GPWA, APCW, Casinomeister, 2+2, therx, etc. No matter what part of the gaming industry (poker, casino, sports, skill, bingo, etc) and no matter what side (affiliates, players, operators); I think unity and pseudo regulation are much better than the alternative.

I remember a quote, from Churchill:

Democracy is the worst form of government except for all those others that have been tried.

And I think self regulation is sorta of this case. I also remember a very old quote that was originally written in Latin:

Who will watch the watchman?



So what I am getting at is... whenever there is money involved, things aren't going to be handled they way it should be. But I think that having this diverse platform of watchmen (Casinomeister, APCW, CAP, GPWA, etc) will allow for the best sort of self regulation, one where the watchmen are watched by the very public they are defending, and if caught in un-ethical behavior, the voters, the people, can vote with their feet.

Now if only politics where that simple :lolup:


Kind Regards,
Nicolas Johnson
RegalAffiliates.com Affiliate Manager
 
Recent events, and the exposure of unethical practises in the affiliate sector, certainly support your contention that the watchmen are in fact being quite effectively watched!

There's no doubting the value of the message boards imo.

Without them and the affy groups the dirty linen at CAP etc may not have been aired.

Are you suggesting, then, that the status quo should continue to pertain? Or is there another and perhaps more organised way of achieving something useful and practical?
 

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