MicrostockGroup
Agency Based Discussion => Adobe Stock => Topic started by: Lizard on June 04, 2008, 09:30
-
I think that this deserves a separate topic so i will just open a new one to make this more visible.
If you find that Fotolia recent changes represent a step backward regarding contributors position in the microstock industry, and you are willing to stop uploading new images to Fotolia until acceptable changes are made , please sign at the bottom of the list bellow , with your Fotolia user name and number of your images that Fotolia represents.
Lizard - 3904 images
cuneytselcuk - 315 files
grp_photo - 1861 files
sharpshot - 1948
frankmedrano - 497
skvoor 1873
marcopolo 2104
Vonkara - 165
Marinini - 305
jsnover - 1522
Here is the link to the topic on Fotolia forum , so you can join the list there, but feel free to add your name on this forum as well cause I wouldnt be surprised if they remove that topic at Fotolia.
http://www.fotolia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=115945#p115945
-
That has confused the issue as the thread was about pulling portfolios. I don't want to be on that list as it isn't what we were talking about. We were agreeing to stop uploading.
-
Nop , when I added our list I clearly stated that we are the people that just wont upload anymore , and who else feels the same to join our list , theres nothing about pulling images from the people in our list.
Edit:
Made another note on Fotolia forum that we are not pulling our images just not uploading new stuff , to make it clear enough once again.
-
In the first post on the fotolia thread "If you are unhappy with the recent plans and thinking about pulling your portfolio, state the number of photos and/or illustrations Fotolia might lose if they don't come up with a better payment solution."
I agreed to stop uploading for now, not remove my portfolio.
-
Whoa! This seems pretty RADICAL!
Wow your holding all your new images HOSTAGE!
Are all of you prepared to take this fight right to the very end?
Are you willing eventually pull all your images off the site by a certain date if FT does not respond favorably?
Are you will to stick by your convictions and defend your creative license at all costs?
You do realize that your actions don't make a pimple on the ass of FT's business model.
....that your actions will hurt no one but yourself in the long run.
... FT will never cave in to your demands.
...you cannot unite all photographers in sufficient numbers to make any waves.
We will see just how far you are willing to take this.
QUESTION: If you decide to give up, and return to uploading again
are you willing to post that information too here in this forum?
Cranky MIZ
-
I have no problems stopping uploading there. I am not going to pull my portfolio yet. It takes too much time uploading there and the search change has hit my earnings, so I might as well spend time on the sites that are increasing my earnings.
FT is only one microstock site, there are lots of others and sites like alamy and photoshelter that I am just starting with. At the moment, they are not making a significant amount for me and I don't see much point in them stealing customers from SS who pay me much more per subscription download.
-
Whoa! This seems pretty RADICAL!
Wow your holding all your new images HOSTAGE!
Are all of you prepared to take this fight right to the very end?
Are you willing eventually pull all your images off the site by a certain date if FT does not respond favorably?
Are you will to stick by your convictions and defend your creative license at all costs?
You do realize that your actions don't make a pimple on the ass of FT's business model.
....that your actions will hurt no one but yourself in the long run.
... FT will never cave in to your demands.
...you cannot unite all photographers in sufficient numbers to make any waves.
We will see just how far you are willing to take this.
QUESTION: If you decide to give up, and return to uploading again
are you willing to post that information too here in this forum?
Cranky MIZ
Please read , we are not uploading new stuff for now.
We will see how it goes
-
Nop , when I added our list I clearly stated that we are the people that just wont upload anymore , and who else feels the same to join our list , theres nothing about pulling images from the people in our list.
Edit:
Made another note on Fotolia forum that we are not pulling our images just not uploading new stuff , to make it clear enough once again.
Thanks for that. I might pull my portfolio one day but I don't want fotolia doing it for me :)
-
Ok I understand that.
But are you willing in the end to admit defeat it it comes to it? I mean before you start uploading again.
The reason I ask is I would like to follow this to the end and see how your actions are taken by the management at FT.
Cranky MIZ
-
Ok I understand that.
But are you willing in the end to admit defeat it it comes to it? I mean before you start uploading again.
The reason I ask is I would like to follow this to the end and see how your actions are taken by the management at FT.
Cranky MIZ
Defeat , what defeat ,(speaking for myself only) if they change something I might start uploading again , if not I will leave those approved images but they will not get the new ones and thats all.
