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Author Topic: Return to Start - Fotolia reserves right to put you back at white ranking.  (Read 116895 times)

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« Reply #500 on: October 06, 2011, 11:16 »
0
Folks,

After carefully considering your feedback, we've decided to focus on retail pricing rather than commissions. Most of the photographers that we have spoken to agree that destructive retail pricing is not good for the industry. We have worked with industry leaders such as Yuri Arcurs and Mark Butler (Monkey Business) to convince agencies like deposit photos to sell at sustainable prices reflected by the current online market leaders. We applaud their recent success and hope the trend will continue. We encourage all photographers with portfolios on this and similar sites to do the same.

Based on your feedback, we've modified our rule to allow Fotolia to decrease retail pricing to the lowest tier, if a photographer's images are being sold on other sites for significantly less, **without** modifying the royalty levels.

Please note that this rule only applies to Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, and Diamond ranked images that are non-exclusive, and selling at prices above the standard XS price. No changes will occur without prior communications with the artist.

Chad Bridwell
Director of Operations
Fotolia.com



Ahh there, he did name names after all.

No doubt negotiations can now start with those other awful agencies like Photoexpress so that they stop selling Yuri's XXL images for $1 instead of 30 credits like on Fotolia.

(eg. http://www.photoxpress.com/stock-photos/bulb/man/light/13461974 vs. $30 http://www.fotolia.com/id/9588771)


« Reply #501 on: October 06, 2011, 11:19 »
0
I don't see Yuri and Mark as carrying my fate in their hands.  If I want to succeed, it's on me to make that happen.  Yuri and Mark got where they are because they're  good, and if I want their success I have to reach out and grab it for myself.

Sorry, I thought you were asking Chad for clarification on what the name dropping was for.

lisafx

« Reply #502 on: October 06, 2011, 11:19 »
0
I think what Sharpshot is saying is that since Yuri is willing to ask for the community's input when he's having issues, it would be nice if he would also contribute some insight when there are major issues affecting the community.  

Obviously he is not obligated to do so, and I don't think anyone's demanding it.  But it's reasonable to ask his opinion, just as it is reasonable for him to ask others here their opinions.  

Alessa

  • Personal Assistant of Yuri Arcurs
« Reply #503 on: October 10, 2011, 07:30 »
0
Hi everybody,
We've seen a lot of guesswork going on in this thread as to what's happening, and we'd like to make it absolutely clear that we are not part of any sort of arrangement with Fotolia to keep prices in the industry at a certain level.
That being said, it is true that we here at Yuri Arcurs Photography, as many other photographers, have contacted amongst others Deposit Photos to make them aware of where the industry will be heading in a short time if they continue to drop prices. This has resulted in Deposit Photos having raised their prices. We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission. The agencies cannot and should not agree on prices amongst them, so Fotolia will never negotiate any deals with Deposit Photos, but the photographers who submit images to the agencies can and should do so.

I hope this clarifies some of the questions which have been raised in this thread.

Best
Alessa
Yuri's personal assistant
« Last Edit: October 10, 2011, 07:34 by Alessa »

« Reply #504 on: October 10, 2011, 07:56 »
0
Hi everybody,
We've seen a lot of guesswork going on in this thread as to what's happening, and we'd like to make it absolutely clear that we are not part of any sort of arrangement with Fotolia to keep prices in the industry at a certain level.
That being said, it is true that we here at Yuri Arcurs Photography, as many other photographers, have contacted amongst others Deposit Photos to make them aware of where the industry will be heading in a short time if they continue to drop prices. This has resulted in Deposit Photos having raised their prices. We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission. The agencies cannot and should not agree on prices amongst them, so Fotolia will never negotiate any deals with Deposit Photos, but the photographers who submit images to the agencies can and should do so.

I hope this clarifies some of the questions which have been raised in this thread.

Best
Alessa
Yuri's personal assistant


--------------------------
for the record

« Reply #505 on: October 10, 2011, 08:06 »
0
It would be interesting to know if Deposit Photos was contacted by Yuri at the urging of Fotolia. The response seems to neatly skirt round that.

So I take it that Deposit Photos is now charging an amount that is acceptable to Fotolia and Yuri.

Anyone know what changes it made to its prices? At least that would guide us into knowing what pricing policies we must demand from those who agree to represent our work.

« Reply #506 on: October 10, 2011, 08:41 »
0
I see Yuri now has prices around double mine with Deposit Photos.  So we should all ask them to raise our prices?  Wouldn't it be a lot easier for them just to raise prices for everyone?  As my fotolia prices are lower than Yuri's, I don't think I will be contacting Deposit Photos.  They only have a small part of my portfolio and if they want more, they can raise prices for everyone.

« Reply #507 on: October 10, 2011, 08:47 »
0
We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission.

