Amazon spent the past several months quietly overhauling its Associates affiliate program, and publishers aren't happy about it. Per Adweek, which spoke with seven publishers and partners, commission rates have been cut sharply, in some categories falling from a premium 10% to just 4% or 5%, while the bonus tiers that let top publishers earn escalating rates have largely disappeared. Isn't this like the 50th fucking time Amazon has screwed over its Associates since the program launched in 1996? Great opportunity for TikTok Shop if you ask me. Amazon never announced any of it; publishers say they found out one-on-one from their account managers, starting in Asia-Pacific late last year and reaching the U.S. around March 9. The pain hasn't been evenly spread either. Publishers who lean on paid media took the worst of it, while those with longstanding editorial ties to Amazon mostly kept better terms. One deal site told Adweek it has since cut its 2026 Amazon revenue projection in half.
