This week, the Affiliate and Partner Marketing Association (APMA) has published a proposed Code of Conduct for subnetworks.
According to the industry association, the Code will have a specific focus on transparency, an issue which it said was identified as an industry pain point in the APMA’s Voice of the Affiliate Nation report.
The Code of Conduct draft, for which the APMA is now seeking feedback, is a voluntary industry standard which sets out the minimum standards for subnetworks to operate within affiliate and partner marketing programmes.
APMA Founder and Director Kevin Edwards shared that a major focus of the Association is building out a host of guides and documents that standardise the approach to a variety of industry topics, with the APMA Compliance and Standards Taskforce identifying subnetworks as a priority area for the first half of the year.
“There is a precedent in the affiliate industry with vouchers and toolbars, where an industry body laid down guidelines that companies should adhere to. This will always be a role that the APMA will play and we hope networks, platforms and agencies will support our efforts to improve the quality of affiliate traffic,” said Edwards.
The subnetwork Code of Conduct itself targets a number of areas, from programme governance and partner due diligence to the protection of compliant publishers and the correct attribution of sales and credit.
Subnetworks have witnessed significant growth in the last few years, with spend up 18% in 2024, accounting for one in ten pounds spent on affiliate marketing in the UK.
However, according to Edwards, continued growth isn’t forecast.
“Last year, we surveyed around 200 brands and agencies, and a large majority of them cited traffic quality concerns around subnetworks. Anecdotally, we know that brands are starting to pull back activity, and we don’t anticipate any year-on-year subnetwork growth.”
Against this backdrop, the code outlines that when it comes to attribution and traffic activity, subnetworks must not generate clicks without user action, or hijack and overwrite without user intent.
It also makes provisions for publisher control, noting that advertisers, agencies and networks should be able to exercise control at the individual Subnetwork publisher level.
The APMA said it plans to launch the Code in Q2 2026 and will maintain a public record of the organisations that commit to it.
“By focusing on best practice, we hope brands will vote with their marketing budgets and spend it on good quality partners. That, in turn, should compel bad actors to clean up their acts and, ultimately, everyone wins,” commented Edwards, adding: “We also hope those subnetworks that play by the rules will throw their weight behind the Code, as it will be a sign of quality that they can use when partnering with brands.”
