EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

[GnarlyKing]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

It wasn't Youtube then, but didn't Sony get caught doing something similar about the PSP?

[doubledeuceR6]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

Saw this on IGN a couple days ago, to be honest it's not really a surprise to me and I'm not quite sure why some are so shocked by it.

[Knight165]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

It's called advertising.

This is what all companies do. The only reason this is a story is because it's two companies that people that hate right now.

Youtube is as big a promotion vehicle as say ESPN or some of the other networks. Plus it's a lot cheaper.

It's NOT advertising.
If they begin and end the segments with a disclaimer saying...."This is an advertisement"....then yes...
Look in a magazine.....the adverts that are made to look like articles MUST put the disclaimer "advertisement" to distinguish it from an actual article.
(granted....YouTube is not a single media outlet....but that's not the point)
If a company is paying for something to be made...it should have to come with the disclaimer that it is a paid advertisement)

You guys saying "this has been going on for years"...."I thought this was common knowledge" are missing the point.

M.K.
Knight165

[Bruce LeRoy]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

This isn't advertisement, the YouTubers were already advertising their products for free. This is a form of damage control, hey this guy has too many subscribers we can't have him saying bad things about our game, he/she has too much influence. So lets pay them to give false opinions and reviews and pretend like its their own true opinion by hiding the fact that its advertising and they are being paid.

I never trust anybody who never says anything bad about a game especially when the game is obviously bad or has obvious bugs that they conveniently gloss over. Makes me wonder how many big time Madden, Fifa, etc Youtubers sold out.

[KG]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

It's NOT advertising.
If they begin and end the segments with a disclaimer saying...."This is an advertisement"....then yes...
Look in a magazine.....the adverts that are made to look like articles MUST put the disclaimer "advertisement" to distinguish it from an actual article.
(granted....YouTube is not a single media outlet....but that's not the point)
If a company is paying for something to be made...it should have to come with the disclaimer that it is a paid advertisement)

You guys saying "this has been going on for years"...."I thought this was common knowledge" are missing the point.

M.K.
Knight165

My understanding was that they didn't pay for the youtubers to make the video. Only paid them if they included that segment advertisement. I could be wrong though.

[Knight165]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

My understanding was that they didn't pay for the youtubers to make the video. Only paid them if they included that segment advertisement. I could be wrong though.

Well.....
Two things.
1. They do say that they tell all video makers that they must comply with the FTC rules, however they don't say which videos are being compensated for, so there is no way to tell which ones they are paying and if those advert rules are followed...and more importantly IMO....
2. They are being really sneaky in how they choose who gets compensated. Users are compensated AFTER the fact...so, make a video gushing good things about the XBone or game....$$$.....tell the truth.....POSSIBLY....(likely) ....000.

I'm thinking that if they dug a bit deeper.....very few if any of the videos that were compensated had the disclaimer in them.

M.K.
Knight165

[LambertandHam]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

Heard about this on "Address the Sess" on Rev 3 Games last night. I'm unsure how to feel about it, as I'm more into the good/bad of games rather than the systems themselves. As others have said, usually you have many voices for games, even if you favor one Youtube channel over the other.

It reminds me of the video Game Grumps did about the Dead Space 3 early access/demo, where they mocked it and the talking points they were given the entire time.

[mgoblue]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

IMO they're not paying people to say good things about a game, they're paying them to talk about the game...

Any Youtuber isn't going to sell out for that little cash and lie about games....

[Knight165]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

IMO they're not paying people to say good things about a game, they're paying them to talk about the game...

Any Youtuber isn't going to sell out for that little cash and lie about games....

I'm not sure if you are serious or not.......but....(either way)

...and from the article....



Earlier this week it was revealed that Microsoft paid YouTube producers to create video content that promotes the Xbox One, and now it's confirmed that Electronic Arts is operating a similar program. An EA representative confirmed the program, called Ronku, to The Verge after documents detailing its guidelines leaked on noted game forum NeoGAF yesterday.

Under the terms of the program, YouTube producers were paid to publish video content for Battlefield 4 and Need for Speed: Rivals. Each "assignment" had specific objectives, like focusing on in-game activities including taking down an entire skyscraper in Battlefield 4 or crossing the finish line in Need for Speed: Rivals. For Battlefield 4, producers were told not to make videos featuring any glitches they might encounter during gameplay.

Participants in the program could earn $10 per thousand video views from a maximum of three videos. Other games featured in the program were FIFA 14, Madden NFL 25, NHL 14, and Plants vs. Zombies 2, all of which granted payments of $10 per thousand views.

As The Verge points out, the issue here is not EA finding a new way to promote its games, but rather the way in which the company is reportedly going about it. The Federal Trade Commission mandates that endorsers "clearly and conspicuously" inform their audience that they are working on behalf of a company. However, the documents from NeoGAF suggest that producers of EA's Ronku program are barred from making such a disclosure.

