Category: Micropayment Stock Photography
News
StockXpert is ceasing regular operations
In a recent message sent to users of the micropayment stock photography site StockXpert, the company announced that it is ceasing operations and that it will no longer sell new credits or accept new members. The StockXpert site was launched by the Hungarian based HAAP Media which also operated the popular sxc.hu, a free stock photography download site. The business was later acquired by JupiterImages in Nov 2006 which was acquired itself by Getty Images in Oct 2008. Getty Images also owns iStockphoto, the world’s most popular micro-payment stock photography site.
News
Fotolia’s top-earning contributors net six figure incomes in 2009
Despite average image sale prices between $1 and $20, the three top contributors to micro-stock site Fotolia all earned more than $100,000 during 2009. Those three suppliers, ioannis kounadeas (http://www.fotolia.com/id/10056459); Monkey Business (http://www.fotolia.com/id/8653783); and pressmaster (http://www.fotolia.com/id/6202659) have all contributed to and benefitted from the Company’s impressive growth during challenging economic times.
News
Pixmac partners with iSyndica to enable uploads from 3rd party platform
Pixmac, a new micro-payment stock photography site launched in September 2008 from Prague, has annonced that it has chosen iSyndica, a cloud-based digital media distribution platform based in Nashua NH, as an exclusive partner for image creators looking for 3rd party solutions to upload to multiple stock photography sites.
News
Fotolia reaches 8 million image mark
Leading microstock company Fotolia recently added its 8 millionth image, a new milestone for the popular image library. Fotolia adds 10,000 new images per day on average and in addition to its vast royalty free image collection the company also offers customers vector files and videos.
News
Creative Commons’ Joichi Ito joins Picscout
Joichi Ito, co-founder and Board member of Digital Garage and the CEO of Neoteny, has joined Picscout as an important member of its Advisory Board. Ito’s was excited to join the Israel-based image-tracking leader: “PicScout is bridging the interests of businesses and those of Internet users, supporting the hybrid sharing economy that is so crucial in getting past the destructive spiral that much of the online media business is in.” Ito has stated that he is pleased with Picscout’s adaptation of the work Creative Commons has contributed to the industry: “In addition, PicScout has agreed to interoperate with the open standards we are working on at Creative Commons.”
News
Getty appoints iStockphoto to manage free stock photography site SXC.hu
Earlier this year when Getty images completed its acquisition of JupiterImages the company also acquired a popular free stock photography site located at sxc.hu. The popular site reported in 2006 to have over 25 million page views monthly and over 500,000 registered at the time it was purchased by JupiterMedia from the Hungarian company Haap Media. The previous strategy was to use this free image site to upsell users to its own micro stock platform located at Stockxpert.com and now Getty Images is seeing the potential to continue operating the free site as a means to funnel traffic to its own micro-payment site iStockphoto.
News
Fotoglif launches new micropayment site focused on serving bloggers and web publishers
A new stock photography business has launched in Toronto called Fotoglif, with a focuse on serving images to bloggers, social media fans, and other Web publishers with royalty-free and timely images. The beta version of the Fotoglif image-sharing community and licensing platform is available now live at Fotoglif.com. The site features more than 3 million images, with thousands of new ones from professional photographers and respected news agencies added each day.
News
Dreamstime releases “Stock Rank” an interactive stock photo review tool
Dreamstime, a Brentwood Tennessee based micro-payment stock photography business, has announced that it has introduced a new feature called “Stock Rank” that pairs two images on the screen and challenges the user to select the best photo—the photo most worthy of purchase or download—based on concept, subject, aesthetics, lighting, composition, etc. This feature was initially established as a quality assurance system utilized primarily by the agency’s editors as part of their training to review the commercial aspects of stock submissions. “We’re making the feature available to all members. It’s fun and will allow all users to learn to understand the difference between the images, degrees of quality and what actually sells,” said Serban Enache, CEO and co-founder of Dreamstime.com.
News
AudioMicro upgrades music licensing platform; Teams with SlideRocket
AudioMicro.com, a micropayment licensing platform for audio clips and sound effects, has announced that it has upgraded its music licensing platform with a cleaner, smarter interface, and improved search tools. In addition, AudioMicro has teamed with SlideRocket and added its extensive library of stock music and royalty free sound effects to the SlideRocket marketplace. Utilizing AudioMicro’s new API, SlideRocket users can now license tracks from the AudioMicro archive and incorporate them directly into their SlideRocket presentations. “SlideRocket’s beautiful design and powerful communication capabilities made a natural fit for the AudioMicro music and sound effects library”, said Ryan Born, founder and CEO of AudioMicro. “At least 50% of the entertainment value of visual media comes from the audio. With over 125,000 tracks to choose from, SlideRocket users are now able to create more compelling, attention grabbing presentations, utilizing AudioMicro music and effects to engage their audience.”
News
iStock launches high-end collection Vetta and projects gross revenue of $200MM for 2009
The leading micro-stock web-site, Getty’s iStockphoto, has announced the launch of a new premium collection of imagery that will command higher prices than their regular collection. Prices for images from the new collection, called Vetta(TM), will range up to 70 credits, the equivalent of $96.25. iStock has also announced it projects gross
revenue to reach US$200MM this year.
News
iSyndica releases video syndication tool for microstock distribution
iSyndica, a cloud-based digital media distribution platform based in Nashua NH, has built a business allowing mictrostock photographers to submit images to their site to be automatically distributed to multiple microstock sites. The business has just announced that I has developed a similar virtual-distribution server for video syndication. With iSyndica, users upload their content once and then choose the channels over which they want to distribute it.
