Tmartn, Syndicate and other popular Youtubers were part of a huge controversy when it was discovered that they had misrepresented themselves while advertising sites that they owned. This led to many of the gullible viewers investing thousands if not millions of dollars into these websites. With the algorithm definitely rigged to provide a definite profit to these websites, several millions of dollars were lost in the process.
The FTC had an open comment period during which almost all the comments were against a decision as has been taken. The Consent Agreement signed between the FTC and the Youtubers requires them to comply with the following terms :
- Comply with FTC disclosure guidelines, with an additional burden to properly monitor and ensure compliance by any endorsers they partner with for promotional purposes in the future;
- Submit a compliance report in one year;
- Keep records of activities related to the business for up to 10 years; and
- Submit to ongoing compliance monitoring by the FTC for a period of up to 10 years.