MicrostockGroup Sponsors


Author Topic: Sales have tanked big time  (Read 180563 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

« Reply #400 on: October 26, 2011, 19:47 »
0
I watched the whole thing from beginning to end. I thought KKT did a very poor job. Just because I have a negative opinion of him, what he did for iStock and this interview doesn't mean I'm out to get them. That's just my honest opinion. Other people's mileage may vary.

And having said many times that you feel people here are reflexively anti iStock, it's really rich, SNP, for you to throw out the idea that people might be commenting without watching. Talk about making wild assumptions...


Noodles

« Reply #401 on: October 26, 2011, 19:50 »
0
Consolidation of all sites to one common technology platform.

not sure because he said "its not about integration"  2.30

Noodles

« Reply #402 on: October 26, 2011, 19:52 »
0
I watched the whole thing from beginning to end. I thought KKT did a very poor job. Just because I have a negative opinion of him, what he did for iStock and this interview doesn't mean I'm out to get them. That's just my honest opinion. Other people's mileage may vary.

And having said many times that you feel people here are reflexively anti iStock, it's really rich, SNP, for you to throw out the idea that people might be commenting without watching. Talk about making wild assumptions...

I thought SNP made a fair comment because there was no "extremely long pause"

SNP

  • Canadian Photographer
« Reply #403 on: October 26, 2011, 19:53 »
0

Getty = High Value
IS = Medium Value
TS/Photos.com = Low Value/Beginner
The fact that IS no longer has a dedicated CEO and the new GM is an E-Commerce Project Manager in a part time leadership role would indicate this is the direction they're headed. Consolidation of all sites to one common technology platform.

I clipped your quote...sorry. but I think this sums up the direction I believe they're going in too. a massive imagery hub that leads to assets at all price points. in theory I don't think that's a bad model. in practice, however, experience tells us that they'll keep pitting us versus them. if they don't take care to keep contributors fairly compensated for performing...this model will not be sustainable for contributors, and we'll go elsewhere or return to traditional photography ventures.

if they take care to maintain contributor relationships, and consistently ensure long-term growth and a system of fair/achievable goals, they could do really well with this model...assuming they keep assets separate and not mirrored at various price points.

« Reply #404 on: October 26, 2011, 19:54 »
0
in particular, he emphasized how well beyond the competition iStock is in terms of revenue. you can deny that all you want. doesn't make it untrue.

How do you know that? What evidence do you have that there is any truth whatsoever in that statement? Because Kelly said so? How would he know how well other agencies are doing and what they're paying out anyway? Does he have a sizeable mature portfolio with them all? Even if he did actually know the truth (which I doubt) do you think he'd blurt out how badly IS are doing in a softly-softly 'interview'? Especially when you consider it all happened on his watch and he got fired because of it. How naive can you possibly be?

At the time of writing I have so far today sold a pathetic 9 images on IS for a paltry $9 or thereabouts. On SS I have sold 73 images and made $88 __ with the same portfolio. Yesterday I made almost exactly the same on each site but only because of a rare chunky EL on IS. The day before it was $49/32 in SS's favour. SS is spanking IS's bottom and pretty much every day the gap is growing. Whether you like it or not all the evidence I have suggests that IS is slowly (rapidly?) dying because they have pissed both their customers and their contributors off.

Just 'cos Kelly says so doesn't make it true.

« Reply #405 on: October 26, 2011, 20:00 »
0
Ugh __ it's even harder to listen to. I see he's adopted the silly Australian end-of-sentence uplift which makes statements sound like questions. (Example 03.06 "... we're just trying to align that a little bit better ?"). It's fine when spoken in an Australian accent but otherwise it is extremely irritating. It makes a middle-age bloke sound like an anxious 14-year old girl. Total lightweight and was clearly out of his depth running Istock.
Last time I skiied at Banff (just outside of Calgary) 95% of the staff were Australian so no doubt the accent has to have an effect.  But I think it's really a Western Canada thing, it's worse where I am.   