I'm don't think whatever agencies are particularly interested in negotiating with anyone.  Pretty much anyone, anyways.

lagereek

« Reply #508 on: October 10, 2011, 09:06 »
0
Well I have managed so far to negotiate my percentages with 2 agencies, its no big deal and they will listen.

« Reply #509 on: October 10, 2011, 09:21 »
0
I can just see the agencies rolling their eyes when I say "Yuri told me to negotiate with you for a better percentage" for my images. I'd rather they just offer a decent percentage and not make any changes for anyone.

« Reply #510 on: October 10, 2011, 09:34 »
0
Well I have managed so far to negotiate my percentages with 2 agencies, its no big deal and they will listen.

Details?

lagereek

« Reply #511 on: October 10, 2011, 09:36 »
0
I can just see the agencies rolling their eyes when I say "Yuri told me to negotiate with you for a better percentage" for my images. I'd rather they just offer a decent percentage and not make any changes for anyone.

Why involving Yuri in this?  Yuri, is an institution, he has earned his rights and should at all accounts negotiate. So would you and so would I.

lagereek

« Reply #512 on: October 10, 2011, 09:37 »
0
Well I have managed so far to negotiate my percentages with 2 agencies, its no big deal and they will listen.

Details?

NO!  secret,  and you will understand.

« Reply #513 on: October 10, 2011, 09:55 »
0
We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission. The agencies cannot and should not agree on prices amongst them, so Fotolia will never negotiate any deals with Deposit Photos, but the photographers who submit images to the agencies can and should do so.

I hope this clarifies some of the questions which have been raised in this thread.

Best
Alessa
Yuri's personal assistant


Thanks for the post Alessa.

I agree with lagereek and Alessa, if you have  a large enough portfolio, or the agency is new enough, or some happy combination of both, you are more than within your means to negotiate a better deal.  It is a business for both parties after all.  I'm guessing not too many stock sites would say 'we won't budge on commissions' if Yuri said I'm pulling my port unless..., given his terms are reasonable.  It is a simple math calculation.  Given a photographer with 10,000 or 3,000 or only 1,000 images the bargaining power is much less but there is still some bargaining power to be had - especially if the agency approaches YOU to join their agency and not the other way around.

Here is a thread that has some discussion and good links for things to think about with signing with a new agency
http://www.microstockgroup.com/new-sites-general/new-site-checklist-what-to-look-for-when-signing-to-a-new-site/

« Reply #514 on: October 10, 2011, 09:56 »
0
Hi everybody,
We've seen a lot of guesswork going on in this thread as to what's happening, and we'd like to make it absolutely clear that we are not part of any sort of arrangement with Fotolia to keep prices in the industry at a certain level.
That being said, it is true that we here at Yuri Arcurs Photography, as many other photographers, have contacted amongst others Deposit Photos to make them aware of where the industry will be heading in a short time if they continue to drop prices. This has resulted in Deposit Photos having raised their prices. We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission. The agencies cannot and should not agree on prices amongst them, so Fotolia will never negotiate any deals with Deposit Photos, but the photographers who submit images to the agencies can and should do so.

I hope this clarifies some of the questions which have been raised in this thread.

Best
Alessa
Yuri's personal assistant


Folks,

After carefully considering your feedback, we've decided to focus on retail pricing rather than commissions. Most of the photographers that we have spoken to agree that destructive retail pricing is not good for the industry. We have worked with industry leaders such as Yuri Arcurs and Mark Butler (Monkey Business) to convince agencies like deposit photos to sell at sustainable prices reflected by the current online market leaders. We applaud their recent success and hope the trend will continue. We encourage all photographers with portfolios on this and similar sites to do the same.

Based on your feedback, we've modified our rule to allow Fotolia to decrease retail pricing to the lowest tier, if a photographer's images are being sold on other sites for significantly less, **without** modifying the royalty levels.

Please note that this rule only applies to Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, and Diamond ranked images that are non-exclusive, and selling at prices above the standard XS price. No changes will occur without prior communications with the artist.

Chad Bridwell
Director of Operations
Fotolia.com



Note to anyone who dislikes fotolia- what theyve done is illegal and they would be fined for it in most countries. If one company tells another (via a supplier or otherwise) to raise their prices, it's called "price fixing". You can read about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_fixing
Anyone who has an issue with this company is advised to contact the relevant authorities in their countries.

fotorob

  • Professional stock content producer
« Reply #515 on: October 10, 2011, 10:00 »
0
The problem as I see it with DepositPhotos is NOT the normal credit pricing BUT their offer to download images and pay by SMS for about 1 EURO (high resolution, no subcription attached). I tested that with Yuris images a while ago (http://www.alltageinesfotoproduzenten.de/2011/02/23/billig-billiger-depositphotos-warnung-an-fotografen/) and it worked. So maybe Yuri is getting a higher percentage in the back, but that doesn't stop this low pricing structure.