No end , no war , no defeat , they messed the search engine , Im getting 3 times less views then before that month , they approve almost all images in the batch I send then next time they reject all , and again and again , dont allow to opt-out subs , dont count sub downloads for the ranking , they went to lowest sub commision for photographers , etc etc etc.
-
Sharpshot and others , I changed the above Fotolia link and opened a new topic over there, to separate us from the people that are pulling their work out from there.
I would do that in the first place , but I just saw the link someone posted and didn't read the content , automatically assumed that we belong there.
My bad , and its all fixed now.
-
Posted it over there, do it here now too.
For now I am stopping my uploads there, to see how things develop. I have had an increase in sales last month, but this subscription plan feels like a rip-off.
Lizard - 3904 images
cuneytselcuk - 315 files
grp_photo - 1861 files
sharpshot - 1948
frankmedrano - 497
skvoor 1873
marcopolo 2104
Vonkara - 165
Marinini - 305
jsnover - 1522
Mellimage - 386
-
You can add my name to the list, but not because of any new events. I actually stopped uploading quite a while ago because of many reasons, such as the ridiculous rejection rate that started to come up with categories that I had uploaded before and were doing well, the craptastic system they have, and the fact that all this effort wasn't worth continuing the uploads for only 4% of my total income per month.
I used to love Fotolia even though I'm not fond of their uploading system. Used to be #3 or #4 in earnigns. I don't know what happened but since its sucked and well, when almost 80% of you income comes from 3 places, you tend to forget about those who aren't giving you enough. I'm not pulling my photos, but I'm definitely not submitting anymore.
-
Me too. (djp68 on FT) 259 images, and no more forthcoming.
-
frankly, i think FL will just laugh at this revolt ;D
just total your images and find the percentage your images hold compared to FL inventory!
unless you're Yuri or whoever that's their breadwinner,
i don't think this revolt is even a pimple , like Miz pointed out.
i like FL, i 'm a newbie and have been there 3 months with no sales from them, while the other sites i joined have already given me sales within their first 3 weeks.
but i like to think FL is a slow starter as they , at least the reviewers who reviewed my images, are quite polite and when they do reject my images give me a good explanation instead of "this is a snapshot!"
i think i'll wait and give FL the benefit of the doubt.
hilariously, if you ppl do pull out, it's all the better for us too, ;D ;D
just joking! ::)
-
...what's upsetting is that FT is absolutely silent on this.... no comment, no communication with photogs, nothing...upsetting.
-
me too: 507 images (i'm besietenueve on FT because they don't allow a 3 character username ::))
but... i don't usually have the type of photograph they're looking for so i guess it's not a big loss for them anyway....
...what's upsetting is that FT is absolutely silent on this.... no comment, no communication with photogs, nothing...upsetting.
not absolutely silent, they sent the new girl ("Amy") with a speech to try to explain why this was very good for us ;D (not really convincing)
-
I am not so hot on FT anyway, but will join the list with my 90 or so images. I just hate the upload tere.
Don't know how brave you guys are, but I have taken the referral link of my blog and have apologized to those who have clicked it to join (3 referrals since March)
No big deal for me to remove it. After all 0% of 0 cents is just $0.
-
i like FL, i 'm a newbie and have been there 3 months with no sales from them, while the other sites i joined have already given me sales within their first 3 weeks.
but i like to think FL is a slow starter as they , at least the reviewers who reviewed my images, are quite polite and when they do reject my images give me a good explanation instead of "this is a snapshot!"
Not really. No sales in the first 3 months is usually a pretty indicator that sales in the next 3 months aren't going to be very good either. But if you want to convince yourself that it is all good, then don't let me rain on your parade.
There are also some realities you need to learn about microstock. The vast majority of the contributors at all agencies never reach payout. The vast majority of images are rejected at major sites (watch the stats at Shutterstock if you want proof).
Even a small time contributor like me is actually pretty high up the ranks of overall contributors at Fotolia. In fact, I'm in the top 20% of all contributors sales rankings for the last 7 days. Amazing, eh? I've only been with them since December, and I have already moved up into the top 25% All-Time. And yet they are one of my weakest performers.
That tells you something about what the numbers mean. Most of the contributors at Fotolia sell little to nothing at all. The total number of contributors means nothing. The only contributors who matter are the ones who actually sell images.
