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Summary: The YouTuber had his Amazon affiliate account canceled after 7 years without warning or evidence of wrongdoing. The reason given was that purchases
by Yeri 3y ago
Summary:
The YouTuber had his Amazon affiliate account canceled after 7 years
without warning or evidence of wrongdoing. The reason given was that
purchases made through his links were for personal use or made by
friends and family, which he denies. He finds the timing suspicious as
it came a week after he made a video criticizing Amazon for canceling a
customer's account for a racist doorbell claim. He argues that the small
amount of revenue from his affiliate links is inconsequential to him.
He believes Amazon is becoming less accountable as it grows in power and
treats customers worse. While not excusing Amazon's actions, he
questions whether enough vetting was done before canceling his account.
The snap decision shows how trigger happy Amazon is to remove people's
accounts.
- viknesh 3y agoWritten by AI?
- elaus 3y agoI haven't watched the video and was very happy to have a summary. What makes you question it was written by an AI?
- chii 3y agoand also, if the summary was good, why would it matter whether it was written by an AI or not?
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- viknesh 3y agoI thought it was helpful too, but read like it was written by AI. So I wanted to know if it was. What's wrong with asking a question?
- hereonout2 3y agoIt's pretty good, but misses out that it's a Louis Rossmann video, who is a big spokesman for consumer rights against tech companies (also a very popular vlogger and highly skilled electronics tutor). I feel like an AI would be less likely to pick up on this wider context, but possibly the OP just didn't realise who it was.
- mnd999 3y agoIt’s pretty obvious.
- mnd999 3y agoFor the downvoters, if you can’t tell this is an AI you’re gonna be in real trouble if these models actually get good.
- jgil 3y agohttps://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35285162 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35285162
- apetresc 3y agoThe giveaway for me was the sentence "While not excusing Amazon's actions, he questions whether enough vetting was done before canceling his account." It makes no sense - why would questioning whether enough vetting was done be interpretable by anyone as "excusing Amazon's actions"? It obviously goes in the other direction; the sentence might have read "While not directly condemning Amazon's actions, he questions whether enough vetting was done before canceling his account."
- burnished 3y agoThe briefest of looks at their comment history suggest they are simply helpful.
- izacus 3y ago[flagged]
- jhugo 3y agoI basically never click a link if I can see that it leads to youtube, because I'm rarely in a situation where it's convenient to watch a video, and even if I am, it's usually the most noisy & inefficient way to receive a given piece of information. So a summary is incredibly useful, whether it's written by AI or not. What makes you refer to it as spam?
- prepend 3y agoThat and it was a 9 minute video that a 10 second read is more efficient. For me, it’s the time spent on these banalities. The concept is interesting but this YouTuber has an audience that likes long videos about short subjects and it’s not for me. I like the summary because it helps me understand and choose to watch or not.
- burnished 3y agoPlease think about what you say before you say it.
- Fnoord 3y ago"In a YouTube video titled "Amazon cancels my account after exposing account lockout for 'racist doorbell'," the speaker shares his experience of Amazon cancelling his seven-year-old affiliate program account, claiming he violated their operating agreement. Despite using the same links to promote products on his YouTube channel for seven years and earning meagre profits, Amazon cancelled his account without any reasonable vetting. The speaker argues that Amazon's decision is an example of the lack of accountability of big companies as they become more powerful, and invites viewers to share their feedback on the issue in the comments section." [1] Easy way to use tools to achieve something similar: yt-dlp (YouTube video downloader), whisper.ai (STT), and then you can use e.g. ChatGPT to summarize the text data. [1] https://www.summarize.tech/www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kcohq313q00 https://www.summarize.tech/www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kcohq313q...
- ejoso 3y ago<from whisper.ai website> Notice: Whisper has made the decision to complete a voluntary market withdrawal of our Hearing Systems as our business direction changes, effective June 8th, 2023. There are no known safety concerns with the devices, but this means we will no longer service or produce the Whisper Hearing System
- Semaphor 3y agowhisper.ai is apparently something completely different, I’m pretty sure OP meant OpenAI’s whisper [0] which is mainly used with whisper.cpp [1] I think. [0]: https://github.com/openai/whisper https://github.com/openai/whisper [1]: https://github.com/ggerganov/whisper.cpp https://github.com/ggerganov/whisper.cpp
- flir 3y agoSkip the speech-to-text step, grab the subtitles from youtube.
