Publishing Rules

To maintain the quality of AffSphere articles, and to protect the integrity of our community, we've laid down some ground rules for authors and webmasters, as well as article submissions. Please read these Rules carefully before you submit your articles to AffSphere. If you plan to advertise on AffSphere with banners, please click here to read our banner policies and guidelines.

AUTHOR RULES

Rules for Submission

Rule #1 - No SPAM Articles!

AffSphere's publication policies are quite flexible, but there is one thing we will not tolerate: SPAM articles. We define what a SPAM article is under Article Submission Guidelines below, so take the time to read those guidelines carefully before you submit an article.

Rule #2 - If you SPAM, Your Account Will Be CLOSED and You Will Lose All Credits.

SPAM articles would destroy the AffSphere community. Webmasters would stop syndicating your articles, and general users would stop clicking your banners and AdSense.

Also, it's not very difficult to satisfy our submission guidelines. Therefore our penalities for SPAM are severe:

IF YOU SUBMIT SPAM ARTICLES, YOUR ACCOUNT WILL BE CLOSED AND YOU WILL LOSE ALL ACCUMULATED CREDITS.

ALL YOUR ARTICLES (whether SPAM or not) WILL BE PURGED FROM THE DATABASE.

Your banner ad impressions will cease.

Your AdSense code will be purged from the rotation.

Rule #3 - Human Reviewer Decisions are Final.

There are no guarantees that your article will be published. Every article you submit is reviewed for adherence to the Article Submission Guidleines (below) by a real live person. Articles that violate the Article Submission Guidelines below will not be approved.

Our reviewers may also change the Category to which you have submitted your article, make editorial corrections, or make other minor changes to conform to our Article Sumission Guidelines below. However, we are not an article rewriting service, so articles with excessive errors in spelling, punctuation, sytax, usage, or sense will be rejected.

All decisions of our human reviewers are final, so do not submit support tickets asking why your article has not been approved. The best way to get your article approved is to rewrite it according to our Article Submission Guidelines below, then resubmit.

Rule #4 - NO "As Is" PLR Articles or "Stolen" Articles

We have developed technology that allows our human reviewers to check your article against both article databases and our own database for duplication of content. Articles that do not meet our criteria for "original work" will be rejected.

We acknowledge that PLR (Private Label Rights) articles can be very helpful to a busy affiliate marketer. But we will reject PLR articles that have not been sufficiently rewritten. This means at least 50% of the article must be different from the original PLR article. We will also reject any article that has been stolen from another author.

IF YOU SUBMIT STOLEN ARTICLES, OR PLR ARTICLES THAT HAVE NOT BEEN REWRITTEN, YOU WILL RECIVE ONLY ONE WARNING. AFTER THAT, YOUR ACCOUNT WILL BE SUSPENDED.

Rule #5 - Allow Up to 4 Business Days for Article Approval.

Our human reviewers work two 8-hour shifts per day, but AffSphere article volume can be quite high at times. You should allow up to 4 business days for article approvals. Please do not submit support tickets regarding article approvals.

Rule #6 - Articles and Banners MUST Adhere to the Acceptable Article Content Guidelines.

Please review the Acceptable Content Guidelines and Acceptable Banner Content Guidelines below before submitting an article or uploading a banner.

Rule #7 - YOU are Responsible for What You Say In Your Article.

You are responsible for everything you write in your article. This means YOU must check facts, dates, specifications, and do all due diligence before submitting your articles. AffSphere assumes no responsibility for the content of articles published on our site.

Rule #8 - You Give Us Permission to Publish and Distribute Your Article.

When you submit an article to AffSphere, you give us unconditional permission to publish it on this website, in our RSS feed, and to feature it in any mailngs to our list members.

Rule #9 - You Give Webmasters Permission to Publish and Distribute Your Article.

When you submit an article to AffSphere, you give webmasters unconditional permission to publish it on their websites, in their RSS feeds, and to feature it in any mailngs to their list members provided they keep working links and your author box intact.

Webmasters are required to follow the Webmaster Rules below, but you should understand and acknowledge that enforcement of these syndication rules is at your risk and cost, not ours. So if someone violates your copyright, you are responsible for any legal action against them. You should not submit articles to AffSphere if you do not agree to this rule.

AffSphere makes no guarantee that your article will be syndicated.

Rule #10 - Ads Will Be Shown On Your Article Pages.

Because we are advertiser supported, ads will be shown on your article pages. Ads may include banner ads, Adense, ads for Affiliate Classroom, Inc. products and services, and any other ads we deem appropriate. You understand that you do not have control over which ads are displayed on your articles pages.

