The rules
Blacksimon wrote a set for himself, posted them publicly in September 2020, and hasn't changed a word since. They're the reason the reviews are worth anything.
The thinking behind them →
No brand has ever paid for a placement, a mention, or a kind word. No agency, no arrangement, no exceptions — and no affiliate deal with any keyboard vendor.
"I have no sponsors, I accept no money from any company or entity, ever."
Review units go back, or he buys them. Nothing arrives free and stays free — because a free keyboard is the cheapest way in the world to buy a good review.
"I don't take free review units (I pay in full for any unit I keep) without exception."
The stream has run at a deliberate loss for most of its life. If it ever turns a real profit, that money goes back to the people watching.
"I stream because I love it, and if I ever make a direct profit from streaming, any profit will go back into the stream."
Prizes come out of his own pocket, or from community members who donate them. No vendor has ever paid for a slot.
"Any giveaways are purchased out of my own pocket, and not financed by anyone else, ever."
Subscribing and donating are optional and always have been. Watching is enough.
"If you can't afford to donate or subscribe, I appreciate you tuning into the streams and watching, and it means everything to me."
"I've talked about these rules before, but they were never written down anywhere. Now they are."
Discord, 29 September 2020.
Everything the stream earns belongs to BLACKSIMON TV LLC, not to Simon. It can't pay his rent, buy his food, or buy him a keyboard to use himself. It buys camera gear, giveaways, and the community's events. Even the equipment is the company's rather than his.
When he has taken money out, it was recorded as a loan rather than profit — and he has since paid all of it back. If he ever stops streaming he doesn't keep the gear; it gets sold to fund one last giveaway.
Going forward he'll draw a modest wage for his time. That will be published too, like everything else.
He does — and he said so himself in 2020, before anyone thought to ask. The line he draws is about conflict of interest, not about money.
He reviews keyboard vendors, so he takes nothing from keyboard vendors: no affiliate deals, no discount codes that pay him, no kickbacks. That is where a payment would actually buy something, and that is exactly why there isn't one.
Amazon isn't a vendor he reviews. The link is disclosed, and the money goes into the company like everything else — it appears in the books as $851.16, a little over two percent of income. You can go and look at it.
"I do have amazon affiliate links, but these also go back into the stream without exception."
Worth being precise about, because there are two very different things here.
Boards sent to him to review for content. He does not keep these for free — ever. They're either bought at full price, given away, or sent back. A free review unit is the cheapest way to buy a good review, so the answer is always no.
Friends in the hobby do sometimes send keyboards and parts, because that's a normal part of being a good keyboard friend. He keeps those — but he's under no obligation to show them, review them, or so much as mention them on stream. A gift is a gift.
The line between the two is simple, and it's the whole point: was it sent to him to make content about, or was it sent to him as a present? The first kind never gets kept for free. The second kind comes with no strings — which is exactly why it's kept quiet rather than turned into a review.
Boards, keycaps, oddities, hate mail — it all goes to the same place. No obligation to show any of it, as above, but it's always appreciated.