- Fnoord 3y agoGood one! Not always reliable, but pretty good (this video it does not seem to work with, says no subs). Not sure if Whisper.cpp (yes I did mean OpenAI Whisper) is better though, or has similar issues on the edge cases I encountered with YouTube subs. Here's the output by Whisper.cpp > $ whisper --verbose False --language English --output_format txt transcribe_me.wav > [...] (removed, comment too long) > $ cat transcribe_me.txt | mods -f "summarize this in Simple English" > The speaker discusses how Amazon accused a customer of racism due to something a robotic doorbell said. They also talk about the concept of companies limiting how fixable devices are, and how this limits the freedom and sovereignty of consumers. They mention that Amazon canceled their seven-year affiliate program account, claiming that they violated terms of service by having employees and friends use the links to buy items. The speaker argues that Amazon overreacted and that this demonstrates the problem of companies becoming less accountable as they gain more power. They call for more scrutiny of such behavior. > $ cat transcribe_me.txt | mods -f "summarize this in English" > The creator discusses how Amazon accused a customer of racism because a delivery driver claimed that he heard something racist from a robotic doorbell. The creator explains they often discuss the concept of "right to repair" and how companies are making devices less fixable over time, requiring customers to buy new ones or rely on the manufacturer for service. The creator talks about how having a system in your house that can be turned off by Amazon if an employee claims that your device said something racist to them is concerning. They also receive an email canceling their Amazon Affiliate account that has been open since 2016, claiming that the purchases resulting from special links are in violation of the operating agreement. The creator disputes these claims and argues that such actions demonstrate the problem of companies becoming less accountable as they become more powerful. Note, mods requires OPENAI_API_KEY to be set.
- arthur_sav 3y agoIt's not just Amazon. All big tech companies have this "trigger happy" approach to closing down accounts. Especially payment companies. I believe we need to pass down new consumer laws to protect the people. We pretty much rely on their services and they have no accountability.
- thrw_aus 3y ago[flagged]
- optimalsolver 3y agoI unironically have no issue with racists being locked out of their homes. Perhaps with the doorbell robot giving them sarcastic responses to their pleas.
- thrw_aus 3y agoYou're the best person in this thread. Of course you have to clarify that you mean white racists, because you'd be the most racist person in this thread if you meant the 33% of blacks who want miscegenation to be banned again: https://i.redd.it/fwgz4oyty85b1.png https://i.redd.it/fwgz4oyty85b1.png I guess we should burn your house down just in case.
- sebzim4500 3y agoInteresting. Is there equivalent data on the question "should two people of different races be allowed to marry?". Seems more relevant than the question asked, which is arguably about states rights.
- optimalsolver 3y agoI think we've had our fill of "states rights".
- 3y ago
- vifon 3y ago> The reason given was that purchases made through his links were for personal use or made by friends and family, which he denies. Why is this even a problem? A purchase is a purchase.
- ovi256 3y agoThe purpose of the affiliate program is to bring in new purchases from customers who wouldn't have otherwise purchased. Not to be a rebate for purchases one would have done anyway. This, btw, is the hardest problem in marketing.
- _boffin_ 3y agoAttribution?
- jhugo 3y agoRight, and it's the part that (on the Web) nobody wants to admit is pretty much based on magical thinking, because you only have a partial view into the actions the user took, meanwhile you're trying to infer their thoughts.
- coldtea 3y ago>Not to be a rebate for purchases one would have done anyway. OTOH, disgruntled friends and family can also take their business elsewhere. Not to mention Amazon tracking what your "friends and relatives" buy, not individually but as correlated back to you, is problematic in itself...
- tyingq 3y agoThey do have a policy that they deduct purchases for friends/family, but the tone of the wording is that they seem to recognize it happens: "Why is there a deduction for personal use of the program? We do not pay referral commissions for products you purchase through your own links. This includes orders for customers, orders on behalf of customers, and orders for products to be used by you, your friends, your relatives, or your associates in any manner. Due to the proprietary nature of the way we determine if the order was personal, we can't share the full list of criteria by which we detect these ineligible orders." https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/help/node/topic/G46FTB8KQF8NRUWG https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/help/node/topic/G46FTB8... I don't read anything there, or in further text that sounds like you'll get banned. Just that they might exclude those purchases from paying out affiliate fees.
- coldtea 3y ago>The reason given was that purchases made through his links were for personal use or made by friends and family, which he denies He has 1.8 million subscribers and talks about gear. There's no way his affiliate purchases were done by "friends and family" in any significant number above 0.1% to even matter. It's just Amazon payback BS.
