Honey browser plugin controversy: Difference between revisions

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Honey is a tool owned by PayPal that was featured in more than a few exposés for their predatory business practices. In a nutshell, Honey is a tool that you can install to your [[wikipedia:Web_browser|web browser]] (Google Chrome, FireFox, Edge, Safari…) that promises to “search the web” to find you the best coupon code available for an item they are shopping for online. It works by "looking" at the checkout page of an online store and searches the internet to find a coupon code for that website. Honey promises its users that they find and test discount codes for your item, and if they can’t find one, it doesn’t exist. That sounds wonderful, and within the spirit of making sure customers get the best deal they can. What Honey actually did behind the scenes is predatory to its end-users, business owners, and content creators (people making Youtube, TikTok, etc. videos promoting the product). In a nutshell, on all fronts possible, Honey exists to drive up PayPal’s profits by means comparable to stealing change from the “take a penny leave a penny” dish at your local bodega. It very often did not find the best deal for its users~~, and more often than not, Honey only made Paypal richer.~~

Honey is a tool owned by PayPal that was featured in more than a few exposés for their predatory business practices. In a nutshell, Honey is a tool that you can install to your [[wikipedia:Web_browser|web browser]] (Google Chrome, FireFox, Edge, Safari…) that promises to “search the web” to find you the best coupon code available for an item they are shopping for online. It works by "looking" at the checkout page of an online store and searches the internet to find a coupon code for that website. Honey promises its users that they find and test discount codes for your item, and if they can’t find one, it doesn’t exist. That sounds wonderful, and within the spirit of making sure customers get the best deal they can. What Honey actually did behind the scenes is predatory to its end-users, business owners, and content creators (people making Youtube, TikTok, etc. videos promoting the product). In a nutshell, on all fronts possible, Honey exists to drive up PayPal’s profits by means comparable to stealing change from the “take a penny leave a penny” dish at your local bodega. It very often did not find the best deal for its users.

What Honey actually did behind the scenes is predatory to its end-users, business owners, and content creators (people making Youtube, TikTok, etc. videos promoting the product). In a nutshell, on all fronts possible, Honey exists to drive up PayPal’s profits by means comparable to stealing change from the “take a penny leave a penny” dish at your local bodega.

== Victim Group 1: The Consumers ==

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== Victim Group 2: Business Owners & Digital Storefronts ==

Additionally, PayPal offers business owners a program where they can partner with Honey, for a monthly fee (PayPal makes money). Business owners who choose to pay this “protection money” receive a guarantee that Honey will only show the discount codes the business wants them to show. In a layman comparison, this is like ~~Tony Soprano~~ walking into a sporting goods store and saying, “Hey, if you pay me $19.00 a month, I’ll have someone make sure your customers only ever see sale tags that you want them to see. If you don’t, I’m going to have those same guys look through your entire inventory, all day, every day, and tell customers exactly how they can pay you as little as possible”. There are documented instances of business owners finding what they thought were 'private' or 'one-time' discount codes being used by Honey users, building a strong incentive to "formally partner" with Honey and give PayPal their protection racket.

Additionally, PayPal offers business owners a program where they can partner with Honey, for a monthly fee (PayPal makes money). Business owners who choose to pay this “protection money” receive a guarantee that Honey will only show the discount codes the business wants them to show. In a layman comparison, this is like somebody walking into a sporting goods store and saying, “Hey, if you pay me $19.00 a month, I’ll have someone make sure your customers only ever see sale tags that you want them to see. If you don’t, I’m going to have those same guys look through your entire inventory, all day, every day, and tell customers exactly how they can pay you as little as possible”. There are documented instances of business owners finding what they thought were 'private' or 'one-time' discount codes being used by Honey users, building a strong incentive to "formally partner" with Honey and give PayPal their protection racket.

== Victim Group 3: Online Marketing Affiliates (often, "Content Creators") ==

PayPal has largely marketed the Honey browser extension via paid advertisements inside of Youtube, TikTok, and other social media video platforms. This is a strong marketing avenue for them, as most people watch that content in a browser, making it easier to install (generating more users for Honey than, say, advertising on cable television). On its face, this is a very common practice and a means of reaching a very broad audience. But behind the scenes, Honey has been sneaking away with those same creators’ commission checks for products they recommend to their audience. There is a technical explanation to this linked below; this section will cover Honey’s practices at a fairly high level for ease of understanding.