« Reply #406 on: October 26, 2011, 20:01 »
0
I'm not interested in putting my content in Getty or Crapstock directly in any way.

SNP

  • Canadian Photographer
« Reply #407 on: October 26, 2011, 20:04 »
0
in particular, he emphasized how well beyond the competition iStock is in terms of revenue. you can deny that all you want. doesn't make it untrue.

How do you know that? What evidence do you have that there is any truth whatsoever in that statement? Because Kelly said so? How would he know how well other agencies are doing and what they're paying out anyway? Does he have a sizeable mature portfolio with them all? Even if he did actually know the truth (which I doubt) do you think he'd blurt out how badly IS are doing in a softly-softly 'interview'? Especially when you consider it all happened on his watch and he got fired because of it. How naive can you possibly be?

At the time of writing I have so far today sold a pathetic 9 images on IS for a paltry $9 or thereabouts. On SS I have sold 73 images and made $88 __ with the same portfolio. Yesterday I made almost exactly the same on each site but only because of a rare chunky EL on IS. The day before it was $49/32 in SS's favour. SS is spanking IS's bottom and pretty much every day the gap is growing. Whether you like it or not all the evidence I have suggests that IS is slowly (rapidly?) dying because they have pissed both their customers and their contributors off.

Just 'cos Kelly says so doesn't make it true.

no evidence gostwyck. just consistent reporting over the years from people far more in the know than me. I realize we live in a culture of crooked CEOs and greedy corporate *insult removed*. and those stereotypes exist for a reason. I know that Getty's track record is mottled, and that's probably being kind. but I know what I've seen, I trust those contributors who've been around much longer than me, and I believe the overall data provided to us at events, otherwise they were bold-faced lying. these are decent people I'm talking about. I agree, however, that assuming the numbers are FABULOUS--that doesn't mean contributors are benefiting. their share of the pie keeps getting bigger and bigger, ours smaller. I also won't stand idly by and have my work stuck in programs I don't wish to participate in. so far exclusives still have the power to opt out. we'll see how long that lasts.

you'll see it however you wish. it's either true or it isn't and I have zero proof one way or the other.

PaulieWalnuts

  • We Have Exciting News For You
« Reply #408 on: October 26, 2011, 20:04 »
0
Consolidation of all sites to one common technology platform.

not sure because he said "its not about integration"  2.30

It's at 3:20 and he continued by saying "there's no easy way to integrate them or make them work" and that it would take years.

I'm talking about consolidation, not integration. Build a completely new platform, or take an existing platform like IS or Getty, and consolidate the technology, functionality, and content on to one platform. It would be massively costly to do this, but so is probably running several independent companies that do the exact same thing.

 

« Reply #409 on: October 26, 2011, 20:35 »
0
how many people commenting in here actually watched the interview?...never mind

I watched it and I agree with you. Most of what he said was fairly accurate from iStcok's perspective. The company is a successful well oiled machine (compared to photos.com and other new properties) that pays its contributors a lot of money.

When you break those statements out from a contributors' perspective though, most of what he said seems fairly inaccurate and wrong. Especially with all the changes that have happened over the last year. Obviously, he's not going to do an interview where he focuses on falling income for artists, plunging royalty rates and RPDs, and a site that seems to have more technical problems and dead on arrival promises than all of the others combined. That would be an awesome interview to watch though.

Noodles

« Reply #410 on: October 26, 2011, 20:35 »
0
Consolidation of all sites to one common technology platform.
not sure because he said "its not about integration"  2.30

It's at 3:20 and he continued by saying "there's no easy way to integrate them or make them work" and that it would take years.

I'm talking about consolidation, not integration. Build a completely new platform, or take an existing platform like IS or Getty, and consolidate the technology, functionality, and content on to one platform. It would be massively costly to do this, but so is probably running several independent companies that do the exact same thing.  

