Linus Responds to the Honey Situation

Summary

In this video, the hosts discuss the controversy surrounding the affiliate code ripping practices of Honey, a coupon-finding service owned by PayPal. They reflect on their past partnership with Honey and the reasons they ended the sponsorship due to concerns about affiliate code exploitation. The conversation also addresses broader implications for creators and users, including how Honey’s business practices affected affiliate revenue. While the hosts acknowledge the impact of Honey's actions, they clarify that they were not the only ones aware of the issues and were not the primary source of the story. The video also touches on the challenges of addressing such issues with large companies.

Takeaways

• 😀 The creators were initially aware of Honey's affiliate code ripping but did not realize the full extent of its negative impact on users until later.
• 😀 Honey's affiliate code ripping primarily affected content creators by depriving them of earned affiliate revenue, not regular users.
• 😀 The creators dropped Honey as a sponsor three years ago due to its unethical practices, particularly the affiliate code ripping.
• 😀 Honey assured the creators that it did not engage in link yoinking, which led them to work with Karma as a sponsor for a brief time.
• 😀 The creators didn't feel that Honey's issues were big enough to warrant a major video or public outcry at the time they dropped them.
• 😀 The creators were not the only ones to drop Honey; many other companies in the industry ceased working with Honey around the same time.
• 😀 There was confusion about why the creators were prominently featured in Mega Leg’s video, as they weren’t the only ones who knew about Honey’s problems.
• 😀 The creators stress that their decision to drop Honey was publicly communicated through their forum, and it wasn't an effort to hide the issue.
• 😀 The creators differentiate between Honey’s affiliate code ripping and more serious user privacy violations from other companies, like Yui.
• 😀 The creators expressed surprise at how much attention their involvement in the Honey situation has received, considering it was already being discussed by others.
• 😀 The use of the creators' likeness by companies like Yui and Honey for marketing remains a challenge to resolve, especially with international companies.

Q & A

What issue led to the creators dropping their Honey sponsorship three years ago?

The creators decided to drop their Honey sponsorship after discovering Honey's affiliate code ripping practice, which negatively affected other creators by redirecting affiliate revenue away from them. This issue was already known at the time and was publicly discussed by others.

How did the creators respond to the affiliate code ripping practice when they first became aware of it?

The creators initially heard about the affiliate code ripping from tweets and forum discussions. They did not consider it a significant issue for consumers but recognized it as harmful to creators, leading them to discontinue their sponsorship with Honey.

What other issues related to Honey were discussed in Mega leg's video that the creators weren't aware of at the time?

Mega leg's video highlighted other problematic practices by Honey, such as not providing the best deals to users due to behind-the-scenes partnerships. The creators were unaware of these issues when they dropped Honey, but they expressed concern that these issues weren't brought to their attention sooner.

What was the creators' reaction to Mega leg's video?

The creators expressed surprise at the emphasis on their involvement, stating they were only aware of the affiliate code ripping issue when they dropped Honey. They also clarified that other creators and companies had already stopped working with Honey by 2020-2021, not just them.

How did the creators view their responsibility in informing the public about Honey's practices?

The creators emphasized that they were not the only ones aware of Honey's practices and had acted based on public information. They posted about their decision to drop Honey on their forum, making it clear to their audience that they were no longer working with the company.

What comparison was made between Honey's situation and the Yui incident?

The creators pointed out that while Honey's practices were problematic, they were not as immediately damaging as Yui's issues, which involved major user privacy concerns. They noted that Honey's practices were more insidious but not as immediately harmful as Yui's breaches.

What assurances did the creators receive from Karma before working with them?

The creators were assured by Karma that they did not engage in link yoinking, a practice where affiliate links are redirected without consent. After testing this, the creators found no evidence of such practices, which led them to work with Karma on a few sponsorships.

Why did the creators not make a video about Honey's affiliate code ripping issue earlier?

The creators believed the issue was already being covered widely by others in the industry, and as a result, they felt it was not their responsibility to make a separate video about it. They were more focused on their direct experience and did not think it was worth creating a full video about the issue.

What impact did Honey's affiliate code ripping have on creators' revenue?

Honey's affiliate code ripping negatively impacted creators by redirecting their affiliate revenue, which directly harmed their business. The creators mentioned that in 2020, Amazon affiliate revenue accounted for 7% of their revenue, and this issue likely affected many other creators as well.

How did the creators feel about their involvement in the broader discussion of Honey's practices?

The creators seemed confused and frustrated about their prominent role in the discussion, as they did not see themselves as the primary focus. They felt that Honey's problems were already being widely discussed, and that they had acted responsibly by ending their sponsorship when they learned of the affiliate ripping practice.