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-Honey is a tool owned by PayPal that was featured in more than a few exposés for their predatory business practices. In a nutshell, Honey is a tool that you can install to your [[wikipedia:Web_browser|web browser]] (Google Chrome, FireFox, Edge, Safari…) that promises to “search the web” to find you the best coupon code available for an item they are shopping for online. It works by "looking" at the checkout page of an online store and searches the internet to find a coupon code for that website. Honey promises its users that they find and test discount codes for your item, and if they can’t find one, it doesn’t exist. That sounds wonderful, and within the spirit of making sure customers get the best deal they can. What Honey actually did behind the scenes is predatory to its end-users, business owners, and content creators (people making Youtube, TikTok, etc. videos promoting the product). In a nutshell, on all fronts possible, Honey exists to drive up PayPal’s profits by means comparable to stealing change from the “take a penny leave a penny” dish at your local bodega. It very often did not find the best deal for its users, and more often than not, Honey only made Paypal richer.
+Honey is a tool owned by PayPal that was featured in more than a few exposés for their predatory business practices. In a nutshell, Honey is a tool that you can install to your [[wikipedia:Web_browser|web browser]] (Google Chrome, FireFox, Edge, Safari…) that promises to “search the web” to find you the best coupon code available for an item they are shopping for online. It works by "looking" at the checkout page of an online store and searches the internet to find a coupon code for that website. Honey promises its users that they find and test discount codes for your item, and if they can’t find one, it doesn’t exist. That sounds wonderful, and within the spirit of making sure customers get the best deal they can. What Honey actually did behind the scenes is predatory to its end-users, business owners, and content creators (people making Youtube, TikTok, etc. videos promoting the product). In a nutshell, on all fronts possible, Honey exists to drive up PayPal’s profits by means comparable to stealing change from the “take a penny leave a penny” dish at your local bodega. It very often did not find the best deal for its users.
-What Honey actually did behind the scenes is predatory to its end-users, business owners, and content creators (people making Youtube, TikTok, etc. videos promoting the product). In a nutshell, on all fronts possible, Honey exists to drive up PayPal’s profits by means comparable to stealing change from the “take a penny leave a penny” dish at your local bodega.
 == Victim Group 1: The Consumers ==
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 == Victim Group 2: Business Owners & Digital Storefronts ==
-Additionally, PayPal offers business owners a program where they can partner with Honey, for a monthly fee (PayPal makes money). Business owners who choose to pay this “protection money” receive a guarantee that Honey will only show the discount codes the business wants them to show. In a layman comparison, this is like Tony Soprano walking into a sporting goods store and saying, “Hey, if you pay me $19.00 a month, I’ll have someone make sure your customers only ever see sale tags that you want them to see. If you don’t, I’m going to have those same guys look through your entire inventory, all day, every day, and tell customers exactly how they can pay you as little as possible”. There are documented instances of business owners finding what they thought were 'private' or 'one-time' discount codes being used by Honey users, building a strong incentive to "formally partner" with Honey and give PayPal their protection racket.
+Additionally, PayPal offers business owners a program where they can partner with Honey, for a monthly fee (PayPal makes money). Business owners who choose to pay this “protection money” receive a guarantee that Honey will only show the discount codes the business wants them to show. In a layman comparison, this is like somebody walking into a sporting goods store and saying, “Hey, if you pay me $19.00 a month, I’ll have someone make sure your customers only ever see sale tags that you want them to see. If you don’t, I’m going to have those same guys look through your entire inventory, all day, every day, and tell customers exactly how they can pay you as little as possible”. There are documented instances of business owners finding what they thought were 'private' or 'one-time' discount codes being used by Honey users, building a strong incentive to "formally partner" with Honey and give PayPal their protection racket.
 == Victim Group 3: Online Marketing Affiliates (often, "Content Creators") ==
 PayPal has largely marketed the Honey browser extension via paid advertisements inside of Youtube, TikTok, and other social media video platforms. This is a strong marketing avenue for them, as most people watch that content in a browser, making it easier to install (generating more users for Honey than, say, advertising on cable television). On its face, this is a very common practice and a means of reaching a very broad audience. But behind the scenes, Honey has been sneaking away with those same creators’ commission checks for products they recommend to their audience. There is a technical explanation to this linked below; this section will cover Honey’s practices at a fairly high level for ease of understanding.