this post was submitted on 21 Jan 2025
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Wasn't the issue with honey that the creators were being scammed? They were replacing the codes being used with their own, so that honey was getting the affiliate money and not the creators themselves?
To the end user, the issue would be moot. The users themselves weren't even being impacted, unless they were trying to specifically use the affiliate code to support their favorite creator.
If they realized it was an issue and cut off their sponsorship because it was negatively impacting their own business and not the viewers, they have no reason to tell the viewers about it. On the same note, had they stated their reason publically for discontinuing the partnership and made an erroneous claim which, if you believe GN, they are very likely to do, it could open them up to a lawsuit with honey, and ultimately PayPal, who has a lot more money than a relatively large YouTube entertainment company.
As you said, Linus had claimed that their primary goal is making money. They're a business with over 100 employees, you have a responsibility as a business owner to ensure you can keep paying those people. He also has said that their primary channel creates edutainment and pure entertainment content because it's the only thing that can maintain their viewership at a level high enough to support LMG.
I can't see GN as anything but the annoying, self righteous redditor type who stands on his soapbox claiming everyone else is doing wrong and getting a sense of superiority out of it. Their content isn't anything particularly special, so they have to drum up the view count by creating drama. It's okay to like it, but at least hold them to the same scrutiny you would the channels they call out.
Honeys issues are two fold:
Honey steals/replaces affiliate links/cookies meaning 100% of the commission earned by creators goes to Honey instead.
Several small creators have come out to say this has essentially bankrupt their channels as the entirety of their affiliate revenue just disappears overnight, then their sponsors pullout because it appears they are generating no traffic.
Honey also collude directly with retailers to control exactly what coupons are made available to you, explicitly preventing you from getting a better deal; while telling you they've gotten the best deal possible and convincing you to not even bother with other coupons or other sources. They even have a mechanism to 'submit' coupons they hadn't applied to be distributed to other customers, to convince you you're helping others get a good deal; but those submissions NEVER go to customers.
This happens on every transaction within a browser that has Honey installed; even in cases where Honey knows before trying, that they don't have coupons to offer. It will still popup, tell you they don't have anything to offer, then replace the affiliate connection with their own.
Through this they are stealing both from the customer and from any creators/affiliates that sent that customer to the store.
I briefly fact checked myself before my comment but the first few articles I saw didn't mention the issues beyond creators. Good information and definitely changes my perspective of the overall problem. Thank you!
I know this barely means anything but it really is refreshing to have an interaction with someone who not only treats others respectfully but who is also able to admit they didn't know a part of the story.
It's obviously totally fine if you still don't agree with what I said or have other reasons to dislike GN or prefer LTT, but this type of attitude is precisely one of the things Reddit lost a long time ago.
That's all. Thank you <3