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Author Topic: Anyone Use Blackbox?  (Read 41576 times)

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« Reply #25 on: August 17, 2018, 17:15 »
0
@derby:

Their "special agreement" (we are both speculating here) could very well be higher commission for higher number of sales, perhaps even ratcheting up as sales increase, the way my photo commission does (I am on the third tier for those). It does not necessarily include any "automatic acceptance of media supplied."  In fact, I would be surprised if it did...

" if I should go to give them my port there should be good reasons not to go by myself: higher percentage of sells, quick review without expecting rejections, and so on"

How about: You get the same rejections you would on your own (no better, no worse), but you show up higher in search because you are part of a bigger team, and you get higher dollars per sale because the "team" gets a larger increase than their cut of the take?

To me, that would seem like enough reason to go with BB.

Again, though, I am not (yet) selling through BB and this is mostly speculative.  However, if indeed they can raise me in the search rankings plus give me more dollars per end-user sale, then I will seriously consider using them.


« Reply #26 on: August 18, 2018, 10:14 »
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Have been reading about them for about a month now. Its just that they never seem to say if with the rates they've negotiated how much will i end up making after the 15% goes to them. The other question is on timelines. If i send something today how long before it is live, a week, a month?

Seems like a good model to ensure that people do what they are good at.

« Reply #27 on: August 18, 2018, 10:50 »
+1
Its just that they never seem to say if with the rates they've negotiated how much will i end up making after the 15% goes to them. The other question is on timelines. If i send something today how long before it is live, a week, a month?

Sign up for an account with them. Costs nothing and you are not committed to actually submitting any media.

Once you have the account, you can read their very much in-depth discussion of those questions, among many others.  Specifically, they tell you how much you will make on a video sale from an agency on your own vs through them. (short answer, they claim your net $ paid is higher through them, and they supply specific numbers)

« Reply #28 on: August 18, 2018, 11:34 »
+1
Its just that they never seem to say if with the rates they've negotiated how much will i end up making after the 15% goes to them. The other question is on timelines. If i send something today how long before it is live, a week, a month?

Sign up for an account with them. Costs nothing and you are not committed to actually submitting any media.

Once you have the account, you can read their very much in-depth discussion of those questions, among many others.  Specifically, they tell you how much you will make on a video sale from an agency on your own vs through them. (short answer, they claim your net $ paid is higher through them, and they supply specific numbers)
I've registered, maybe i missed reading some of these details. Let me check again

« Reply #29 on: August 18, 2018, 12:00 »
+1
You dont have to work with BB.

No. But I have to work against BB if I don't work with them.




On Pond5 you have to work against the membership content that is privileged and much cheaper than your files. Also you cant place files in the collection, they only work with a select small group of contributors for that.

You cant even price your content to the same low level, if you wanted to do that to compete with them. And you will never have their rankings or a special button that allows the customer to search only your content, the way they search through the membership content. Which is very similar to the situation on videoblocks.

And on every agency you must work "against" any contributor or studio that uploads much more than you, even without a special deal.

Submitters are not all equal and of course the agencies are free to favor individual suppliers, if this is what they feel is good for their business.

Again, nobody has to join BB, I am just surprised that people are suddenly complaining about things that have been around for 20 years.

Aggregate suppliers and large studios have always given preference or simply had better rankings because of their high upload volume.

Many people work with suppliers that take exclusive photos and videos for distribution and they seem to be fine with it. Saves them time, one agency I know distributes to over 200 partners.

BB is new on the market, we will see how it goes. I am happy there. And for me it would be better if you all stay away ;)

« Last Edit: August 18, 2018, 13:06 by cobalt »

« Reply #30 on: August 18, 2018, 15:30 »
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Sign up for an account with them. Costs nothing and you are not committed to actually submitting any media.

It's on the Curation Guide page that they keep referring to repeatedly.

   https://www.notion.so/BlackBox-CURATION-GUIDE-0e2261b9974a4cc68c8ed3fc2dd7ad68

SpaceStockFootage

  • Space, Sci-Fi and Astronomy Related Stock Footage

« Reply #31 on: August 19, 2018, 23:09 »
+2
Overall I like the concept and it's a nice feature that you can share revenue for collaborations, or if you want people to curate your work. Obvioulsy if you've made everything yourself and are happy to curate your own work, then there's no need to share anything... but I like that the feature exists. I'm also not too concerned they take 15% if they are getting higher rates and better placement in the results.

