Pinterest Links

Pinterest just hit the news and not in a good way.

What Affiliates and Merchants should know about Pinterest
Pinterest Modifying User Submitted Pins

Basically, Pinterest are modifying user's submitted pins to add affiliate links. Now monetising links site-wide is fine, if you tell people. Overwriting users' own affiliate links with your own on the other hand, is not. If the user doesn't want this, then they have to go into Pinterest's edit screen and change it - but users haven't been told about it, so they don't know they need to.

I have heard people take the line that if you pin your own unique content, Pinterest can't make funds off it. If you pin a review or upload it, any links will be overwritten, so you can spend time reviewing a product and now get no return for it.

"It's free" isn't a good excuse. So are the Smashwords tools, and the fact there is an embedded affiliate link to cover bandwidth is on the front page of the site!

Having had, on one of my sites, the reference link to the Wall Street Journal article I quoted replaced by a link for the Wall Street film DVD, I'm not a fan of systems like Skimlinks. To me, this would be like writing an article and then finding the links redirected to the owner's sites on the topic.

What really worries me is in the comments for the article here:
Pinterest Links.

Apparently merchants using Skimlinks lose a degree of control over where their affiliate links are placed. Publishers appear to have limited control over which products they are endorsing when Skimlinks highlights words or swaps links.

Not only does this have the copyright implications above - when the link altered is a legally required attribution link - but it means that you don't have full control over what is endorsed on your page. Unless they are offering full insurance in case of legal action over content I would be cautious.

I can put an affiliate link on Wizzley and Squidoo and have it served unaltered. I can put a link on Redgage and get paid for views. I can put a review on Dooyoo or Ciao and get bonuses for ratings. I won't be putting anything on Pinterest - they don't offer me anything.

Me? I'll stick to obvious banners with the ad network name below them so objectionable ones can be reported and removed, and endorsing (with referrals) sites I actually use.