Archives: September, 2008
News
Mary Evans now representing Castle Howard image collection
Mary Evans Picture Library, a specialty library from the UK featuring historical images, has announced that it has signed a deal to be the exclusive global licensing agent for the official image collection of Castle Howard in Yorkshire. Castle Howard is one of Britain’s finest and best-loved stately homes. The construction of Castle Howard took more than 100 years before it could be said to have been finally completed, and spanned the lifetime of three earls and numerous architects and craftsmen. Castle Howard, known to film buffs as the fictional Brideshead in Evelyn Waugh’s “Brideshead Revisited”.
News
New Approach from Down Under: Affordable Stock Photography (.com)
While reporting on an industry rife with new business models, we’re always on the look-out for new approaches to the business of selling and marketing stock photos. Photographer David Ewing of Melbourne, Australia, has recently taken over a small on-line stock photo agency which offers a slight variation on the standard way of marketing of royalty free stock photography: he offers the images at only one, medium file size. Contributing photographers set their own prices for their images. Ewing began as a principal contributor to the agency called Affordable Stock Photography (ASP) originally founded in 2003 by a US (Texas) search engine optimization company called Subia Creative. He assumed control of the business when Subia decided to exit the stock photo business, earlier this year.
News
Peter Arnold launches royalty-free stock photo collection
Peter Arnold Inc. a specialty library from NYC featuring an eclectic collection of Medical, Nature, and Science imagery, has announced that it has just launched a Royalty Free (RF) image collection. The images can be licensed online and download in file sizes ranging from 1 to 50 Megabytes. The Royalty Free line will complement the more than half million images already available for Rights Managed licensing.
News
Latin Stock launches royalty-free stock photography collection
Latin Stock, a stock licensing company with more than 20 years experience in image distribution in Central and South America has finally made the leap into the production side of the business with the launch of a new Royaly-Free (RF) image collection offered for non-exclusive distribution through a network of global partnerships. The company touts an innovative approach has allowed them to produce a unique collection of more than 3,500 images with 100% of the collection produced in LatinAmerica, with Latin models, Latin photographers in authentic Latin settings. The images will be offered at prices starting at US $49 for web resolution US $129 for lo-res files.
News
Photolibrary and AGE Fotostock sign distribution agreement
Photolibrary, one of the leading independent global stock licensing companies, has announced that it has signed a distribution agreement with AGE FotoStock to represent its entire collection of more than 5000,000 rights managed and royalty free images in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Asia and the Middle East. In addition, AGE Fotostock will represent content from Photolibrary on a global basis through its offices in Barcelona, Madrid, New York, and Paris and globally through AGE’s THP channel partners. “This latest representation agreement illustrates Photolibrary’s commitment to representing the very best rights managed imagery available, thus continuing our key offer of creative excellence for users of http://www.photolibrary.com” remarked Glenn Parker, Photolibrary Group CEO.
News
Digital Railroad partners with Qualex to offer print fulfillment
Digital Railroad, a leading provider of online archiving and marketing services to professional photographers, has announced that it has partnered with Qualex, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eastman Kodak, to allow contributing photographers to offer prints and print-related products utilizing the images currently available in the members Digital Railroad archive. Through the Qualex fulfillment service member photographers will have the opportunity to generate additional revenue from each image with terms where the photographer will receive up to 90% of the gross sale price, less the product fee (a fee meant to cover the cost of production and fulfillment).
News
The Medical File launches royalty-free collection and assignment division
The Medical File, a rights-managed (RM) stock licensing company founded by industry veteran Barbara Gottlieb specializing in medical imagery, has announced that the business is growing in two unique directions with the launch of a royalty-free (RF) image collection and an assignment photography division. According to Gottlieb, “we have made these additions to be able to supply all the forms of medical imagery our clients are looking for: Illustration and Photography; Color and Black and White; 1, 2 or 3 Dimensional and Animation; Stock and Assignment”.