-
Fotolia has apparently deleted the thread on their forums with a list of people who won't upload any more.
I had just obtained Joe Gough's permission to add his name to the list - he was banned from their forums last night for colorfully complaining about this mess.
I guess I'll add Joe's name to this list - 1529 files
-
Yes, our thread was deleted. What a shame.
I stop uploading. After 1-2 months, if nothing change I'll delete my 820 images.
-
I paused my uploads during last months due to the inconsistent reviews.. let's see how they are going to screw up next...
-
It's really strange seeing how the sales vary form photographer to photographer, FL is my number (2) for sales only behind SS. Then again lots of folks do well with IS, I don't. It's number 5 of 6 for me.
What works for one might not work for others. If I upload to a site and don't see sales in 3 months or so maybe you need to look at your images there. Then again just because someone reports poor sales at a given site doesn't mean I or you will experience the same results.
The bottom line is if you are making any money at all it's worth it. If your images don't produce at a site then stop uploading. Then again you never know what uploads will make money at any site. You also have no way of knowing what image or images you upload that turn your earnings around? It's just too hard to put a finger on what sells and what doesn't at any of the big 6. To be honest FL has had the largest increase in sales last month for me. My increase may translate into a decrease for someone else? You just never know. I do think that for every image you don't upload you can't earn from it. That much if 100% true. So if you have a low producer, only upload when everything else is done. Just put them on the bottom of your priority list. Who knows, one day you may upload several images that boost your sales? Not uploading for minor reasons is a case of cutting off your nose despite your face IMO.
I have 0 sales at Yay but I love the site so I will give them 3-6 months to see what happens. They seem to have their act together so far. Time will tell.
-
+1 for me.
-
Cshack,
I Definitely agree on the wild variability in success contributors have at each site. I do very well at Shutterstock, and decently at iStock (#2). Fotolia is a low to modest performer for me (generally #4 to #6 out of 7).
However I don't agree that stopping uploads at Fotolia is being done for "minor reasons." The changes there are pretty serious. Some would argue contributors are being totally cheated (the cheapest sub commissions, no gains on rank, no referral income from subs).
I like to stick to managing 7 sites or so. Since I'm not uploading at FT, I have time to divert elsewhere. And I agree - Yaymicro has its act together big time. Whether it translates to sales or not remains to be seen. But they are doing everything else right.
-
I'm in! I mean, er, out.
210 online and another 200 uploaded but not (and won't be) keyworded and submitted.
-
frankly, i think FL will just laugh at this revolt ;D
just total your images and find the percentage your images hold compared to FL inventory!
unless you're Yuri or whoever that's their breadwinner,
i don't think this revolt is even a pimple , like Miz pointed out.
i like FL, i 'm a newbie and have been there 3 months with no sales from them, while the other sites i joined have already given me sales within their first 3 weeks.
but i like to think FL is a slow starter as they , at least the reviewers who reviewed my images, are quite polite and when they do reject my images give me a good explanation instead of "this is a snapshot!"
i think i'll wait and give FL the benefit of the doubt.
hilariously, if you ppl do pull out, it's all the better for us too, ;D ;D
just joking! ::)
Many of us who have set our heels in over this issue are in the top 50 earners for Fotolia, if a significant number of us cease doing business with them they will feel the impact.
They may only loose 1-3% or their overall inventory but it will be 1-3% of their top earning inventory and that is a significant issue. I can tell you from having had personal communications with the top of the company over this they think they are going to play hardball but in the end they will come to the table with a better deal. They have to and they know it. They played us for fools and have now realized that it was a mistake to do so.
I have over 4,448 images there with another couple thousand that were in the que for uploading there. I am prepaired to ride this until the wheels fall off it need be and FT managment knows it.
-
I stop uploading because of their submission process not pricing structure. I got enough pictures in my queue for couple weeks.
-
I won't upload more until the price changes or we have a choice to opt out.
818 images
Marianne
-
I stopped uploading to Fotolia - 832 images online
I will upload again if the conditions change (comission or opt-out) and am considering removing the whole portfolio.
Maybe there should be an organized list for this!?
-
Has the FT forum erased the topic? I get a bad link when I click the first post.
-
Yap , I guess they didn't find it laughable after all ;D
-
Has the FT forum erased the topic? I get a bad link when I click the first post.
