Digital Rule Book
Affiliate Disclosure
Last updated: March 2026 · Published by Marcus Venn · digitalrulebook.blogspot.com
Section 1
What Is an Affiliate Link?
An affiliate link is a tracked URL that identifies Digital Rule Book as the referring source when you visit a third-party website. If you then purchase a product or service, or sign up for a trial, the merchant pays Digital Rule Book a commission. The price you pay is identical to the price you would pay if you visited the merchant's site directly. You are never charged more because of an affiliate link.
Not every link on Digital Rule Book is an affiliate link. The majority of external links are standard reference links to official EU legislative sources, regulatory authority websites, and news publications — none of which carry affiliate relationships.
Section 2
Legal Basis for This Disclosure
This disclosure satisfies the requirements of three separate legal frameworks that apply to Digital Rule Book's readership:
FTC Endorsement Guidelines (United States)
The US Federal Trade Commission requires that material connections between a publisher and a recommended product or service be clearly disclosed. A commission relationship is a material connection. This page, combined with per-article disclosure banners, satisfies that requirement for US-based readers.
EU Consumer Rights Directive and Unfair Commercial Practices Directive
EU law requires that commercial communications — including content where a financial benefit exists — be clearly identifiable as such. Digital Rule Book is based in the Netherlands and publishes content directed at an EU audience. This disclosure satisfies the requirements of EU consumer protection law for all EU-based readers.
ASA CAP Code (United Kingdom)
The UK Advertising Standards Authority requires that affiliate and sponsored content be clearly labelled. For UK-based readers, this disclosure and the per-article banners satisfy that requirement.
Section 3
Affiliate Programmes and Networks
Digital Rule Book may participate in affiliate programmes operated by the following networks and merchants. This list reflects current and anticipated participation and will be updated as new relationships are established.
Affiliate Networks
- Amazon Associates — Product and book recommendations relevant to EU digital regulation and AI tools
- ShareASale — SaaS tools, compliance software, and digital business services
- Awin — EU-based affiliate network covering a broad range of digital business and compliance tools
- Impact.com — Technology and SaaS product partnerships
- PartnerStack — B2B SaaS tools relevant to digital compliance and productivity
Review and Comparison Platforms
- Capterra — Software comparison and review platform
- G2 — B2B software review platform
Product Categories Covered
Affiliate links on Digital Rule Book, where they appear, will relate exclusively to products and services relevant to the site's editorial niche. These include:
- GDPR and EU privacy compliance tools (cookie consent platforms, privacy policy generators, data management tools)
- EU AI Act compliance and risk assessment tools
- Cybersecurity tools relevant to NIS2 compliance
- AI productivity tools for non-technical professionals (writing assistants, research tools, document tools)
- Digital business and legal setup services for EU freelancers and small businesses
- Books, guides, and educational resources on EU digital regulation topics
Section 4
Editorial Independence
This is the most important section on this page.
The existence of an affiliate relationship with a product or service does not influence whether Digital Rule Book covers it, how it is covered, or what conclusions are reached. The following rules govern all editorial decisions on this site:
- No pay-to-play coverage. No merchant, affiliate network, or third party can pay for a positive review, a favourable mention, or coverage of any kind on Digital Rule Book. Editorial decisions are made independently by Marcus Venn.
- Affiliate links follow editorial decisions — they do not drive them. A tool is mentioned in an article because it is genuinely relevant to the analysis. An affiliate link may then be added if a programme exists. The process never works in reverse.
- Negative or mixed assessments are published regardless of affiliate status. If a tool has limitations or weaknesses that are relevant to the reader, those are stated — whether or not an affiliate relationship exists.
- Non-affiliated alternatives are included where they are the better option. If the best tool for the reader does not have an affiliate programme, it is recommended anyway.
- Merchant approval is not required before publication. No product or service mentioned on this site has editorial approval rights, copy approval rights, or any right to review content before it is published.
Section 5
How Affiliate Links Are Identified in Articles
Digital Rule Book uses three disclosure mechanisms to ensure affiliate links are always identifiable:
- Per-article banner. Any article containing one or more affiliate links displays an automated disclosure notice at the top of the article, before the article body begins. This notice states that affiliate links are present and links to this page.
- This page. The footer of every page on Digital Rule Book links to this Affiliate Disclosure page, making the full policy permanently accessible from any page on the site.
- Inline context. Where a recommendation involves a direct commercial relationship, this is stated in the relevant paragraph of the article itself.
Section 6
No Sponsored Content
Digital Rule Book does not currently publish sponsored articles, paid reviews, or advertorial content. All articles published on this site are editorially independent analytical content produced by Marcus Venn without commercial instruction from any third party.
If sponsored content is introduced in the future, it will be clearly and prominently labelled as "Sponsored" at the top of the relevant article, separately from any affiliate disclosure.
Section 7
Data and Tracking
When you click an affiliate link, the affiliate network or merchant may set tracking cookies on your device to attribute the referral. This is standard practice across all affiliate programmes. The data collected is handled by the affiliate network or merchant under their own privacy policy — not by Digital Rule Book.
Digital Rule Book does not receive personal data about you from affiliate transactions. Commission reporting is aggregate and anonymous — it shows that a purchase occurred via a link, not who made the purchase.
For full details of how Digital Rule Book handles data on this site, see the Privacy Policy.
Section 8
Questions
If you have a question about a specific link, a product recommendation, or this policy, please use the Contact page. Marcus Venn reads and responds to all substantive queries personally.
Digital Rule Book · Marcus Venn · Netherlands
digitalrulebook.blogspot.com · Last updated March 2026