News
Jupiter combines Photos.com with micropayment site Stockxpert in single subscription
Touting that it is now offering the best of both worlds in a single subscription. Jupiterimages, a division of Jupitermedia Corporation (Nasdaq: JUPM), has announced that it is now offering a single subscription product that incorporates the Photos.com collection of more than 360,000 professional images and the Stockxpert collection of more than 1.3 million micropayment images into a single subscription product. The new service will be branded as Photos.com Plus and Subscriptions are available for one month, three month and one year terms (limited to 750 images per month) with monthly subscriptions starting at $249.95.
News
1st annual Visual Culture Awards extends call for entries
A new international photography competition has been launched in Charleston, SC called the Visual Culture Awards. Founded by Mikayla Mackaness, she explains that “The Visual Culture Awards is not moneymaking: this competition has been created for the sole purpose of encouraging and supporting visual makers in cross-cultural communications”. Awards will be offered in nearly 20 unique categories including Pictorial, Environmental Portrait, Photographic Story, Architectural, Nature, Multimedia, Sports, Self-portrait, and many more. Winners will prizes valued up to $1000 or more and a host of other benefits including an exhibition of their work at the Chareston Center of Photography and the opportunity to be featured on abouttheimage.com.
News
A21’s ArtSelect launches PostersEtc.com targeting college students
a21, Inc. (OTCBB:ATWO), owner of the stock photo business Superstock and the framed art supplier ArtSelect, has launched a new poster site called PostersEtc.com iwith a focus on wall art intended to appeal to college students looking to decorate their dorms. “ArtSelect.com has been providing home decorators with high-quality custom-framed art prints and wall decor for over a decade now,” says Bruce Slywka, General Manager at ArtSelect. “Now, we are expanding our reach into this growing market by introducing a new site with a little more attitude.”
Federal judge rules in favor photographer’s heirs to control Marilyn Monroe images
A federal Judge in New York has ruled in favor of the Heirs of heirs of photographer Sam Shaw in a dispute over the rights to iconic photography of actress Marilyn Monroe created by Shaw. The image in question which has been ingrained in the American pop-culture consciousness depicts Monroe standing over a subway grate with her white skirt billowing in the draft.Shaw passed away in 1999 and his copyrights are in a trust, the Shaw Family Archives Ltd, to benefit his two daughters: Edith Marcus and Meta Stevens. In 2005, the trust sued CMG Worldwide and Marilyn Monroe LLC, alleging copyright infringement and complaining that three of Shaw’s images of the late actress were used on merchandise without permission or compensation.
Editorials
Tough summer for stock stock
No, that’s not a typo in the head-line. Managers of the two publicly-traded companies in the stock photo business, Jupitermedia and A21, will not look back on the summer of ‘08 fondly, at least not with respect to their stock prices. Jupiter’s stock price closed at $1.17 on the Friday of Labor Day Weekend – a slide of 30% from a close of $1.71 the Monday after Memorial Day. Over that same period, A21 Inc. hovered at literal penny stock status having floated between $0.01 and $0.03.
News
French agency Oredia buys RF producer Supraphoto
Supraphoto.com a royalty free stock photography producer from Prague has sold it’s entire image library to the French agency OREDIA. All of the images are available as high resolution files and are model and property released with metadata in 6 languages. (English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Czech).
News
Shutterstock announces 60 Million stock images served
New York based Shutterstock has announced that it has reached a major milestone by delivering its 60 millionth stock photo download from its subscription service since launchin in 2005. “We have grown tremendously thanks to our worldwide base of talented submitters who provide our customers with an extensive library of premium royalty-free images,” said Jon Oringer, Shutterstock founder and CEO. “We take great pride in developing flexible subscription plans for every budget as well as innovative tools to empower creative professionals.”
News
Corbis layoff reaches more than 15 percent of staff
Corbis, widely believed to be the world’s 2nd largest stock licensing company, is cutting slightly more than 15% of its global headcount of 1075 in an effort to further streamline the business. This round of cuts follows a similar lay-off last November which included 125 employees in order to downsize its customer service operations, and may be the result of redundancies created from the acquisition of Veer last year. According to Dan Perlet the Director of Communications at Corbis, the company has let approximately 50-75 employees go this week, including senior executives, and has notified the other employees whose jobs are being cut in the coming year. Perlet explained “We believe that restructuring our personnel gives us a better position to gain market-share in a competitive marketplace”.