Yuri was informed by a fellow photographer via Facebook and responded, but no changes so far...

« Reply #516 on: October 10, 2011, 10:03 »
0
Note to anyone who dislikes fotolia- what theyve done is illegal and they would be fined for it in most countries. If one company tells another (via a supplier or otherwise) to raise their prices, it's called "price fixing". You can read about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_fixing
Anyone who has an issue with this company is advised to contact the relevant authorities in their countries.


Hmm __ that's a good point.

« Reply #517 on: October 10, 2011, 10:08 »
0
I don't think many of us with medium size portfolios would get far negotiating with the big sites.  The small sites might be easier to work with but most of them are already paying me a much higher percentage commission than the bigger sites.

I would be interested in negotiating the reversal of the latest FT commission cuts and the istock commission cuts.  Do you think we would get anywhere with that as individuals?  Perhaps if 1,000 of us with portfolios over 1,000 images got together, we might get their attention.

« Reply #518 on: October 10, 2011, 11:04 »
0
Folks,

After carefully considering your feedback, we've decided to focus on retail pricing rather than commissions. Most of the photographers that we have spoken to agree that destructive retail pricing is not good for the industry. We have worked with industry leaders such as Yuri Arcurs and Mark Butler (Monkey Business) to convince agencies like deposit photos to sell at sustainable prices reflected by the current online market leaders. We applaud their recent success and hope the trend will continue. We encourage all photographers with portfolios on this and similar sites to do the same.

Based on your feedback, we've modified our rule to allow Fotolia to decrease retail pricing to the lowest tier, if a photographer's images are being sold on other sites for significantly less, **without** modifying the royalty levels.

Please note that this rule only applies to Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, and Diamond ranked images that are non-exclusive, and selling at prices above the standard XS price. No changes will occur without prior communications with the artist.

Chad Bridwell
Director of Operations
Fotolia.com



Ahh there, he did name names after all.

No doubt negotiations can now start with those other awful agencies like Photoexpress so that they stop selling Yuri's XXL images for $1 instead of 30 credits like on Fotolia.

(eg. http://www.photoxpress.com/stock-photos/bulb/man/light/13461974 vs. $30 http://www.fotolia.com/id/9588771)


You know Fotolia and Photoxpress are the same company, right?

So maybe Fotolia will send you back to white if they sell your images for nothing on Photoxpress.

« Reply #519 on: October 10, 2011, 11:42 »
0

You know Fotolia and Photoxpress are the same company, right?

So maybe Fotolia will send you back to white if they sell your images for nothing on Photoxpress.

Yeah that was exactly my point. Fotolia is the agency that's been leading the charge with "free image" sites, discounting & dodgy partner deals where its impossible to know what or whether you're even being paid for images that are sold.

« Reply #520 on: October 10, 2011, 12:24 »
0
I can just see the agencies rolling their eyes when I say "Yuri told me to negotiate with you for a better percentage" for my images. I'd rather they just offer a decent percentage and not make any changes for anyone.

Where do you see "Yuri told me"?

What I read was:

"We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission."

« Reply #521 on: October 10, 2011, 12:27 »
0
I can just see the agencies rolling their eyes when I say "Yuri told me to negotiate with you for a better percentage" for my images. I'd rather they just offer a decent percentage and not make any changes for anyone.

Where do you see "Yuri told me"?

What I read was:

"We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission."

Since the "We" was from his personal assistant, one would assume "Yuri told me" was the message's originator.

« Reply #522 on: October 10, 2011, 12:42 »
0
what is photoexpress? I find mountains of my images there, but when I try to download one I get referred to a sign-up page, when I try to find the pricing it isn't there. Is this a live site or something in limbo?

« Reply #523 on: October 10, 2011, 12:52 »
0
I can just see the agencies rolling their eyes when I say "Yuri told me to negotiate with you for a better percentage" for my images. I'd rather they just offer a decent percentage and not make any changes for anyone.

Where do you see "Yuri told me"?

What I read was:

"We encourage every photographer to engage in negotiations with whatever agency they submit images to in order to get a fair commission."

Since the "We" was from his personal assistant, one would assume "Yuri told me" was the message's originator.

"Yuri told me" comes across as forcing someone to do something while "we encourage" is more about giving advice or support. But I could be wrong.

The original originator is chad, no?  ::)
« Last Edit: October 10, 2011, 12:55 by ProArtwork »

« Reply #524 on: October 10, 2011, 14:57 »
0
what is photoexpress? I find mountains of my images there, but when I try to download one I get referred to a sign-up page, when I try to find the pricing it isn't there. Is this a live site or something in limbo?

Photoxpress was Fotolia's free image site, but now it's a super low cost site. It seems to bounce around...


 

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