- mda 3y agoHm if he has 1.8 million subscribers, I wonder how small is " small amount of revenue from his affiliate links" for him.
- norman784 3y agoHe says in the video an approximate amount, I don't remember exactly the number, but he said that his energy bill is 4x the amount he gets from the affiliate program.
- nonethewiser 3y agoApparently he also said its a few hundred per month. So his energy bill is over $800?
- rany_ 3y agoHe operates a business, so that's not surprising.
- BrandoElFollito 3y agoWhat is the problem of friends or family using his affiliate links? This is why they are for no? So that people pay the full price but he gets something out of it. Who cares who makes the purchase?
- 34679 3y agoThe only thing that comes to mind is to stop straw purchases. If you have a friend buy a thing for you, then you're effectively getting a discounted price on that thing.
- BrandoElFollito 3y agoah yes, I have not thought about that one :)
- sfjailbird 3y agoThanks for the summary but you're burying the lede - what the hell is a racist door bell?
- JKCalhoun 3y ago> what the hell is a racist door bell? Perhaps a door bell that grew up in a well-off (maybe even a gated) community that learned to fear people that are different?
- themaninthedark 3y ago/b grows their own AI door bell
- rsynnott 3y agoWhile I have no idea, my mental image is that it sings the pre-1945 version of the German national anthem at you when you press the button.
- phpisthebest 3y agoAmazon suspended a persons account because a Amazon delivery driver thought they heard a racist comment come from a video doorbell... in reality it was a standard automated response that the customer happen record from another camera but they had to prove to amazon there was no racist comment made, and it took 1 or 2 weeks for them to unsuspend the account During that time all of their Amazon Devices (echo, alexa automation, etc) were also non-functional
- nonethewiser 3y agoI don’t even care if it was a racist doorbell - shitty move by Amazon.
- zyx321 3y agoThat's the problem with giant do-everything companies like Google and Amazon. People should never be locked out of critical infrastructure without (the equivalent of) a fair trial. I mention Google because they have been banning people who [feces]post on Youtube, locking them out from all services including accessing content they paid for, checking the calendar on their phones, and even receiving emails. It is possible to do better. Valve does what should be the absolute minimum; tracking community forum bans separately from anticheat bans, neither of which stops you from accessing single-player content you paid for.
- permo-w 3y agosimilarly, a few days ago I was working on a project with a couple of people and I had our meeting notes in a Google Doc. I went to share the doc with the people and was told that it wouldn't be possible due to "inappropriate content". after a quick scan of the text I realised that it was because the notes contained the word "imagery" - in relation to a logo. once removed, the problem went away, but it's disgusting to me that not only has Google given themselves the right to scan your documents for information, not only have they appointed themselves as moral arbiters of your work, they haven't even done it very fucking well. I'm guessing their filters have some kind of reference to "pornographic imagery" or something similar, and this has somehow meant that just the word "imagery" flags up as inappropriate luckily I found the issue quite quickly, and the meeting wasn't held up, but how likely is it now that there's a flag against my account? what if it happens again? this just makes me want to use any alternative possible to Google's ecosystem
- etrautmann 3y agoHow did you figure that out from a quick scan? The word imagery is innocuous
- heywhatupboys 3y agotrial and error of course
- permo-w 3y agoit was just my first guess, based on my hypothesis about a "pornographic imagery" filter. it's entirely possible that that wasn't at all what triggered the flag. perhaps removing any word would have reset the scan
- onetokeoverthe 3y ago[dead]
- mysterydip 3y ago> not only has Google given themselves the right to scan your documents You agreed to it: "We may review content to determine whether it is illegal or violates our Program Policies, and we may remove or refuse to display content that we reasonably believe violates our policies or the law." https://www.google.com/drive/terms-of-service/?hl=en https://www.google.com/drive/terms-of-service/?hl=en Their list of policy violations is quite long: https://support.google.com/docs/answer/148505#zippy= https://support.google.com/docs/answer/148505#zippy=
- SheinhardtWigCo 3y ago> He believes Amazon is becoming less accountable as it grows in power and treats customers worse. He's right. I have recent first-hand experience of them deleting reviews of counterfeit products. The emails say: "We investigated your concerns about product authenticity, and the information we have indicates that the product you received was authentic." I've tried posting a review a further 4 times, each time only mentioning the quality issues and nothing about product authenticity. Every time, it's deleted within 24 hours, and I get the same email. Amazon CS said: "As I further checked it here on my end, actually to tell you honestly, our partner seller is the one who manipulates the reviews on their product." Who is the "partner seller" in this case? Amazon.com Services LLC.
