Every fantasy fan knows that white magicians are good and black magicians are bad. By direct association, many industries refer to "white" practices as approved and legal, and "black" practices as illegal or ethically questionable.
In traffic arbitrage, these words are also often used, with white, black, and even gray arbitrage being singled out by various experts. But the attentive reader has likely long noticed that at times the context of these terms is significantly different, as if everyone is talking about different things using the same words.
So, what are white, gray, and black traffic arbitrage really?
In terms of a vertical’s legal status in a GEO
The first thing that needs to be pointed out is that these terms are indeed used in different meanings, so we will go through all the main interpretations.
Arbitrage can be roughly categorized into "shades of gray" based on how much a particular vertical is legal in a particular region aka a GEO. A simple example: in the UAE, selling winter jackets is legal, but casinos are not. Therefore, your product ads with jackets will be "white", but ads promoting gambling will be undoubtedly "black". And in a country where online casinos are not regulated in any way, the very same ads will be "gray".
This simple approach in general has the right to exist, although some people try to scale it to the vertical as a whole, which is fundamentally wrong... Let’s see why.
In terms of a vertical in general
With the laws of specific countries, it’s all self-evident (forbidden — black, allowed — white, unregulated — gray), but here, everything is both simpler and more complicated. Some affiliates paint entire verticals in one color and call them, for example, "entirely black". What’s wrong with this approach?
A vertical that’s illegal in one region may be gray in another GEO — and laws in general tend to change. There are no absolute truths here, even if you look at the most insane extremes: for instance, in some regions of the world the slave trade is still de facto allowed, whereas not just selling but even wearing glasses was punishable by death under Pol Pot's regime.
An attempt to paint an entire vertical in one color is at best a misunderstanding of the way the world works, and at worst, deliberate misleading.
In terms of promotion methods
Finally, the most common and objective approach to the spectrum of traffic arbitrage is tied to the promotion methods of a particular product or service. What is called white, gray, and black arbitrage in this classification?
White approach is providing accurate and relevant information about the product/service, as well as compliance with the rules and regulations of the advertising platform.
Example of white arbitrage: advertising of legally allowed products or services according to the rules of the platform and fulfillment of obligations to the client and CPA/advertiser.
Gray approach is misrepresentation of part of the information about the product/service and/or use of “fancy little tricks” like cloaking to circumvent the regulations of the advertising platform.
Examples of gray arbitrage: doorways, spam, click-unders, and pop-unders.
Black approach is providing knowingly false information about the product/service, deliberate deception of both the advertising platform and the user, providing low-quality traffic to the advertiser or CPA, and other objectively deceptive and malicious practices in traffic arbitrage.
Examples of black arbitrage: fake promotions, not sending goods, motivated traffic, malware ads, false advertising.
It's not hard to guess but no one likes the black arbitrage and black traffic, as it ultimately hurts all parties involved.
At the same time, keep in mind that white and gray approaches are interchangeable in many cases. You can promote the same product or service using different ads and pre-lendings that will classify your campaigns as "white" or "gray" accordingly. It's mostly about your approach more than about the promoted product or service itself.
Conclusion (if anyone needs one)
Regardless of how you define the "spectrum" of traffic arbitrage, the conclusion is obvious. The "whiter" your methods are, the better it is for everyone in the long run. The CPA or advertiser gets quality traffic; the platform has no ads that contradict its rules; the client gets exactly what they were promised; and the arbitrageur doesn’t create unnecessary problems with the law, reputation, and karma for themselves.
Gray methods are also often justified, but if possible it is better to avoid them; and black arbitrage... We sincerely hope that our users do not engage in such practices and conduct their business more or less honestly.
In traffic arbitrage, these words are also often used, with white, black, and even gray arbitrage being singled out by various experts. But the attentive reader has likely long noticed that at times the context of these terms is significantly different, as if everyone is talking about different things using the same words.
So, what are white, gray, and black traffic arbitrage really?
In terms of a vertical’s legal status in a GEO
The first thing that needs to be pointed out is that these terms are indeed used in different meanings, so we will go through all the main interpretations.
Arbitrage can be roughly categorized into "shades of gray" based on how much a particular vertical is legal in a particular region aka a GEO. A simple example: in the UAE, selling winter jackets is legal, but casinos are not. Therefore, your product ads with jackets will be "white", but ads promoting gambling will be undoubtedly "black". And in a country where online casinos are not regulated in any way, the very same ads will be "gray".
This simple approach in general has the right to exist, although some people try to scale it to the vertical as a whole, which is fundamentally wrong... Let’s see why.
In terms of a vertical in general
With the laws of specific countries, it’s all self-evident (forbidden — black, allowed — white, unregulated — gray), but here, everything is both simpler and more complicated. Some affiliates paint entire verticals in one color and call them, for example, "entirely black". What’s wrong with this approach?
A vertical that’s illegal in one region may be gray in another GEO — and laws in general tend to change. There are no absolute truths here, even if you look at the most insane extremes: for instance, in some regions of the world the slave trade is still de facto allowed, whereas not just selling but even wearing glasses was punishable by death under Pol Pot's regime.
An attempt to paint an entire vertical in one color is at best a misunderstanding of the way the world works, and at worst, deliberate misleading.
In terms of promotion methods
Finally, the most common and objective approach to the spectrum of traffic arbitrage is tied to the promotion methods of a particular product or service. What is called white, gray, and black arbitrage in this classification?
White approach is providing accurate and relevant information about the product/service, as well as compliance with the rules and regulations of the advertising platform.
Example of white arbitrage: advertising of legally allowed products or services according to the rules of the platform and fulfillment of obligations to the client and CPA/advertiser.
Gray approach is misrepresentation of part of the information about the product/service and/or use of “fancy little tricks” like cloaking to circumvent the regulations of the advertising platform.
Examples of gray arbitrage: doorways, spam, click-unders, and pop-unders.
Black approach is providing knowingly false information about the product/service, deliberate deception of both the advertising platform and the user, providing low-quality traffic to the advertiser or CPA, and other objectively deceptive and malicious practices in traffic arbitrage.
Examples of black arbitrage: fake promotions, not sending goods, motivated traffic, malware ads, false advertising.
It's not hard to guess but no one likes the black arbitrage and black traffic, as it ultimately hurts all parties involved.
At the same time, keep in mind that white and gray approaches are interchangeable in many cases. You can promote the same product or service using different ads and pre-lendings that will classify your campaigns as "white" or "gray" accordingly. It's mostly about your approach more than about the promoted product or service itself.
Conclusion (if anyone needs one)
Regardless of how you define the "spectrum" of traffic arbitrage, the conclusion is obvious. The "whiter" your methods are, the better it is for everyone in the long run. The CPA or advertiser gets quality traffic; the platform has no ads that contradict its rules; the client gets exactly what they were promised; and the arbitrageur doesn’t create unnecessary problems with the law, reputation, and karma for themselves.
Gray methods are also often justified, but if possible it is better to avoid them; and black arbitrage... We sincerely hope that our users do not engage in such practices and conduct their business more or less honestly.