Integration, consolidation, yeah ok but I get your point. Setting up such a hub in someplace like India would make financial sense. Cheap servers, engineers, everything! Microstock and Digital Stock in general is ideal for such a location. Makes you wonder why it hasn't already been done.

« Reply #411 on: October 26, 2011, 21:08 »
0
I watched it and I agree with you. Most of what he said was fairly accurate from iStcok's perspective. The company is a successful well oiled machine (compared to photos.com and other new properties) that pays its contributors a lot of money.

When you break those statements out from a contributors' perspective though, most of what he said seems fairly inaccurate and wrong. Especially with all the changes that have happened over the last year. Obviously, he's not going to do an interview where he focuses on falling income for artists, plunging royalty rates and RPDs, and a site that seems to have more technical problems and dead on arrival promises than all of the others combined. That would be an awesome interview to watch though.

Is the correct answer. Good summary.

« Reply #412 on: October 26, 2011, 21:23 »
0
^^^^^ ditto

Phadrea

    This user is banned.
« Reply #413 on: October 27, 2011, 00:59 »
0
That interview is hard to watch.

Ugh __ it's even harder to listen to. I see he's adopted the silly Australian end-of-sentence uplift which makes statements sound like questions. (Example 03.06 "... we're just trying to align that a little bit better ?"). It's fine when spoken in an Australian accent but otherwise it is extremely irritating. It makes a middle-age bloke sound like an anxious 14-year old girl. Total lightweight and was clearly out of his depth running Istock.

I agree with you on this. I also find it extremely irritating and it's epidemic in the UK. I know people who have talked normal all their life suddenly adopt this ridiculous habit.

rubyroo

« Reply #414 on: October 27, 2011, 02:50 »
0
How would he know how well other agencies are doing and what they're paying out anyway?

That is exactly what bugged me after watching that interview.  How could he possibly know that?

Other than that, to me he just seemed incredibly nervous, MUCH younger than I thought (having only seen photos before), and with thought processes that seem to hold up solely inside the Getty-verse.  I'm sure life is very rosy there, but unfortunately, the rest of us have to live outside it.

grp_photo

« Reply #415 on: October 27, 2011, 03:04 »
0
but I suspect he's terrible at interviewing in Italian too.
Yeah probably because he is German ;-)

« Reply #416 on: October 27, 2011, 06:18 »
0
Consolidation of all sites to one common technology platform.
not sure because he said "its not about integration"  2.30

It's at 3:20 and he continued by saying "there's no easy way to integrate them or make them work" and that it would take years.

I'm talking about consolidation, not integration. Build a completely new platform, or take an existing platform like IS or Getty, and consolidate the technology, functionality, and content on to one platform. It would be massively costly to do this, but so is probably running several independent companies that do the exact same thing.  

Integration, consolidation, yeah ok but I get your point. Setting up such a hub in someplace like India would make financial sense. Cheap servers, engineers, everything! Microstock and Digital Stock in general is ideal for such a location. Makes you wonder why it hasn't already been done.

It's not going to make the anti-outsourcing group happy!

Cost effective is one thing and cheap is another. In the end, you get what you paid for.

PaulieWalnuts

  • We Have Exciting News For You
« Reply #417 on: October 27, 2011, 07:06 »
0
Consolidation of all sites to one common technology platform.
not sure because he said "its not about integration"  2.30

It's at 3:20 and he continued by saying "there's no easy way to integrate them or make them work" and that it would take years.

I'm talking about consolidation, not integration. Build a completely new platform, or take an existing platform like IS or Getty, and consolidate the technology, functionality, and content on to one platform. It would be massively costly to do this, but so is probably running several independent companies that do the exact same thing.  

Integration, consolidation, yeah ok but I get your point. Setting up such a hub in someplace like India would make financial sense. Cheap servers, engineers, everything! Microstock and Digital Stock in general is ideal for such a location. Makes you wonder why it hasn't already been done.

It's not going to make the anti-outsourcing group happy!