ARTICLE SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

All articles must be 100% original works. An original work means the writing is NOT copied word for word from another source.
You must be the sole owner of the article and own 100% of the rights to its use.
You may hire writers to create articles for you, but YOU are responsible for making sure they are original works. You must also be the SOLE OWNER of the article and have an EXCLUSIVE license to print your name as the author of the article.
You may not submit articles that are in the public domain.
You may not submit press releases, advertisements, or sales letters. None of those are articles.
Recipes are not considered articles, unless at least 50% of the word count of the article is narrative text that is not part of the recipe. Recipes that do not meet these standards will be rejected.
Product reviews are not considered articles, unless at least 50% of the word count of the article is narrative text that discusses the product, movie, etc. in detail. Reviews that do not meet these standards will be rejected.
Articles should be 250-1550 words in length. The ideal length is 400-700 words.
Up to 3 affiliate or product links are permitted in your article. We HIGHLY recommend using redirects or shortened URLs, since excessively long affiliate links can break the kayout of your article. Additional non-affiliate/product links are permitted, but articles with excessive links (such as a list of websites and URLs with no actual narrative copy) will be rejected.
Up to 2 links are permitted in your author box.
Must use correct English usage, spelling, grammar, syntax, punctuation, capitalization, and sentence structure.
Proofread your article and check all facts for accuracy.
Do not submit the same article you have submitted in the past with a new title or only a few words changed. We consider this SPAM and will mot likely terminate your account.
Do not stuff articles with keywords. Use of keywords is of course permitted and encouraged, but your article should read naturally and not be stuffed with repetitive keywords.

ACCEPTABLE ARTICLE CONTENT GUIDELINES

NOTE: If you are in doubt about these guidelines, please submit a ticket to our support desk.

You cannot submit articles that would violate the Google AdSense Program Policies. This means NO...

Violent content, racial intolerance, or advocacy against any individual, group, or organization
Pornography, adult, or mature content
Hacking/cracking content
Illicit drugs and drug paraphernalia
Excessive profanity
Gambling or casino-related content
Content regarding programs which compensate users for clicking on ads or offers, performing searches, surfing websites, or reading emails
Excessive, repetitive, or irrelevant keywords in the content or code of web pages
Deceptive or manipulative content or construction to improve your site's search engine ranking, e.g., your site's PageRank
Sales or promotion of weapons or ammunition (e.g., firearms, fighting knives, stun guns)
Sales or promotion of beer or hard alcohol
Sales or promotion of tobacco or tobacco-related products
Sales or promotion of prescription drugs
Sales or promotion of products that are replicas or imitations of designer goods
Sales or distribution of term papers or student essays
Any other content that is illegal, promotes illegal activity, or infringes on the legal rights of others.

BANNER POLICIES AND GUIDELINES

IMPORTANT - READ THIS BEFORE YOU UPLOAD ANY BANNER TO AFFSPHERE

To protect your affiliate accounts and commissions, do not upload any banners to AffSphere before reading this critical information and answering these questions:

ARE YOU ALLOWED TO DISPLAY THE MERCHANT'S BANNER ON A SITE YOU DO NOT OWN/CONTROL?

Some networks and merchants FORBID you to display your affiliate banners on a website you do not own and/or control. Others will allow you to do this only if you get permission from the merchant IN WRITING. You won't know for sure unless you check the affiliate agreement.

If you are a member of one of these programs and upload a banner to a website you do not own/control, the program may terminate your account and your commissions may be forfeit. BEFORE YOU UPLOAD A BANNER, PLEASE DOUBLE CHECK YOUR AFFILIATE AGREEMENT. CAREFULLY EXAMINE YOUR MERCHANT'S RULES ABOUT WHERE YOU CAN DISPLAY THE MERCHANT'S BANNERS.

Also remember that merchant's policies can change, and that they may make amendments to the affiliate agreement. It is your responsibility to make sure you are in compliance with your merchants' affiliate agreements, and to remove banners from AffSphere.com to remain in compliance.

AffSphere accepts no responsibility for any consequences if you violate your merchant's ruiles about banner display.

ARE YOU ALLOWED TO UPLOAD THE MERCHANT'S BANNER GRAPHICS TO OUR SERVER?

Some networks and merchants FORBID you to host their banner images on another server. Others may allow this if you get permission from them in writing. You won't know for sure unless you check the affiliate agreement. We strongly recommend that you carefully

If you are a member of one of these programs and upload a banner graphic to our website you, the program may terminate your account and your commissions may be forfeit. BEFORE YOU UPLOAD A BANNER, PLEASE DOUBLE CHECK YOUR AFFILIATE AGREEMENT FOR THE RULES ABOUT WHERE AND HOW YOU CAN USE/HOST BANNER CREATIVE.

