Awin's Conversion Protection Initiative (CPI) has successfully recovered millions in lost commissions by fixing broken tracking links for over 2,300 brands. One year after the launch of the program, Awin CEO Adam Ross reports significant impacts on Payouts for Publishers and transparency for Advertisers.
Over the past twelve months, the global network recorded a 15% decrease in click volume, totaling eight billion clicks. Simultaneously, however, Conversion Rates and revenue per interaction increased. According to Ross, the industry is moving away from pure mass toward higher-quality interactions. In this environment, measurement errors carry particularly heavy weight.
Closing Tracking gaps in the Customer Journey
The CPI overcomes technical hurdles in Affiliate marketing. In a complex digital environment, Conversions are frequently lost due to Cross-Device shifts, activity within mobile apps, or restrictive browser settings. Through the program, these "invisible" transactions become measurable again.
Since the launch in April 2025, approximately 2,300 Advertisers have optimized their Tracking setups as part of the initiative. As a result, Awin captured an additional $578 million in Advertiser revenue. For the Publisher side, this resulted in Payouts exceeding $47 million, which would not have received Attribution without these technical adjustments.
Precise measurement boosts the Conversion Rate
Awin's data analysis shows that optimizing the Tracking infrastructure increases the Conversion Rate by an average of 6% to 10%. This growth is not based on new traffic, but on the more precise recording of existing customer flows.
Amy Hockin, Head of Paid Traffic Acquisition at Virgin Media O2, confirms this effect. For Advertisers, the improved data situation means higher planning security for budget allocation. Publishers receive fair compensation for their performance, as sales no longer disappear into the "black hole" of faulty Attribution.
Infrastructure secures the ROI
The results illustrate that technological investment in the Affiliate industry is no longer an end in itself. While click numbers are falling industry-wide, the relevance of individual interactions is rising. The CPI serves as a foundation to keep the bridge between Merchant and Publisher stable, even when external factors like privacy regulations complicate measurement.
Awin notes in its anniversary report: In a data-driven economy, the quality of Attribution is the decisive lever for ROI. Those who do not measure precisely consistently underestimate the value of the Affiliate channel. For performance marketers worldwide, robust tracking remains the most effective tool for protecting margins in a privacy-first landscape.
Affilitizer Editorial Team
This article was created with AI assistance and editorially reviewed.