The main downside for me is the inability to brand yourself as it all gets lumped in together, and the quality of the rest of the content in their portfolio. Looking at some of the clips on their FB page (and there's a latest clips uploaded section on the portal) there are some very talented individuals... but there are just as many people that seem to have no idea at all when it comes to stock. One of the first clips I saw was somebody making a cup of tea for 60 seconds, shot on what appeared to be a phone, in low lighting, with terrible colour balance, in an unremarkable kitchen. And we're not talking artistic angles, close with nice depth of field... it was on a tripod about two meters away, level with the cup. And there's plenty of similar examples... lots of hand held stuff that you should only be getting away with if the content is remarkable. Not a random aisle in a supermarket, an unremarkable tree or the view from your bedroom window.

I just feel that Blackbox is being marketed as 'stock footage' in general, rather than Blackbox. In that, I mean that they're very "make money from your footage! Did you know you can shoot videos and make money from them?! Escape the 9 to 5 rat race" etc etc. That's not exactly what they're saying, but it seems like every guy and his dog is turning up, shooting anything and everything in the hopes they'll strike it rich with badly shot, badly lit, shaky footage. I'm not really sure I want to be a part of that gang! But hey... I guess everyone has to start somewhere.

But I have uploaded three clips and I will upload more. I've gone for the space niche and I try to stick to that as closely as possible, but I sometimes think of a shot that might sell but it has nothing to do with space or sci-fi... so I usually don't bother making it. In these instances, I'll upload it to BlackBox. So they won't get my best stuff, and I won't be uploading that much content... so I'm not expecting this to be a big seller for me, but I'll give it a try. I do have a few plans for more live action stuff in the next couple of months, so I'll probably upload that there as well.

« Reply #32 on: August 20, 2018, 06:17 »
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The main downside for me is the inability to brand yourself as it all gets lumped in together, and the quality of the rest of the content in their portfolio. Looking at some of the clips on their FB page (and there's a latest clips uploaded section on the portal) there are some very talented individuals... but there are just as many people that seem to have no idea at all when it comes to stock.

Exactly.  Plus, because there's is zero feedback seen by the BB "contributor" from the agency when a clip is rejected, BB is growing a population of stock footage producers who aren't learning from their mistakes.  I wouldn't want my clips lumped in with theirs.

Does BB have their own curators who look at the clips BEFORE being sent to the agencies?  Or, does BB just dump everything and let the agencies do all the reviewing?  I suspect the latter is the case, which makes me think these agencies will only tolerate so much.  The fact that the BlackBoxGuild portfolio on SS is half the size of what's on VB and P5 implies that 50% of what is submitted is newbie junk submitted by Youtube viewers who are suddenly stock media creators without learning the ropes first.  (Since SS has a lower tolerance level for unwanted clips.)

If my acceptance rate at a given agency was 50%, I would think red flag would be raised at that agency saying this producer doesn't know what they're doing.

This is where BB needs to step in and do their own reviewing of material first, BEFORE sending to the agencies.  And if they do pre-curation now, they need to do a better job. 

While I agree that BB is a good idea on the surface, I think as it is now, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.  One issue is that all these new BB "contributors" are so green that they don't even understand what they're giving up by using the service.

Maybe BB should vet new contributors, make them pass a test or something before "crossing the border."  (Accepting everyone maybe really isn't a good idea in the long run after all.)  But that, along with self-curation, requires personnel.  Perhaps paying a large staff isn't in BB's business model right now.
 
« Last Edit: August 20, 2018, 07:34 by ODesigns »

« Reply #33 on: August 22, 2018, 22:10 »
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It ought to be solved with tech, a simple dashboard that combines all your submissions, rejections, sales etc will help clear the confusion a lot

« Reply #34 on: August 22, 2018, 22:34 »
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If you work with a distribution partner in the photo world, then they all give you a list of sales, but I have never seen or heard of one, that gives you a specific list about which of their 200 partner sites or api plug ins your individual file has been accepted into.

And you have the same problem of loss of individual branding as not all places will add individual artist names, justthe whole agency as a group.