"You agree to keep confidential at all times all matters relating to this Agreement and any Assignment including, without limitation, the Details and Compensation listed above," the document supposedly reads.

I'm sorry....but you cannot claim NDA if you are ASKING/PAYING people to talk about your product.
That is just disengenuous.

M.K.
Knight165

[Picci]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

I find it ironic how both Microsoft and EA, one-time leaders in their industry, are now doing this to gain market share. Exclusivity in many ways.

[Bruce LeRoy]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

IMO they're not paying people to say good things about a game, they're paying them to talk about the game...

Any Youtuber isn't going to sell out for that little cash and lie about games....

People already talk about games for free and this program is aimed at YouTubers with 10's of thousands of subscibers. If a video gets 50, 000-100, 000 views thats a nice amount of cash.

[Bruce LeRoy]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

A post on NeoGAF includes screenshots of an "assignment" from Electronic Arts which outlines the guidelines that YouTube channel owners would have to follow in order to be paid. These details include showing footage from specific versions of the game (in the case of Need for Speed Rivals, only PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 footage qualified), not highlighting "major bugs" in commentary (while still allowing "minor glitches in footage" to be shown from Rivals), and not focusing on glitches (in Battlefield 4). Among the other games to be promoted in this way, according to the post, are Madden 25, FIFA 14, NHL 14, and Plants vs. Zombies 2.
According to the rumored images, EA was paying $10 CPM ($10 per 1,000 views) for most games, each with a different view cap: Rivals videos were limited to 6 million, while Battlefield 4 videos were limited to 20 million. That's substantially more than the 1.25 million views the Xbox One campaign was capped at. Considering that was paid at a rate of $3 CPM, there was potentially a great deal more money involved with EA's campaigns than the Machinima-organized Xbox One deal.
Most distressing about these EA campaigns is the fact that YouTube channels involved with them were apparently not allowed to disclose any details regarding them. This was also believed to be the case with the Xbox One arrangement, something which would potentially violate FTC guidelines stipulating that such an arrangement be made public. (It also raises questions about what degree of journalistic integrity, if any, is to be expected from YouTube personalities.) However, Machinima has since claimed it was only the details of the arrangement that were not allowed to be shared, rather than the existence of the deal itself

[mgoblue]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

A post on NeoGAF includes screenshots of an "assignment" from Electronic Arts which outlines the guidelines that YouTube channel owners would have to follow in order to be paid. These details include showing footage from specific versions of the game (in the case of Need for Speed Rivals, only PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 footage qualified), not highlighting "major bugs" in commentary (while still allowing "minor glitches in footage" to be shown from Rivals), and not focusing on glitches (in Battlefield 4). Among the other games to be promoted in this way, according to the post, are Madden 25, FIFA 14, NHL 14, and Plants vs. Zombies 2.
According to the rumored images, EA was paying $10 CPM ($10 per 1,000 views) for most games, each with a different view cap: Rivals videos were limited to 6 million, while Battlefield 4 videos were limited to 20 million. That's substantially more than the 1.25 million views the Xbox One campaign was capped at. Considering that was paid at a rate of $3 CPM, there was potentially a great deal more money involved with EA's campaigns than the Machinima-organized Xbox One deal.
Most distressing about these EA campaigns is the fact that YouTube channels involved with them were apparently not allowed to disclose any details regarding them. This was also believed to be the case with the Xbox One arrangement, something which would potentially violate FTC guidelines stipulating that such an arrangement be made public. (It also raises questions about what degree of journalistic integrity, if any, is to be expected from YouTube personalities.) However, Machinima has since claimed it was only the details of the arrangement that were not allowed to be shared, rather than the existence of the deal itself

I understand more now...

My thoughts were more just that all these people get paid anyways, and if they were to post videos saying "Live is the best game ever OMG" just to get views then their fans will laugh them out of the building.

I still don't see this as fully "paid advertisments" though, more just that they want to encourage people to play that game and post videos...

Either way I really don't care that much, I don't watch machinima videos either way...

[23]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

I understand more now...

My thoughts were more just that all these people get paid anyways, and if they were to post videos saying "Live is the best game ever OMG" just to get views then their fans will laugh them out of the building.

I still don't see this as fully "paid advertisments" though, more just that they want to encourage people to play that game and post videos...

Either way I really don't care that much, I don't watch machinima videos either way...

People on youtube have to monetize their videos and get paid per 1000 views.

They are definitely paying people not to say anything negative about products though. Its not so much someone just giving their honest opinion, just not really giving you the full story and you'll never really know how they feel about it by watching.

[mgoblue]

Re: EA/Microsoft Paying Youtubers for Positive Promotion

People on youtube have to monetize their videos and get paid per 1000 views.

They are definitely paying people not to say anything negative about products though. Its not so much someone just giving their honest opinion, just not really giving you the full story and you'll never really know how they feel about it by watching.

I guess I either just watch Let's Plays where I don't care what they think or videos like Yahtzee and other legit journalists where they wouldn't sell out like that...

I get how this could be annoying though.