SocialSpark has announced that starting today there is an update to Blog Disclosures which now require you to put a statement at the top of the opp disclosing it as a sponsored opportunity. This is in addition to the SocialSpark sponsor image you place at the bottom of the opp, their diagram makes this look like disclosure buns around the meat of the post.

Kudos for SocialSpark for helping bloggers become fully compliant with FTC Guidelines and in no way attempting any sort of transparency. Everyone should proudly disclose when they are sponsored and advertise a product as you are showing the world that your blog is high enough quality that sponsors “WANT” you to feature articles and promote their content.

-Dragon Blogger

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For the first time since 1980 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has revised its guidelines on testimonials and endorsements. Specifically this amendment now includes bloggers and that bloggers must disclose whenever they are compensated either with a free product (freebie) or actual monetary compensation for doing a product review. It doesn’t matter if the product review is favorable or unfavorable you must include the endorsement.

IZEA with strong ethics in the advertiser and blogging community already complies with these standards with its SocialSpark and PayPerPost offerings, other companies have to start complying, but what is unknown is how systems such as PayU2Blog will handle, as the system currently requires no notification at all that a post was sponsored.  Many opportunities on other networks also request that no notification about sponsored post be mentioned as well.

Bloggers can be liable for up to an $11,000 fine for being caught promoting a product without disclosure that they were paid to endorse the product.  So make sure whenever you are accepting blog opportunities that you are complying with these new FTC rules which will go into effect on December 1st 2009.

For more information you can read the full MSNBC Article.

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