News
PhotoShelter exiting stock photography business to focus on archive service
In a letter sent yesterday, PhotoShelter CEO Allen Murabayashi reveled plans to close down the company’s stock licensing division stating that “The PhotoShelter Collection was unable to change buyer behavior on a grand scale and generate revenues quickly enough to satisfy our goals for this product line”. As of today the company has stated that it has stopped accepting new research requests from buyers and will cease licensing images on October 10th.
News
ITN Source re-launches site featuring Rights-Ready licensing
ITN Source, a leading provider of stock footage from the UK has announced that it has re-launched its website, located at itnsource.com and featuring Clips On Demand, an archive of more than 500,000 clips with simplified Rights-Ready (RR) licensing. The company is claiming the this is ”the first time customers have been offered a full self service e-commerce model that offers transparency throughout the whole licensing process”. The RR licensing model was first introduced by Getty Images as a compromise between the ease of Royalty-Free (RF) and rights control of Rights-Managed licensing structures.
Mr. Stock Smarty Pants goes to Hollywood
I know what you’re feeling: the pain…the frustration…the sheer and total disappointment. No, I’m not referring to seeing Brett Favre in a uniform other than that of the Green Bay Packers (though lord knows that’s pretty bad, too). No, I refer, of course, to the distress many of us felt when it became obvious that Mr. Stock Smarty Pants would not be chosen as either party’s candidate for Vice President a few weeks ago. This, despite his many positive qualities that would be an asset to either ticket. You want smarts? Obviously, he’s got ‘em since that’s part of his name. Experience? Does a hefty number of divorces, jail terms and class-action suits count for something in this world? You bet it does! The ability to communicate with the electorate and mesmerize the unwashed masses in a manner that Barack Obama can only dream of?
News
Masterfile launches ‘Green World’ promotional magazine
Masterfile, a stock photography company based in Toronto with offices in France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom, has announced that will be distributing its latest magazine publication entitled ‘Green World’ in mid-September 2008. The publication focuses on imagery that supports environmentally compatible living – a trend that is expected to have a major impact on our culture in the near future. The company affirmed in a recent press release “Major corporations are increasingly putting out a ‘green’ message in their marketing strategies; on television, in print and on the web”. ‘Green World’ was produced carbon-neutrally and printed on 100% recycled paper.
Features
PictureNature finds harmony in traditional stock photography businesss
Contrary to the doom and gloom often heard in the stock licensing industry lately, PictureNature is telling a different story about a small niche rights-managed (RM) library from Scotland that is growing the old fashioned way, one customer at a time. The specialty library was started by Fenneke Wolters-Sinke a former Financial Advisor who moved from the Netherlands to Scotland in 2005 and was inspired by the natural beauty of her new home country to launch a local stock photography business featuring images of nature and the environment. “Our goal is to develop relationships with creative professionals in the stock industry who prefer working with an independent and relatively small supplier” adds Fenneke.
News
USPS issues 50th Anniversary stamp with Iditarod image by Alaska Stock’s Jeff Schultz
The U.S. Postal Service has announced that it will be issuing a stamp on January 2, 2009 commemorating Alaska’s 50th anniversary as a US State (Alaska became an official U.S. territory in 1912 and the 49th state on January 3, 1959). The image selected was created by Alaska Stock owner Jeff Schultz and depicts veteran sled dog racer on the DeeDee Jonrowe on the Iditarod trail. This years race will mark the 29th year that Schultz has volunteered as the official Iditarod photographer. He commented, “I’m honored that one of my photos was chosen to represent the State of Alaska on the U.S. postage stamp. I’m just plain ecstatic that it’s this particular photo, because it’s one of my all-time favorite photos from the Iditarod --- DeeDee Jonrowe mushing in the Rainy Pass area at dusk with alpenglow on the Alaska Range. I couldn’t be more pleased.”
