Affiliate Business The business of linking web sites with special niches or content (affiliate sites) with advertisers or publishers who wish to sell goods or services to this specialized group. The affiliates gain by collecting additional income from their site, and the merchants gain by having a cost-effective way to add new customers. Affiliate programs are promoted by affiliate networks such as LinkShare and Commission Junction, as well as by individual companies.

Affiliate A company with a web site that displays advertisements for merchants or publishers products or services. The affiliates site is valuable as a selling venue because the affiliate provides value added services, such as the provision of articles and information, such as product reviews, to the site visitor. The affiliate places these ads on his site in order to collect pay-for-performance commissions for sales, pay-per-click fees when his site visitors click the merchant links, or fees per 1000 clicks that visitors to his site make on the merchants ad.

Merchant or Publisher A company with an online presence created for the purpose of selling goods or services. These companies use a variety of methods, besides direct promotion of their retail websites, to attract qualified buyers to their sites. These include pay-for-performance, pay-per-click and PPC, payment per one thousand clicks on their ads placed on the sites of affiliates.

Service Provider - A company that provides services and technologies to affiliates and merchants, enabling them to partner in online selling. Some service providers also act in the capacity of Affiliate networks, where merchants and affiliates negotiate arrangements for partnerships for selling purposes.