Los influencers y streamers They are people with a certain social recognition, creators of audiovisual content through videos, live broadcasts and podcasts, massively disseminated through various platforms and social networks; what in its beginnings had the purpose of entertaining, today is a real advertising business and of influence on the public.
Hence, different companies have been interested in this new way of communicating, in order to influence, motivate and generate consumption habits -in broad terms- among the public potential of these public figures.
Unlike the traditional means of communication and the already known ways of advertising a product or service, influencers and streamers have a distinctive characteristic. They are true creators of communities or digital ecosystems with an audience that guarantees a certain degree of loyalty and follow-up..
The profitability of your activities in sight
In its beginnings, the activity was amateur, with a very small audience and without any capacity to generate income. However, this worldwide phenomenon has become professionalized and the shares of these public figures are highly profitable today.
Revenue can be segmented by its origin, on the one hand there are those amounts paid by the platforms according to viewing metrics, or by “donations” from the public and “monthly subscriptions” to the different channels to support the work, sustain their professionalism and/or receive preferential treatment from the content generator.
On the other hand, there is a business linked to the generation of income by “sponsoreo” o “referencing” of brands, products and services, many of them promoted as habitual consumption of the content generator.
Through different opinions and resolutions of public bodies, linked to audiovisual services, financial intermediation and the consumer control authority, the activities of Influencers and Streamers have been defined as the provision of a service.
Even without special laws that regulate the activity, it appears that they are affected by the typical taxes of the activity with which they can be equated, for example advertising services, and must register with the collecting bodies and pay taxes as any another service provider.
Behind influencers today there are usually sponsorship contracts.
From the lack of specific regulation towards a duty of extensive regulatory compliance
Our legal system is characterized by regulating in particular and typifying different activities and contracts, thus generating the notion that in the absence of a special law we are completely in the dark.
However, in this case, the activity of the influencers y streamers It is affected by different regulations that make us go from the lack of specific regulation to a duty of extensive regulatory compliance.
When we talk about digital communication, we are facing a broad and highly varied concept, but it is still a service plus audiovisual communication, achieved by the regulations applicable to the activity, from the National Constitution itself in terms of freedom of expression, of industry and the consumer protection regime, as well as the scope of National Law 26,522 on Audiovisual Communication Services, and the laws of Commercial Loyalty, Consumer Defense, among others.
Other regulations may indirectly have an impact, such as laws and regulations on matters of Trademarks, Protection of Personal Data or Broadcasting. In addition, the regulations that have public health as their object, such as Law 23,344 on Tobacco advertising, Law 24,788 on the Fight against Alcoholism; or the Argentine Food Code.
At the conventional level, our country has received different international agreements that are enforceable in the national territory, highlighting the observance of the different principles of the Inter-American Convention for the elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities, the Guidelines for the Dissemination of Topics related to Health; Comprehensive Protection to Prevent, Punish and Eradicate Violence against women, Comprehensive Protection of the Rights of Girls, Boys and Adolescents, among other instruments.
current challenges
The developments of new technologies of the last decade have opened the doors towards a new way of communication y commercial promotion, which does not end only in the rules of each platform or social network; Content creators must be extremely cautious when carrying out their communication and marketing strategy, avoiding contravention of different regulations that regulate audiovisual communication and advertising to consumers and users, maintaining the veracity of the information at all times.
Although there is no special rule, beyond the occasional project pending before the commissions of the National Congress, the belief that deregulation is synonymous with “Vale Anything” is not true either..
With a look at comparative law, countries like Spain and Germany have debated and regulated the activity of Influencers and Streaming, from a tax perspective and directly applied to platforms.
In our country, any legislative effort must have recognition of the activity as its guiding principle and the retention of talent for the country as its primary goal, given a global activity that, if discouraged, can be easily transferred to any other location.
In conclusion, the regulation or code of conduct should in principle be consolidated as a guide to good practices for the sector, in order to avoid misconduct that could affect the physical, moral or emotional development of the public as well as its integrity in the economic sphere.
