How to label a collaboration on YouTube, Twitch and Instagram
If a studio gives you access or codes and you publish about it, tell your audience. Where to put the label, which wording works in Spain, how to use the tools of YouTube, Twitch and Instagram and what to do when you share the content elsewhere.
In short
- This is general guidance, not legal advice. If you publish about a game after receiving access or codes from the studio, tell your audience clearly: put the label at the start of the content, in your audience's language.
- In Spain the law treats a free product or access as consideration, so it applies even if no money changes hands. In our creators programme, publishing is voluntary, but if you publish, you label.
- Use the disclosure tool of your platform as well as your own words. Some tools say 'paid', so pick the closest option and add a plain label of your own.
- Wording that a Spanish code of conduct accepts includes 'publicidad', 'en colaboración con' and 'patrocinado por'. It does not accept a bare 'Ad', 'gracias a' or the brand's hashtag alone.
This is general guidance, not legal advice. If a studio gives you access to a game, or codes to give away, and you then publish about it, your audience should know. The rule is simple: put a clear label at the start of the content, in the language of your audience, and use the disclosure tool of your platform. This article explains how, with the case of the COLONIZED creators programme. The points about Spain come from our own reading of official texts and a summary of a code of conduct on 26 October 2026, and they are not a lawyer’s opinion.
Why a free product counts
In Spain, the Unfair Competition Law (art. 26) treats as unfair promoting a product on social networks, paying for it, without making clear that it is advertising. A code of conduct for influencers, in force since 1 October 2025 according to a law firm summary, reads “payment” broadly and includes handing over a product for free. We have not read the official text of the code.
The consequence for our programme: access and codes are consideration even if no money changes hands. Publishing is voluntary, and COLONIZED does not ask you to review, add the game to a wishlist or give a positive opinion. But if you decide to talk about COLONIZED, you declare it.
Wording that works, wording that does not
According to that summary, the code accepts terms such as:
- “publicidad”
- “publi”
- “en colaboración con COLONIZED”
- “patrocinado por”
and does not accept a bare “Ad” or “Advertising”, “gracias a”, “regalo de”, “Colab” or the brand’s hashtag alone. In another country, use the equivalent clear word in your audience’s language and check local rules. Note that our case has no payment, so avoid wording that says “paid”.
Where to put it
- At the start. In a video, say it in the first seconds and show it on screen. In a post, the first line.
- In the description and the title when the platform allows it.
- Again when you share it. Keep the label when you cut a clip or post it in another channel.
- Plus the platform tool, described next.
The tools of each platform
| Platform | Tool | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube | Paid promotion setting in YouTube Studio | When uploading, mark that the video includes branded content or paid promotion. Viewers see a label at the start |
| Twitch | Branded content setting in the stream information | Switch it on before you go live and say it aloud as well |
| Paid partnership label | Add it to the post, reel or story and tag the studio when the tool asks for it |
Names and menus change, and some say “paid” even when no money is involved. Choose the closest option, check the platform’s current help page, and add your own plain label as well. YouTube describes its option in its help page on paid promotion.
Examples
- “Publicidad: this video is made in collaboration with COLONIZED, which gave me access to the closed alpha.”
- “In collaboration with COLONIZED: I received invitation codes to give away.”
Say also what is firm. The closed alpha is a Steam Playtest by invitation, and its first waves are planned for winter 2026-2027. Do not add dates or figures of your own.
If you forget
Correct it as soon as you notice: edit the title, description or pinned comment and switch the tool on. In the programme, a missing label gets a written warning and 48 hours to fix it. Repeated failures lead to withdrawing the unused codes and the place.
For giveaways, read the general giveaway guide. For a streaming checklist, see how to stream a game during its closed alpha.
Questions and answers
Do I have to label a collaboration if I was not paid?
In Spain, our reading of the rules is that free access or a free product counts as consideration, so yes: if you publish about the game after receiving it, label it. Other countries have their own rules, and this is general guidance, not legal advice.
Where do I put the collaboration label?
At the start of the content, where nobody can miss it, and in your audience's language. In a video, say it aloud and show it on screen as well as in the description. Keep it when you share the content in another channel.
Is the hashtag #ad enough?
Not in Spain. A Spanish code of conduct for influencers does not accept a bare 'Ad' or a brand hashtag alone. Use clear words such as 'publicidad' or 'en colaboración con COLONIZED', in your audience's language, plus the platform tool.
How do I label a collaboration on YouTube, Twitch and Instagram?
Use the platform's own disclosure option as well as your own words. YouTube has a paid promotion setting in YouTube Studio, Instagram has a paid partnership label and Twitch has a branded content setting. Names change, so check the current option.
Does COLONIZED require me to publish?
No. Promoting the game is voluntary and unpaid in the creators programme. We do not ask for a review, a wishlist or a positive opinion. If you do publish, you label the collaboration.
Sources
Third-party figures link to their source. The date is the publication date or, when there is none, the day we checked the page.
- Ley 3/1991 de Competencia Desleal, art. 26 (BOE) · Boletín Oficial del Estado · 2026-10-26
- Ley 34/2002 (LSSI), art. 20 (BOE) · Boletín Oficial del Estado · 2026-10-26
- Paid promotion on YouTube · YouTube Help · 2026-10-26
- Creators programme · COLONIZED · 2026-10-26
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