Electronic Arts (EA), the video game company behind storied titles like FIFA, Plants vs. Zombies, and Battlefield, has set some new disclosure guidelines for the influencers with whom it works to create sponsored content on YouTube, Twitch, Instagram and beyond.
Going forward, disclosures must fall into one of two categories. Influencers must mark their content ‘#supportedbyEA’ if they have received free products, travel, or event invites from the company, VentureBeat reports. In the case of straight-up advertisements, in which EA has paid a creator to promote a game, the ensuing content must be tagged ‘#advertisement’. An ‘advertisement’ suggests that EA has had editorial sway over the final product, while being ‘supported’ means that it has not. EA initially outlined the updates on its German blog, but the company said the rules apply to influencers around the world.
In addition to the hashtags, creators must also include an audio message or clearly visible watermark at the start of any relevant clips denoting that they’ve been supported or sponsored.
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Back in July, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment settled with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for having paid influencers thousands of dollars to promote a video game, Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor, without properly disclosing that it had done so. In outlining its new guidelines, EA is likely looking to avoid such a run-in, according to VentureBeat. Many of the rules, for instance, are in step with guidelines previously established by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in order to help consumers distinguish between homespun and sponsored online content.
