Illinois Amazon Associates: Your Account is Closed

Anyone who has been following my blog either publicly or privately knows I am fairly new to the blog scene.  I've enjoyed it and have met some fantastic bloggers and incredible writers.  I blog a lot about avoiding certain food additives and wanted to make it easy for other people to find products that have been helpful  and foods that I purchase for my family.  I recently learned about amazon affiliates and saw a potential to endorse certain products and make a small, (very small) commission on any purchases made.  That is the idea of affiliate marketing.  It is an amazing opportunity for bloggers and many do it with great success and ease.  Well, no sooner did I create the links and get it just so on my blog, I find that my account has been closed.  The thing I did not know was Amazon was getting ready to cut ties with all Illinois affiliates and this would all be accomplished by April 15th. 

Sigh...........I guess I'll have to make my millions some other way!  Bye bye amazon affiliates.

For those who use affiliate marketing to make a little extra money, what are some other ways to continue this?

Disclaimer:  I have my adsense ads running.  Is this associated with Amazon too?  For the record, I do not endorse KFC and their menu and have noticed that their ad keeps popping up.  We avoid artificial colors, and other additives and I'm not sure if they have a single item that would qualify.

The rest of this post is the note Amazon is sending or sent to its Illinois affiliates, letting them know that they are now cut off from a source of income.

Hello,

For well over a decade, the Amazon Associates Program has worked with thousands of Illinois residents. Unfortunately, a new state tax law signed by Governor Quinn compels us to terminate this program for Illinois-based participants. It specifically imposes the collection of taxes from consumers on sales by online retailers - including but not limited to those referred by Illinois-based affiliates like you - even if those retailers have no physical presence in the state.

We had opposed this new tax law because it is unconstitutional and counterproductive. It was supported by national retailing chains, most of which are based outside Illinois, that seek to harm the affiliate advertising programs of their competitors. Similar legislation in other states has led to job and income losses, and little, if any, new tax revenue. We deeply regret that its enactment forces this action.

As a result of the new law, contracts with all Illinois affiliates of the Amazon Associates Program will be terminated and those Illinois residents will no longer receive advertising fees for sales referred to Amazon.com, Endless.com, or SmallParts.com. Please be assured that all qualifying advertising fees earned prior to April 15, 2011 will be processed and paid in full in accordance with the regular payment schedule. Based on your account closure date of April 15, 2011, any final payments will be paid by July 1, 2011.

You are receiving this email because our records indicate that you are a resident of Illinois. If you are not currently a permanent resident of Illinois, or if you are relocating to another state in the near future, you can manage the details of your Associates account here. And if you relocate to another state after April 15, please contact us for reinstatement into the Amazon Associates Program.

To be clear, this development will only impact our ability to continue the Associates Program in Illinois, and will not affect the ability of Illinois residents to purchase online at www.amazon.com from Amazon’s retail business.

We have enjoyed working with you and other Illinois-based participants in the Amazon Associates Program and, if this situation is rectified, would very much welcome the opportunity to re-open our Associates Program to Illinois residents.

Regards,

The Amazon Associates Team