I understand the problem, just wanted to point out that at least in the photo world, I have not seen a company that will give you an accepted/declined list for every image on every agency they work with. So personally I am not expecting it for blackbox.

If you prefer to be part of a distributor with stricter editing or artistic curation, then have a look at the other players on the market. There are quite a few high end agencies that also take video and distribute and then will also curate your submission so that everything has a very high standard.

Downside...they usually take at least 50% of revenue...

« Reply #35 on: August 23, 2018, 11:30 »
+2
I love BB.  I got burned when I uploaded all my stock library to Revostock and they went under, so I was very cautious going back into investing all the time with selling stock. BB is totally built for giving creators passive income and Pat the owner is one of us a creator.  I have been with them since November of last year and now have a steady passive income stream off my library, I still about have about 70% of clips to process.  They are adding more features to the service and for me the time-saving factor of one upload, one keyword, one description and the ability to share revenue with other parties involved, without me having to pay them, in the footage was great.  If you are making a living from stock by uploading to all the sites by yourself then maybe it isn't for you, but with my clients and my life I had to be able to get it all done once and then let someone else help distribute my content.  They really are trying to look out for creative people and get more of us with passive income streams.

SpaceStockFootage

  • Space, Sci-Fi and Astronomy Related Stock Footage

« Reply #36 on: August 23, 2018, 17:40 »
+2
BB is totally built for giving creators passive income...

See, you're doing it as well! The sites they submit to for you, Pond5, Shutterstock, Adobe and Storyblocks... were 'totally built for giving creators passive income' long before BlackBox came along!

Say you like them, that they have decent sharing revenue and collaboration features, that you like this that and the other, but don't say you can upload your footage once and earn an ongoing revenue from it.... that's the stock footage market in general, not BlackBox!

« Reply #37 on: August 24, 2018, 00:16 »
+3
Pat the owner is one of us a creator.

So is Jon from Shutterstock.  ;)

So, do they optimize your clips for each search engine? Use titles and descriptions that are best suited for each site? Is it easy to change the title of your clip once it's uploaded?

There are so many things wrong with not having full control over your clips. If you're one of the guys who are happy to just throw stuff out there without much thought, and make $500 from 5,000 clips, sure... But if you want to make $5,000 from 500 clips, you need to have all the control.

« Reply #38 on: August 24, 2018, 01:45 »
+1
Then working with a distributor is probably not for you.

You can always hire your own assistant to do all uploadingand keywording to as many agencies as you like.

Or ask your wife...I keep hearing amazing things that these magical creatures can do for a producer.. sounds like they all have a wonder house elf...;)


As a woman, I dont seem to have that option, my partners havent been motivated to do my business work for me, inspite of having a full time job.

So, BB it is...

SpaceStockFootage

  • Space, Sci-Fi and Astronomy Related Stock Footage

« Reply #39 on: August 24, 2018, 01:54 »
+4
my partners havent been motivated to do my business work for me....

How many do you have?!

« Reply #40 on: August 24, 2018, 06:39 »
+5
In my opinion there are only four video sites worth uploading to.  I don't see much benefit to paying a agency distribution middleman.  I prefer having a direct relationship with those four companies. 

« Reply #41 on: November 30, 2018, 19:56 »
0
In my opinion there are only four video sites worth uploading to.  I don't see much benefit to paying a agency distribution middleman.  I prefer having a direct relationship with those four companies.
Which agencies?


« Reply #42 on: December 01, 2018, 03:13 »
+1
Shutterstock Pond5 Adobe and Storyblocks

Istock with their 20% and penny sales are not worth it.

Envato Videohive have now capped many contributors to 10+- videos week so if you take this seriously not worth it. It'is a pitty as they were gettying sales although their upload system was a nightmare much improved lately.

Stocksy Video I don't know as I am not in

All the others a big waste of time



In my opinion there are only four video sites worth uploading to.  I don't see much benefit to paying a agency distribution middleman.  I prefer having a direct relationship with those four companies.
Which agencies?

« Reply #43 on: December 02, 2018, 10:39 »
0
Shutterstock Pond5 Adobe and Storyblocks

Istock with their 20% and penny sales are not worth it.

