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Spotlight PEPPOL BIS Billing 3.0 The EU e-invoicing mandate is here — France Sept 2026, Belgium Jan 2026, Germany 2025.

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Foundations

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Standards

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Flagship messages

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Tools

X12 290 — Cooperative Advertising Agreements

The 290 documents a cooperative advertising agreement (co-op advertising) between a supplier and a retailer: event, budget, claim eligibility, terms.

Purpose

The 290 formalizes a co-op advertising program: the supplier agrees to reimburse the retailer for a portion of advertising costs tied to its products (typically 25-100% per program). It carries the event (Black Friday, Mother's Day), eligible SKUs, allocated budget, claim rules, delivery requirements (proof of performance).

It feeds supplier marketing development funds (MDF) systems and retailer co-op management systems. Acknowledged by 997; subsequent claims flow through 810 (Invoice) or a dedicated message.

Envelope structure

The 290 travels within the three X12 envelope levels (ISA/IEA, GS/GE with functional group CO, and ST/SE). Didactic example in release 004010:

x12 example-290.x12 
ISA*00*          *00*          *ZZ*SUPPLIER      *ZZ*RETAILERCO     *260514*1200*U*00401*000000290*0*P*>~
GS*CO*SUPPLIER*RETAILERCO*20260514*1200*1*X*004010~
ST*290*0001~
BGN*00*CO-2026-0042*20260514~
N1*SU*ACME BRANDS*24*EIN-SUPPLIER~
N1*BY*RETAILER CORP*24*EIN-RETAILER~
REF*ZZ*EVENT-BLACKFRIDAY-2026~
DTM*RT*20261120~
DTM*RT*20261201~
AMT*ZZ*50000.00~
REF*ZZ*PROGRAM-CO-OP-50PCT~
SE*10*0001~
GE*1*1~
IEA*1*000000290~

Common segments

  • Header — ST, BGN.
  • Parties — N1*SU (Supplier), N1*BY (Retailer).
  • Program — REF*ZZ (event name), DTM*RT (period), REF*ZZ (program ID), AMT*ZZ (budget).
  • Eligible SKUs — repeated LIN for included products.
  • Claim rules — MSG or REF*ZZ for proof-of-performance requirements.
  • Summary — SE.

Common pitfalls

  • Robinson-Patman compliance: a co-op program must be offered proportionally to all comparable retailers; a selective 290 favoring a large retailer exposes to Robinson-Patman §2(d)/(e) claims.
  • Proof of performance: claims without tear sheet, screenshot, or broadcast log can be rejected; the 290 must list expected proofs explicitly.
  • Budget vs actuals: an allocated budget in the 290 is not a payment promise; claims exceeding budget can be short-paid without recourse.

Documentation

The code 290 and the name Cooperative Advertising Agreements are public and listed on x12.org/products/transaction-sets. The complete structure of loops, qualifiers and code lists is distributed by DISA via the proprietary Implementation Guides (TR3). ediverse.io covers only public concepts, the envelope and didactic examples.