Reason for deleting it:
http://www.fotolia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=11944
-
With his permission, I'm adding Jason Stitt (keeweeboy) to the list of those who won't upload and might pull his portfolio. 1496 files
-
vtupinamba / 3572 images online
i have about 20 images for review... i send about 100 images / month... but for now... i also stopped...
*edited 06.05.2008 - just to be clear, when i wrote for "now", i don't mean "anymore", i mean won't upload for couple of months.
-
You can add me as well. 868 images online.
-
Add me to the list for not uploading anymore new stuff until changes are made.
829 files
-
Just joined your forum to avoid the censorship on the agencies' websites....
Add me to the list, a tiny portfolio of 364.
-
http://www.stockphototalk.com/phototalk/2007/12/fotolia-infin-1.html
Hilarious , especially last two sentences
-
Oh Boy this is great!
All you people stopped uploading.....I'll be sure to get reviews to my images in no time flat now!
Keep up the good work. believe in your cause, and forge ahead!
Cranky MIZ
-
frankly, i think FL will just laugh at this revolt ;D
just total your images and find the percentage your images hold compared to FL inventory!
unless you're Yuri or whoever that's their breadwinner,
i don't think this revolt is even a pimple , like Miz pointed out.
i like FL, i 'm a newbie and have been there 3 months with no sales from them, while the other sites i joined have already given me sales within their first 3 weeks.
but i like to think FL is a slow starter as they , at least the reviewers who reviewed my images, are quite polite and when they do reject my images give me a good explanation instead of "this is a snapshot!"
i think i'll wait and give FL the benefit of the doubt.
hilariously, if you ppl do pull out, it's all the better for us too, ;D ;D
just joking! ::)
Many of us who have set our heels in over this issue are in the top 50 earners for Fotolia, if a significant number of us cease doing business with them they will feel the impact.
They may only loose 1-3% or their overall inventory but it will be 1-3% of their top earning inventory and that is a significant issue. I can tell you from having had personal communications with the top of the company over this they think they are going to play hardball but in the end they will come to the table with a better deal. They have to and they know it. They played us for fools and have now realized that it was a mistake to do so.
I have over 4,448 images there with another couple thousand that were in the que for uploading there. I am prepaired to ride this until the wheels fall off it need be and FT managment knows it.
I fully agree with Bobby.
I only have 600 files with them but I won't upload any new material and I also consider deleting my portfolio.
Andres has also raised his voice on their forum http://us.fotolia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=116118 , and he's the top earner on this site.
Now that I'm getting regular sales with Alamy and got my first sale today with PhotoShelter, I think it's time to concentrate on Macros. Micros will get leftovers.
-
Oh Boy this is great!
All you people stopped uploading.....I'll be sure to get reviews to my images in no time flat now!
Keep up the good work. believe in your cause, and forge ahead!
Cranky MIZ
That's OK Miz, we get quicker reviews with SS without your images in the queue :)
-
Yes I know. But thats been that way for years now.
But FT...."no wait" "almost instant reviews" will be a novelty for me! Yippie!
Cranky MIZ
-
I agree with sharpshot it's only Schadenfreude because you are banned from SS and FTs submodel aiming at them. Maybe in a silent moment you will see that the real issue is that FT is trying to fool us and if they succeed this will hurt all of us including you!
It's time to show the agencies that we are not the stupid fools what they are trying to make of us.
-
It's time to show the agencies that we are not the stupid fools what they are trying to make of us.
Hmmm. Fooltolia?
-
Hmmm. Fooltolia?
lol ;D
-
Well I feel a bit of a fraud because I had already stopped uploading to them, however I'm quite highly ranked there so add me to the list anyway because as I said on their forum I'll consider pulling out altogether over the way we've been treated with the subscription implementation but this decision will be based on whether or not they have an opt out and if not how future subscription sales effect me.
Oh and I have 1389 images there.
-
1246 images.
Acceptances have fallen so far through the floor that it make much of a difference if I stop uploading. They have already effectively stopped 60-70% of my photos from going online anyway.
Whenever my growing RM portfolio starts seeing regular sales, Fotolia is the first money-making micro I'm leaving. Their history of shafting contributors has gone on long enough and there is no inkling it will ever change. I just cannot support a company that doesn't give two cents about its contributors.
