YouTuber Marques Brownlee Addresses Honey Scam Allegations As $5 Million Lawsuit Rocks PayPal-Owned Extension
On Wednesday, YouTuber Marques Brownlee, popularly known as MKBHD, addressed allegations against the Honey browser extension, which is owned by PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL).
What Happened: Brownlee responded to the allegations made by fellow YouTuber MegaLag last month in a video titled “Exposing the Honey Influencer Scam.”
MegaLag’s video, which has amassed more than 14 million views, accused Honey of withholding affiliate revenue meant for influencers and manipulating discount codes to benefit specific retailers.
According to the video, Honey has sponsored over 5,000 videos, collectively amassing nearly 8 billion views.
This has caused significant backlash and resulted in a class-action lawsuit against PayPal, filed on Dec. 29, seeking over $5 million in damages.
Now, Brownlee, who had three videos sponsored by Honey, expressed his disappointment, stating, “Obviously, if I had known any of this, I never would’ve worked with Honey.”
“I have removed the honey ads from those videos in the name of not accidentally promoting honey any more than I possibly could,” he added.
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Despite his past association, Brownlee is not a plaintiff in the lawsuit, noted Mashable.
A spokesperson for PayPal defended Honey’s practices in a statement to Law.com, underscoring its benefits for shoppers and merchants.
“Honey is free to use and provides millions of shoppers with additional savings on their purchases whenever possible,” the spokesperson said, highlighting Honey’s adherence to industry standards.
Why It Matters: The lawsuit comes at a challenging time for PayPal, which in October 2024 reported its fiscal third-quarter earnings.
The company experienced a 6% year-over-year revenue growth, reaching $7.85 billion, slightly below the analyst consensus of $7.88 billion. PayPal’s adjusted EPS of $1.20 surpassed the analyst consensus of $1.07.
Price Action: PayPal’s stock gained 0.97% on Thursday, closing at $86.18. In the after-hours session, the price edged up by 0.35%. In 2024, PYPL shares have climbed 46.99%, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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