News
Fotolia appoints former iStockPhoto co-founder Patrick Lor as President for North America
Fotolia, a popular micro-payment stock photography site, has announced that it has hired of Patrick Lor, co-founder of iStockPhoto, as the company’s new President for North America. Lor has been tasked with overseeing North American operations for Fotolia, which currently has a presence in 10 countries worldwide. He will be working with co-founder and CEO Oleg Tscheltzoff on continued expansion strategies for the company, which has nearly 4 million monthly unique visitors (comScore), more than five million images available for license and more than 1 million members worldwide.
News
Bruce Livingstone resigns from iStockphoto and Getty Images
Bruce Livingstone CEO and founder of iStockphoto has announced that he is stepping down from his post as CEO of iStockphoto and SVP Consumer at Getty Images. The company was launched just over nine years ago and quickly became the leading microstock image licensing service culminating in its sale to Getty Images for $50 million in Feb 2006. After the sale of the business Livingstone who was in his mid-30s continued as the CEO and was also appointed SVP of Consumer Products at Getty Images. “From the beginning, this crazy little experiment has shown the world what happens when people assemble to organize their creativity and business acumen. Together, we changed the way a whole industry works” Livingstone stated in a farewell message posted in the iStockphoto community.
News
Shutterstock reaches 6 million images
Shutterstock, a New York City based micro-payment stock photography subscription service, has announced that it has grown to more than 6 million stock images. In Nov 08 the company was touting that it had reached 5 million images and in less than four months, Shutterstock has added another million images to its offering. “We continue to experience tremendous growth in both the size of our library and in the volume of images that our subscribers download,” said Jon Oringer, founder and CEO of Shutterstock. “Thanks to more than 144,000 submitters who contribute to our library, our customers can depend on us for a steady source of fresh, high quality content.” Shutterstock’s broad, diverse selection of stock images, user-friendly website, and sophisticated search engine enables subscribers to quickly and easily find the perfect images for their creative needs”.
News
PantherMedia partnering with ProStockMaster to allow streamlined image uploads
PantherMedia, a growing micro-stock image agency from Munich Germany, hyas announced a cooperation with ProStockMaster to allow photographer to upload images directly to PantherMedia just in a few clicks using ProStockMaster’s desktop upload and management software for microstock contributors. “Adopted by thousands of amateur and professional photographers around the world, ProStockMaster is the top application dedicated to ease the process of working with stock photography agencies. The software automates the tedious tasks of tagging, managing and uploading stock photos to online stock agencies, freeing photographers up to do what they love - shooting pictures”, said Robert Walters, CEO of PantherMedia.
FeaturesNews
Corbis closing SnapVillage offering micro-stock under Veer brand
Corbis has announced that it has decided to do away with SnapVillage by the end of this year and move its micro-stock offering onto Veer.com under the name Veer Marketplace. That the company has decided to shut down the seemingly ill-fated SnapVillage comes as no surprise. By all appearances, the site has made no dent in the micro-stock sector, where Getty’s more dynamic iStockphoto dominates and several other brands – Dreamstime, Fotolia, and Shutterstock – are the presumed runners up.
News
Fotolia to offer micro-payment stock footage
Fotolia, a popular micro-payment stock photography site, has announced that it is expanding its product offering to include stock footage and the agency is now calling for users to begin uploading user-generated video submissions to be licensed as royalty-free video clips at microstock prices. Other micropayment stock archives have taken a similar step to offer footage including iStockphoto and Shutterstock who began in 2006.
News
iStockphoto working with The Sony World Photography Awards
iStockphoto, a micro-payment stock photography business owned by Getty Images, has announced a partnership to become the official Amateur Selection committee for the 2009 Sony World Photography Awards (SWPA). Launched in 2007, The Sony World Photography Awards, include a week-long festival, an online magazine located at worldphotographyawards.org, and an international student program. The winner of L’iris d’Or – the best photograph for both the amateur and the professional awards – will be announced at the awards ceremony in Cannes on 16 April 2009.
News
Dreamstime partners with Phototimes to offer micro-stock in Russia
Dreamstime, a Brentwood Tennessee based micro-payment stock photography business, has announced that it has partnered with Phototimes (located in Rostov-on-Don, Russia) to effectively cater to the Russian market. The companies are launching what is being billed as the first micro stock photo outlet in Russia at PhotoTimes.ru. “Dreamstime is simple and logical and purchasing Dreamstime images will be made easy for our customers,” said Tamara Kvikviniya, who overseas Phototimes’ foreign economic and trade relations. “We intend to follow that very same model to provide a good service that makes good sense.”
Editorials
Mr. Stock Smarty Pants weighs in on stock licensing in a troubled economy
I feel your pain… Well, actually I don’t…after all, Mr. Stock Smarty Pants happens to be writing his latest words of wisdom while reclining under a dazzling sun and gently bobbing up and down on the deck of a sailboat anchored off Barbados. However, I’m trying my best to employ the technique known amongst us professional writers as “empathizing with your audience.”
What does MSSP hear over and over again these days? Wailings of doom and gloom, punctuated by exclamations that the sky is falling. BORING. E-mails filled with complaints about the state of the world economy. SO WHAT’S NEW? Phone calls (yes, every once in a while some lucky individual happens to stumble upon Mr. Stock Smarty Pants’ satellite phone number) in which people go on and on and on about the dire financial straits they’ve found themselves in. DIRE STRAITS…GREAT BAND, LOUSY CONVERSATION TOPIC. Letters (amazingly in this day and age, some people still like to spend money on postage stamps) detailing the many ways in which the stock picture industry is headed right into the dumpster. HEARD IT ONCE, HEARD IT A HUNDRED TIMES.
