Navigating the Impact-Rakuten Merger: Insights and Concerns

Navigating the Impact-Rakuten Merger: Insights and Concerns

From Affiliate Nerd Out by Dustin Howes

May 7, 2026 · 24 min

About this episode

Dustin Howes and Cristen Evans discuss the implications of the Rakuten and Impact merger for agencies and brands.

Affiliate Marketing Shakeup: Rakuten & Impact Merger Insights for Agencies & Brands Dustin Howes and co-host Cristen Evans discuss Rakuten joining forces with Impact and the resulting migration of Rakuten merchants to Impact, calling it a major industry consolidation with an aggressive, wave-based timeline complicated by contracts and unresolved pricing details. They explore what this means for agencies and consultants, including fears that Impact’s referrals to agency partner...

People in this episode

Host: Dustin Howes

Guest: Cristen Evans

Topics covered

  • merger
  • affiliate marketing
  • industry consolidation
  • agency concerns
  • pricing details

Keywords

  • Rakuten
  • Impact
  • merger
  • affiliate marketing
  • agencies
  • consultants
  • pricing

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Rakuten, Impact

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