-
[url]http://www.stockphototalk.com/phototalk/2007/12/fotolia-infin-1.html[/url]
Hilarious , especially last two sentences
That is an amazing turnaround, so in December 2007
"for example, a micro subscription model that pulls down prices to 25 cents an image, decreases the overall business and only provides short term sales benefits."
Yet now in June 2008, the very same person has decided that its a good idea after all. I presume Fotolia are scared of losing their piece of the pie.
-
[url]http://www.stockphototalk.com/phototalk/2007/12/fotolia-infin-1.html[/url]
Hilarious , especially last two sentences
That is an amazing turnaround, so in December 2007
"for example, a micro subscription model that pulls down prices to 25 cents an image, decreases the overall business and only provides short term sales benefits."
Yet now in June 2008, the very same person has decided that its a good idea after all. I presume Fotolia are scared of losing their piece of the pie.
Well he had it right in his first statement... Wonder what happened to him... did he get brainwashed??
-
beat ya all! I stopped uploading there well over a year ago.... deleted all but one pic. got one picture there. One.
my problem was keeping my credits safe... they kept disappearing.... I was never given an explanation. I'll never go back to FT.
Sadly, I have to agree with MIZ. I admire all your stand and your action, but I am afraid it won't matter squat to FT. They have the whole world of photogs to suck in. For every one of us that backs out, there are 3 newbies to take our place. MIZ is correct, you better be prepared to follow thru, cause............. you'll probably have to.
You can add my name, but I'm sure they really give a rat's butt about my one pic... long live the revolution!! 8)=tom
-
Yes I know. But thats been that way for years now.
But FT...."no wait" "almost instant reviews" will be a novelty for me! Yippie!
Cranky MIZ
Instant "Type of photo rejections" for me, Yippie,... Hm ::) ;D
-
- the lowest comissions in the industry for subs
- no affiliate payments
- subs sales do not count towards the ranking
- no option to opt out from the sub
- search system perverted
- blocking, deleting and baning from forum for free speach
it's Fotolia today.
I personally feel fooled and cheated and my works are stolen by Fotolia: when I registered and begin upload a few years ago, they promised and agreed to pay one price per image, but today they pay me cents and I can't opt out subscription model. There are two ways- to stay (with or without new uploads) and enjoy some pennies, or quit and delete account.
I have almost 3000 images there and likely will not upload my new images. I will not act sharply but if things will go like that and FT will keep fooling us I'll enjoy all these photogs who are striking against this crap. Maybe there are not so many who are rising the voice but in unity is power. Of course, even tens or hundreds portfolios who could be deleted, FT will not feel a big difference as there are hundreds and thousands new authors who don't care about payments. All these "Helo, I'm new here and this is my hobby" will upload thousands new images for pennies. But nevertheless, if old wolfs, top distributors will leave microstock (not FT only, but microstock in general), I think agencies will see some tumble.
Anyway, I'm concentrating on macro. Today must upload my new batch to Alamy... ;)
-
Anyway, I'm concentrating on macro. Today must upload my new batch to Alamy... ;)
My thoughts exactly. Although I will continue to load to SS & IS. I have now essentially stopped loading to all my other micros. The ROI just isn't there anymore for me personally.
-
Right there with ya Tom. I'm only uploading to IS and SS and spending the extra time on RM. The rest of the micros just aren't worth the time anymore.
While SS has some nice sales, I upload more, the sales briefly spike, and then drop back to the same ole amount. Not a good trend.
-
goodness gracious!! :o
you ppl are an angry mob :-X
i'm sitting on the fence, if you don't mind me! ;)
-
I'm not uploading to micros at the moment, concentrating on my travel images elsewhere, but I will wait to see what happens in FT before I resume uploading there. Their implementation of subscription was a complete disappointment.
Regards,
Adelaide
-
goodness gracious!! :o
you ppl are an angry mob :-X
i'm sitting on the fence, if you don't mind me! ;)
I'm not angry at all. I just react to the changes. I look at earnings, effort, policies, and frustrations that then determine if it's worth the time. IS and SS have the best overall combination of those things and also happen to have the best earnings for me. Pretty straightforward.
-
Lemme try and make some sense of this all.
