does Jelsoft/IB skim off of skimlinks?

[64North]

I noticed that for Google Adsense it specifically states that:
100% of the revenue generated by advertising on your site will be issued to your Google AdSense account.
There is no such note under the Skimlinks integration description at http://members.vbulletin.com/skimlinks.php so my question is:

Does Jelsoft/IB skim off of the skimlinks revenue in such a way that not 100% of the revenue earned by the board operator is actually paid out to the operator?

[vbresults]

I noticed that for Google Adsense it specifically states that:

There is no such note under the Skimlinks integration description at http://members.vbulletin.com/skimlinks.php so my question is:

Does Jelsoft/IB skim off of the skimlinks revenue in such a way that not 100% of the revenue earned by the board operator is actually paid out to the operator?

Good eye. Who knows?

[doctorsexy]

I noticed that for Google Adsense it specifically states that:

100% of the revenue generated by advertising on your site will be issued to your Google AdSense account.

There is no such note under the Skimlinks integration description at http://members.vbulletin.com/skimlinks.php so my question is:

Does Jelsoft/IB skim off of the skimlinks revenue in such a way that not 100% of the revenue earned by the board operator is actually paid out to the operator?

Who knows indeed...

[BirdOPrey5]

No they do not. They do not even know how much your forum earns.

This was explained when it was released:
https://www.vbulletin.com/forum/entry.php/2454-vBulletin-4-1-2-with-Skimlinks

In fact....
es. If you stay on the program for 6 months, as thanks for joining up through vBulletin, Skimlinks will add an additional 5% to your earnings to date for this first 6 month period only.

[64North]

No they do not. They do not even know how much your forum earns.

This was explained when it was released:
https://www.vbulletin.com/forum/entry.php/2454-vBulletin-4-1-2-with-Skimlinks

In fact....
Actually, that very same post shows that IB does earn off of "my" skimlinks.

Does vBulletin earn anything from me integrating with Skimlinks?
Yes, vBulletin does earn something from this. We cannot disclose more info because of contractual obligations. However the main benefit to customers is another option to help earn money from your site without costing you a cent.

Does this mean vBulletin takes some of my commission away?
We do not. Integrating through vBulletin actually provides you with a greater level of commission due to the agreement we have been able to strike with Skimlinks.

So really what happens here is that if I were out on my own I would get 100% of the skimlink revenue. Due to the volume discount IB struck with Skimlinks I would now ordinarily get 115%, except IB keeps X% and I still receive more than the 100% I would ordinarily receive.

While technically IB doesn't skim off of my skimlinks in terms of the payout I receive, they do skim off of the skimlinks because that it exactly how IB gets paid.

If I were I paid user I would say screw that and implement my own viglinks instead.

Obfuscation is never a good policy. Just put in the http://members.vbulletin.com/skimlinks.php page that IB makes money off of this and then let the users decide whether they are comfortable. Just because a user makes more money than they would have being out there by themselves doesn't mean that they are comfortable with generating revenue for IB.

[BirdOPrey5]

Your questions was:

Does Jelsoft/IB skim off of the skimlinks revenue in such a way that not 100% of the revenue earned by the board operator is actually paid out to the operator?

The answer to that is NO.

Do they earn something for "referring you" - they admit that is YES.

But it doesn't take any of the money you would have earned had you signed up on your own.

In fact that is exactly how Skimlinks works themselves, you refer people to amazon and you get a little money when they make a purchase- it doesn't cost them any more.

If you refer people to skimlinks you make money too.

Viglinks is going to be in VB5...

It doesn't matter to me which of them you use, or if you use any at all- but the answer to your original question remains no.

[vbresults]

The issue/concern for you isn't so much that you are generating revenue for IB (you'd have a vB license), but rather that you want to be certain you are getting the better deal in the relationship (even if you are getting more than you would alone), and if you don't feel you are coming out on top, you'd prefer for you to both lose.

[Adam H]

Whats wrong with them earning money for promoting a product ? They have allowed/struck a deal with skimlinks to have the skimlinks built into vbulletin , with out that deal skimlinks would more than likely not have anywhere near as much of a client base.

There would obviously be a percentage worked out to come from skimlinks share, when someone buys a product from a skimlinks or viglink you as the forum owner only get a percentage of that commission anyway, viglink or skimlinks get the rest, what they do with their percentage is nothing to do with you.

If you go and promote the affiliate products on your own you would earn alot more with the same products than going through skimlinks or viglink but at the same time you wouldnt have such a large scale automated revenue stream to pick from.

Another fuss over nothing. Business is business