Envato Videohive have now capped many contributors to 10+- videos week so if you take this seriously not worth it. It'is a pitty as they were gettying sales although their upload system was a nightmare much improved lately.

Stocksy Video I don't know as I am not in

All the others a big waste of time



In my opinion there are only four video sites worth uploading to.  I don't see much benefit to paying a agency distribution middleman.  I prefer having a direct relationship with those four companies.
Which agencies?
So if its going to be only these 4 then it might make little sense to share out some additional commission to the blackbox team. Then again, depends on how much effort you put in editing and key wording

« Reply #44 on: December 02, 2018, 10:49 »
0
Shutterstock Pond5 Adobe and Storyblocks

Istock with their 20% and penny sales are not worth it.

Envato Videohive have now capped many contributors to 10+- videos week so if you take this seriously not worth it. It'is a pitty as they were gettying sales although their upload system was a nightmare much improved lately.

Stocksy Video I don't know as I am not in

All the others a big waste of time



In my opinion there are only four video sites worth uploading to.  I don't see much benefit to paying a agency distribution middleman.  I prefer having a direct relationship with those four companies.
Which agencies?
Thanks!

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« Reply #45 on: December 03, 2018, 15:18 »
0
There is also one question. What to do with images and videos from the same location? Is it possible to send a video from one location to BlackBox and to send photographs from the same location to others agencies manually (because BlackBox does not support images)? In such a case, there can be video on the BlackBox's account (for example on Shutterstock) and exactly the same composition on the photograph (different media) from contributor's account. That would be weird. Is it againt some rules? How to solve that?

« Reply #46 on: December 03, 2018, 17:43 »
0
There is also one question. What to do with images and videos from the same location? Is it possible to send a video from one location to BlackBox and to send photographs from the same location to others agencies manually (because BlackBox does not support images)? In such a case, there can be video on the BlackBox's account (for example on Shutterstock) and exactly the same composition on the photograph (different media) from contributor's account. That would be weird. Is it againt some rules? How to solve that?

Not a problem. Completely within the rules of both BlackBox and all agencies.  Videos and photos are separate media types, though it is not likely you would actually submit a screen-grab from a video into still stock. The resolution just would not be acceptable unless you were shooting at least 8K...

« Reply #47 on: December 04, 2018, 04:14 »
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I have got an answer from BlackBox and you have been right.

"You can send images to agencies, that are working us, but not videos when those videos are on Blackbox.
If you have trouble keeping Blackbox apart from other agencies then Blackbox might not be the right solution for you.

The best way is to send all video to Blackbox which distributes to multiple storefronts while you are free to upload your images to any storefront you like without worrying about duplication.

Also, remember that we are expanding our partnership with other big agencies as well."

So it seems that everything is fine if there are different media types even though they are taken from the same place with the same composition.

« Reply #48 on: January 25, 2019, 05:33 »
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I'd like to upload a few videos ''X, Y and Z'' to blackbox for the revenue sharing option, while keeping all my other videos ''A,B and C'' on SS, AS, P5.

Does anyone know if that's allowed? Or does Blackbox requires full portfolio exclusivity on footage?

Thanks!
« Last Edit: January 25, 2019, 05:59 by Not Today »

Uncle Pete

  • Great Place by a Great Lake - My Home Port
« Reply #49 on: January 25, 2019, 08:27 »
0
I'd like to upload a few videos ''X, Y and Z'' to blackbox for the revenue sharing option, while keeping all my other videos ''A,B and C'' on SS, AS, P5.

Does anyone know if that's allowed? Or does Blackbox requires full portfolio exclusivity on footage?

Thanks!

Sounds like an interesting test plan. Here's the Blackbox FAQ and a contact link on the bottom. I don't do much with video, you might want to find out for yourself and come back with your answer.

https://www.blackbox.global/faq/

Personally, I might be better off using a place like this, even if they are exclusive distributors, because I could upload once and be done: They deal with Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, Pond5 and Storyblocks. But I'd like to know from someone better and a longer member, how they see this as a member, not as an opinion of revenue sharing.

I woudln't support revenue sharing if it was my photos and I couldn't upload or do anything where I wanted. I can understand someone else not liking an exclusive plan if they do video. I mean, my video is not serious or complicated, and the main four sites I'd want to have it at, are covered.


 

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