FTC protects you from me

Wednesday, 02 December 2009 | by Pat's Picks

Yes, the advertisements on the site are, in fact, advertising. But I’m supposed to disclose this to you now. Who knows exactly what these FTC guidelines mean, but I’ve started getting notes from companies that advertise on the site that they’re going to “audit” us to make sure we have a disclosure statement.

So, I’ve modified the footer at the bottom of each page to make this really clear.

For your enjoyment and education, the information I suspect you already knew is at the bottom of this post. 

There are only two areas I can think of on PatsPapers.com where a business relationship isn’t obvious. If a story mentions a book, CD or other product that’s sold at Amazon.com, we often include a link in the post. We never choose content based on this relationship, but if you click through the link and buy from Amazon we get a small commission.

The other area is the “Featured Stories” box that appears at the left side of the home page. This space is indicated as “chosen by the sponsor” content. We may have an advertising or reciprocal link arrangement with the sponsor.

The new disclosure statement is as follows:

New FTC guidelines mandate that we disclose seemingly obvious advertising relationships. The advertisements on the site are, in fact, advertisements. Sometimes we are compensated simply for displaying an ad. Other times we are paid “per click” or receive a commission if you make a purchase from the advertiser. We do not accept payment for content and do not choose content based on advertiser relationships, but in cases when a story mentions a specific product we may post an adjacent Amazon.com link or other affiliate link that offers us a commission.