- huijzer 3y agoI also agreed. Our Kindle Direct Publishing account was banned at a random point for a questionable reason. They didn’t pay out the last month.
- chinathrow 3y agoTime for small claims court?
- LanceH 3y agoGo to real court and take depositions.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- davely 3y agoOof. That is hilarious and maddening. It’s a disturbing trend on any site we rely on or use for services. There is no recourse, once a decision has been made. Last week, I was banned from Facebook Marketplace because… I don’t actually know. I’m cleaning out an old shed and want to sell a bunch of stuff. So, I logged into Facebook for the first time in 2 years, posted a Shop Vac for sale for $50 USD, and an hour later was locked out of Marketplace. There is an option to “request a review”, which I did. An automated reply a few days later said they would not restore my account at this time. And that’s it. No warning, no communication, no justification.
- kkielhofner 3y agoThe power of any of these large platforms (and how they apply their "policies") is bewildering. I once listed some GPUs for sale on Amazon. Out of nowhere, without warning, they closed every account I had across Amazon platforms (including AWS). That was fun. Many people have reported the same thing with Google. Just this week a woman tweeted about a Lyft ride that went sideways. Of course some skepticism is warranted on versions of events because it is a bizarre story but Lyft summarily cancelled her account for "jumping out of" a Lyft ride[0]. Even after multiple attempts to give her side of the story they refused to re-open her account. It was only after the social media response that they reversed their position - which is incredible because they seemed to do this without any new facts. If she was really that dangerous to the platform they would/should have stood their ground. I have a similar story - I once had someone join me for an Uber ride and they yelled at the driver. The next day Uber sent me a notice that they "don't tolerate violence on the platform" and banned me from Uber worldwide for life (their description). It was embarrassing, I don't condone it, but I have to think the driver likely reported it as some kind of physical contact because I have no idea how yelling constitutes "violence". I didn't bother to pursue it in any way because if they don't want my money I won't give it to them. [0] - https://twitter.com/katlynskye24/status/1670819610138931202 https://twitter.com/katlynskye24/status/1670819610138931202
- macintux 3y agoYour friend probably made the driver feel unsafe; drivers are quite vulnerable to physical violence. Hard to defend yourself from attacks from behind you, driving or not.
- kkielhofner 3y agoI understand. Another reason I haven't pursued this (not like it would matter - I don't have millions of social media followers). The additional context here is she was yelling at me more than the driver and this was in a small Midwestern town where crime (and especially violent crime) is nearly non-existent. Unlike some of the incidents you hear about where there is physical violence there is a near-zero chance the driver had ever experienced any. To this day I am convinced a little yelling is more-or-less (unfortunately) par for the course of a day in the life of a ride share driver or really anyone in the service industry that interacts with the public. My perspective is that (again, unfortunately) people in these roles get yelled at on a daily basis (talk to anyone in service). If everyone who ever got yelled at (service industry or otherwise) described it as "violence" these industries would grind to a halt. My general sense (from my perspective, of course) is the drastic exaggeration and characterization on the part of the driver was more vindictive than a genuine concern for their safety. My version of events at least. Like the situation I linked to (Twitter thread) absent video (which should be mandatory and provided by the ride sharing platform) these situations are yet another they said/they said and wildly subjective.
- netbioserror 3y agoI once had a fraudster inexplicably start hitting a debit card I never used using an "Amazon Seller" source. They kept trying even after I closed the card. Because I am not actually a seller myself, Amazon support outright told me "No, we're not going to help you." Left it to my bank, who only compensated me after a police report. What a mess.
- stronglikedan 3y agoAmazon must be hiring all those displaced reddit mods.
- massysett 3y ago? What is a "racist doorbell claim"?
- ren_engineer 3y ago>He believes Amazon is becoming less accountable as it grows in power and treats customers worse this is basic monopoly in action, less competition so a business can make more money with a lower quality service because customers don't have other options. Same reason most government services are so bad, they have a natural monopoly
- CodeWriter23 3y ago> He believes Amazon is becoming less accountable as it grows in power and treats customers worse. He’s wrong. What’s happening is more people are starting to notice. Ask any long-term Amazon Seller.
- hammock 3y agoChatgpt summary?