Nouvelle loi sur les influenceurs, vers une transformation du marché ?
On Thursday, March 30, 2023, the French National Assembly adopted a bill aimed at combating scams and abuses by influencers on social media, in order to protect consumers by bringing more transparency and clearer regulations.)
It defines an influencer as:
"Any natural or legal person who leverages their notoriety to communicate to the public via electronic means content that directly or indirectly promotes goods, services, or any cause, in exchange for economic gain or in-kind benefits."
1. A duty of disclosure for influencers regarding remuneration or in-kind benefits
The law now requires influencers to clearly, legibly, and visibly disclose any commercial relationship with a brand on images or videos, for the entire duration of the content’s visibility.
“Failure to comply with these obligations is punishable by two years’ imprisonment, a €30,000 fine, and a ban on engaging in commercial influence activity.”
Although the obligation to disclose sponsored content already existed, it was often ignored—hence this legal tightening.
2. A stricter legal framework
a. Commercial influencing via electronic means is now subject to the same rules, restrictions, and prohibitions as advertising.
b. The role of an influencer agent is defined and requires the agent to “take all necessary measures to defend the interests” of the influencers they represent.
c. A written contract is now mandatory between influencers, their agents, and advertisers. This must include clauses about the identity of the parties, the nature of the services, payment terms, and submission to French law.
d. Influencers not based within the European Union must now appoint a legal representative within the EU who must carry liability insurance for their activities.
Measures that will transform the influencer marketing landscape
1. The influencer profession called into question
Given the legal risks and stricter constraints, some influencers will likely demand either higher compensation or stronger legal protections from brands.
These measures will also make the profession less attractive, making it harder for brands to recruit influencers and forcing platforms to rethink their business models.
Moreover, influencer platforms and agents are now bound by a more formal and demanding legal framework.
2. The performance crisis of influencer content
Clearly labeling the commercial nature of influencer content will change how audiences perceive it. Content that was once seen as independent recommendations will now be viewed as advertising.
Their performance (clicks, views, etc.) will start to mirror that of paid ads.
This shift will significantly impact the effectiveness of influencer campaigns.
Conclusion
Influencers have now become service providers for brands—much like agencies or content producers—and unsurprisingly, they are now subject to the same rules.
For a long time, influencers, their intermediaries, and brands took advantage of the blurred lines between User Generated Content (UGC) and influencer content.
UGC, by nature, is created spontaneously and without compensation by consumers or fans of a brand. That’s why it performs so well on social media and e-commerce sites (like customer reviews).
By publishing less polished content and hiding the commercial motivation behind it, sponsored influencer posts were often mistaken for UGC...
This new law puts an end to that confusion and challenges the entire influencer marketing ecosystem.