AffSphere accepts no responsibility for any consequences if you violate your merchant's ruiles about banner display.

ACCEPTABLE BANNER CONTENT GUIDELINES

No banners promoting violent content, racial intolerance, or advocacy against any individual, group, or organization.
No banners promoting pornography, adult, or mature content.
No banners promoting hacking/cracking content.
No banners promoting illicit drugs or drug paraphernalia.
No banners containing excessive profanity.
No banners promoting gambling or casino-related products or services.
No banners promoting programs which compensate users for clicking on ads or offers, performing searches, surfing websites, or reading emails.
No banners with excessive, repetitive, or irrelevant keywords in the hyperlink code.
No banners promoting deceptive or manipulative content or construction to improve a site's search engine ranking, e.g., a site's Google PageRank
No banners promoting weapons or ammunition (e.g., firearms, fighting knives, stun guns).
No banners promoting beer or hard alcohol. Wine gifts and clubs are acceptable at this time.
No banners promoting tobacco or tobacco-related products.
No banners promoting prescription drugs.
No banners promoting products that are replicas or imitations of designer goods.
No banners promoting the sale of term papers or student essays.
No banners promoting any other products that are illegal, promote illegal activities, or infringe on the legal rights of others.

WEBMASTER RULES

AffSphere encourages webmasters to reprint any article from this site. You may use the articles on your website, blog, forum, RSS feed, or ezine, with additional permission from the author, BUT YOU MUST ABIDE BY THESE SYNDICATION RULES:

Respect the copyrights of the Authors.
The articles on AffSphere are the intellectual property of their respective authors. Therefore you must abide by intellectual property laws as well as ethics, and...
Publish the entire article as is, with no changes, including title and content.
Publish the FULL Author Box at the end of the article.
Code all links in the article so they are ACTIVE. This means that when a user clicks on the link, it send them to the URL as coded by the author. YOU MAY NOT PUBLISH ARTICLES WITHOUT WORKING LINKS. YOU MAY NOT USE THE REL=NOFOLLOW TAG IN YOUR HREF CODE.
Code all links in the Author Box so they are ACTIVE. This means that when a user clicks on the link, it send them to the URL as coded by the author. YOU MAY NOT PUBLISH AUTHOR BOXES WITHOUT WORKING LINKS. YOU MAY NOT USE THE REL=NOFOLLOW TAG IN YOUR HREF CODE.
YOU MAY NOT CHANGE THE AFFILIATES CODE IN ANY ACTIVE LINK in any article reprinted from AffSphere.
You may not ADD any new active links to any article reprinted from AffSphere.
Agree that you will not put any articles appearing on AffSphere on websites that contain warez, illegal mp3 files, other illegal file sharing sites; websites that instruct users on illegal activities such as (but not limited to) how to make bombs or how to steal money or property; websites that promote hatred, hate crimes, racism, profanity, or bigotry; websites that contain pornography; webistes that exploit children, animals, human beings; websites that promote any other unlawful or illegal activities.
Agree not to reprint articles appearing on AffSphere in SPAM, unsolicited commercial email, other unsolicited email, or in any type of pop-up.
Agree not to sell articles appearing on AffSphere. You may not reprint these articles in any paid website, paid ebook, or other paid digital or print publication that you offer for sale unless you receive written permission from the author.
Agree to all other ethical/moral conventions and legal requirements governing intellectual property, such as (but not limited to) not using any of the articles appearing on AffSphere in derivative works, such as audio or video products and/or translations into other languages.
Agree that you reprint articles appearing on AffSphere at your own risk.
Agree to NEVER use scraping software, crawlers, rogue bots, or any automated script or software to mine the AffSphere article database. You agree that we may block your access to our site if you use such software or scripts.
Agree that if you violate any of the above rules, or violate any author copyright, you will be liable for all attorney fees and statutory damages awarded upon a copyright infringement lawsuit that may be brought against you.
Agree that AffSphere has the sole right to revoke your reprint rights at any time for any reason upon 72 hours written notice via email, fax, telephone, or postal mail. You also agree that AffSphere may contact your web hosting provider to serve such notice. Upon receipt of notice from us, you agree to remove every article reprinted from AffSphere within 48 hours. You also agree to inform us in writing of your compliance with this request. Failure to provide a written notice of your compliance may result in further legal action against you.