Affiliates of one of our top programs — APN — have seen their payment dates pushed back repeatedly over the last month, to the point that some of us have now been waiting for over a month.

However, after discussing the current situation directly with APN’s management, we’re convinced that they’re still worth sticking with, and we’re convinced that patient affiliates will be rewarded shortly. Contrary to what some have suggested, we believe this operation is nowhere near the level of widely denigrated and now defunct operations like WebRX.

The problems began with hassles from MasterCard, which has reportedly been causing problems for many online pharmacies over the last few months — problems which have led many other programs to drop MasterCard support altogether. Rather than dropping them completely, however, the folks at APN have chosen instead to ‘fight back’, by finding a new processor for MasterCard payments and making other banking arrangements which it’s hoped will help the program to run smoothly in the future.

So have there been delays to affiliate payments? Yes, absolutely.

But are those delays understandable within a broader context? Yes, they are — and more importantly, that broader context does not appear to be one of a merchant just trying to stick it to the affiliates (as many of us have experienced so many times with other programs). Rather, that broader context seems to be one of continuing efforts to build a sustainable longer term business.

Would we prefer simply to get paid, and not have that broader context interfere with payments? Of course we would! But in this particular case, we’re confident that APN’s backers really do intend for the problems to be temporary, and we’re confident that we’re not just being ripped off. For our part, we’re going to continue to support them.

What do you think? Leave a comment below if you’re working with APN and want to share your views!