News
iStockphoto opens European headquarters in Berlin headed up by Dittmar Frohmann
Getty Image’s micro stock photography business, iStockphoto, has announced that it will be opening a new European headquarters in Berlin on October 1st to be lead by Dittmar Frohmann. Frohmann, iStockphoto’s European director, is no stranger to the stock licensing business having most recently served as regional director at Fotolia, a rival microstock company. In addition, Kelly Thompson has been promoted to the post of Chief Operating Officer for iStockphoto from his previous position of Executive Vice President. “Kelly earned the COO position by helping drive the exponential growth of iStockphoto, using amazingly strong skills in everything from finance and marketing to computer programming and graphic design,” said Bruce Livingstone, founder and CEO of iStockphoto. “Dittmar Frohmann is an energetic and enthusiastic addition to our team who thoroughly understands the nature of the market we created, and I look forward to his accomplishments in Europe.”
News
Picapp raises $3.2 million, expands offering with Newscom, signs deal with Yardbarker Network
Picapp, a service of the Israel based technology company PicScout offering bloggers an ad-supported solution to use celebrity, sports, and news, images at no cost to the publisher has announced that it has raised $3.2 million in funding led by Carmel Ventures, an Israeli Venture Capital fund. On the heels of the investment announcement Picapp has also announced that it has signed a deal with the Yardbarker Network giving its contributors to more than 550 web sites and blogs access to millions photos from PicApp. “We have been assessing PicApp’s impressive business progress for a while and are confident that the company is poised to lead this growing category of copyrighted content monetization over social media” said Rina Shainski, Carmel Ventures General Partner who joined PicApp’s board of directors together with known angel investors Yair Goldfinger (ICQ, Dotomi) and Lenny Recanati.
News
Time Inc. teams up with Getty Images to launch LIFE.com
Time Inc. and Getty Images have announced that they have joined forces to launch LIFE.com in early 2009, a consumer website where users can interact with historic photos published in LIFE and iconic imagery from the Getty Images archives. LIFE.com will be jointly owned and operated by Time Inc. and Getty Images with Andy Blau (president of LIFE and SVP of Time Inc. Interactive) serving as the CEO, and Catherine Gluckstein (vice president of iStockphoto and Consumer Markets at Getty Images), as the CFO of the business. “Image search is the fastest-growing type of online search, and LIFE.com will satisfy the public’s desire for quality and relevant imagery through a visually pleasing and easy-to-browse website,” says Blau.
News
Alamy cutting royalties to fund US sales office
Alamy, one of the world’s largest stock photography libraries, has announced that it will open a US sales office in early 2009 in order to pursue high volume large accounts in the US. The UK based company has had its eye on the US market for some time and has been storing and serving images from the US Since late 2005 for increased website performance. In addition the company has announced that it plans to reduce the royalty percentage to contributors by 5% in order to fund the cost of expansion. The company currently pays an average of 60-70% in royalties to photographers who met the announcement with luke-warm enthusiasm. “I would have thought the money would have come from previous sales and investments, not by cutting the percentage that current contributors receive?” states contributing photographer Bruce Percy on the Alamy blog.
News
Senate passes Orphan Works bill (S2913), House expected to follow
The visual arts community has recently learned that the Orphan Works Bill (S2913, the Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008) was “hot lined” for a vote in the Senate on Friday afternoon. Upon hearing of this artists and trade organizations have been set ablaze with emotion. On late Friday afternoon the bill was passed in the Senate on the last day of the Congressional term while most of the national attention has been focused on responding to an economic crisis. According to a statement by the Advertising Photographers of America (APA) “Passing controversial legislation by this process, i.e. under the radar, is deeply troubling to say the least and every Senator needs to be held accountable.”
VIEW Pictures launches new website
London based VIEW Pictures, a specialty stock photography library with more than a decade of experience offering architecture and interior design imagery, has announced that it has launched a new website powered by The Data Archive. The company is touting several improvements with the new platform including a powerful new search engine, a light-box with a ‘drag-and-drop’ function, and hover-over image previews. VIEW’s collection now offers more than 50,000 images including works for more than 50 photographers and partner collections.
Art Life Images launches iTravelstock RM collection
Art Life Images, a new stock photo portal site launched by Chris DeLellis the former SVP Technology for a21/SuperStock, has announced that it has launched its first rights-managed (RM) stock photography collection called iTravelstock. The new collection features 40,000 images with a focus on travel and travel lifestyle imagery. “We are exceptionally fortunate to have the opportunity to represent some of the finest and freshest professional stock travel and destination work out there today” comments DeLellis.