Cost effective is one thing and cheap is another. In the end, you get what you paid for.

Not necessarily. I regularly work with an offshore Indian company to develop .NET applications and they do excellent work.

Regarding anti-outsourcing, I understand the argument but in my situation I don't have a choice in the matter because my employer requires me to use them. For those who are negatively affected by outsourcing it's unfortunate but you either adapt, find a different career, or get in the unemployment line. As photographers we may face the same issue at some point.

« Reply #418 on: October 27, 2011, 07:54 »
0
Regarding anti-outsourcing, I understand the argument but in my situation I don't have a choice in the matter because my employer requires me to use them. For those who are negatively affected by outsourcing it's unfortunate but you either adapt, find a different career, or get in the unemployment line. As photographers we may face the same issue at some point.

I understand what you are saying and to a certain degree I agree, but it's pretty tough for the millions already standing in the unemployment line to get a different career. There are only so many companies offering careers where outsourcing wouldn't come into play, and I think the number of people looking for jobs and that as a new career overshadows that tremendously.

The only answer is to stop outsourcing, but again, it's not about helping the country or employees or unemployment. For the CEOs and top management, it's all about keeping what they personally already have at everyone else's expense.

SNP

  • Canadian Photographer
« Reply #419 on: October 27, 2011, 11:21 »
0
but I suspect he's terrible at interviewing in Italian too.
Yeah probably because he is German ;-)

rofl...my mistake, I wrongly assumed he was Italian being in Milan. same comment for German then.

Cogent Marketing

« Reply #420 on: October 27, 2011, 15:49 »
0
I could not get past the 1m.30 seconds mark. What a ***** bag. If that guy was (is) one of the so-called execs running iSP no wonder they've gone down the toilet. Saying that, he probably comes over x10000 times better than Lobo would have. Everything seems so much clearer now.......

SNP

  • Canadian Photographer
« Reply #421 on: October 27, 2011, 15:51 »
0
I could not get past the 1m.30 seconds mark. What a ***** bag. If that guy was (is) one of the so-called execs running iSP no wonder they've gone down the toilet. Saying that, he probably comes over x10000 times better than Lobo would have. Everything seems so much clearer now.......

classy

Cogent Marketing

« Reply #422 on: October 27, 2011, 15:59 »
0
Sorry SNP. I cannot quote and reply to you as I'm one of the 32 that have you on ignore. Had to log out to see your comment and then log back in again.

Classy? probably not but I'm not one of the sycophantic exclusive istock lovers that troll this site (and not just this forum). I say as I find. Istock execs and admins are cr*p. Period.
If you're too blind to see that well that's your problem not mine.

« Reply #423 on: October 27, 2011, 16:04 »
0
Sorry SNP. I cannot quote and reply to you as I'm one of the 32 that have you on ignore. Had to log out to see your comment and then log back in again.

Classy? probably not but I'm not one of the sycophantic exclusive istock lovers that troll this site (and not just this forum). I say as I find. Istock execs and admins are cr*p. Period.
If you're too blind to see that well that's your problem not mine.

Your own words tell a lot about you.

« Reply #424 on: October 27, 2011, 16:11 »
0
The only answer is to stop outsourcing...
Um, I think microstocking is outsourcing (the real meaning of which is getting the company's work done by sources outside the company). We should be careful what we wish for?


 

Related Topics

  Subject / Started by Replies Last post
16 Replies
6391 Views
Last post October 25, 2011, 01:02
by MicrostockExp
17 Replies
5993 Views
Last post September 18, 2012, 15:44
by tavi
2 Replies
5460 Views
Last post March 16, 2016, 06:25
by mirkic
17 Replies
5531 Views
Last post May 04, 2017, 16:38
by heywoody
28 Replies
13516 Views
Last post July 25, 2017, 01:34
by zorandim

Sponsors

Mega Bundle of 5,900+ Professional Lightroom Presets

Microstock Poll Results

Sponsors