Suppose I list my favorite ice cream flavors in the order I like them
1 Chocolate
2 Coffee
3 Strawberry
4 Butter Pecan
5 Cherry Vanilla
6 Frog Flavor
So if I go into a store to purchase lets say chocolate and they have NONE of my favorite flavors
Should I leave the store without ANY ice cream at all if all they have is say Vanilla, Black Cherry, or Peanutbutter Swirl?
Me? OH No.....I came for ice cream, and I ain't leaving the store empty handed.
So what in essence I hear you all saying is because they don't have your flavor, you ain't having no ice cream at all.
Cranky MIZ
-
count me in. i'm getting bored of those ridiculous rejections. i thought istock is the worst ,but at least i'm getting good money from istock :-[
-
I am not uploading to any site almost for a month. If were to punish a site, one of first would be FT. But, hey, it seems we have a choice. FT is not a number one site for most of us. My feeling they are wrong.
-
Lemme try and make some sense of this all.
Suppose I list my favorite ice cream flavors in the order I like them
1 Chocolate
2 Coffee
3 Strawberry
4 Butter Pecan
5 Cherry Vanilla
6 Frog Flavor
So if I go into a store to purchase lets say chocolate and they have NONE of my favorite flavors
Should I leave the store without ANY ice cream at all if all they have is say Vanilla, Black Cherry, or Peanutbutter Swirl?
Me? OH No.....I came for ice cream, and I ain't leaving the store empty handed.
So what in essence I hear you all saying is because they don't have your flavor, you ain't having no ice cream at all.
Cranky MIZ
Am I the only one who thinks this makes no sense?
-
...just shut up and eat your ice cream
Cranky MIZ
-
MMMMMMMMM Bitternut Icecream ;D
-
Lemme try and make some sense of this all.
Suppose I list my favorite ice cream flavors in the order I like them
1 Chocolate
2 Coffee
3 Strawberry
4 Butter Pecan
5 Cherry Vanilla
6 Frog Flavor
So if I go into a store to purchase lets say chocolate and they have NONE of my favorite flavors
Should I leave the store without ANY ice cream at all if all they have is say Vanilla, Black Cherry, or Peanutbutter Swirl?
Me? OH No.....I came for ice cream, and I ain't leaving the store empty handed.
So what in essence I hear you all saying is because they don't have your flavor, you ain't having no ice cream at all.
Cranky MIZ
Ill try to reply to that in your own style...
I suppose if few years old crap tasted ice cream is all they got to offer , you would be taking that one.
Well , bon appetit mr Miz and good luck , hope you wont catch diarrhea.
-
Here is the list , I didn't know some of your Fotolia user names so I used your nicknames here , and some of you may want to change that. Maybe I missed someone, so he wants to add his name , and if someone wants out of the list , just copy the list without his name.
So those of you that will not upload to Fotolia because of their moves , just copy the list , sign at the bottom with your Fotolia user name and number of images that Fotolia represents. You can put a link to this topic on other on other forums too.
Here is the current list , a those are the owners of 32 259 images on Fotolia:
Lizard - 3904 images
cuneytselcuk - 315 files
grp_photo - 1861 files
sharpshot - 1948
frankmedrano - 497
skvoor 1873
marcopolo 2104
Vonkara - 165
Marinini - 305
jsnover - 1522
Mellimage - 386
djp68 - 259
besietenueve - 507
Joe Gough's - 1529
jwblinn - 210
photoshow - 4448
Marianne - 818
ajn - 832
keeweeboy - 1496
vtupinamba - 3572
nickp37 - 829
dirkr - 364
cphoto - 600
RT - 1389
Karimala - 1246
-
I'm hoping everyone stops, then my images will be the only new ones ....
-
I'm hoping everyone stops, then my images will be the only new ones ....
poor boy!
-
Add my name to the list - I'm AlienCat (Linda Bucklin) at Fotolia. I have 513 images with them, mostly illustrations. Things starting turning sour at Fotolia with the recent big increase in (type of photo) senseless rejections. With this subscription thing and the way they are handling it, I'm shocked at how far downhill things have gone there. I have been with them since close to the beginning, they used to be very responsive to contributors, and I felt valued there. What Happened?
-
I haven't uploaded to FT in a while but I have no intention of doing so after this subscription fiasco. I do plan on hanging around a bit to see if they will come to their senses but if not, and if I see a significant number of sub sales coming in, then I'm pulling my portfolio. Any of you who plan on staying around are welcome to any sales I'll be missing. At least I'll be able to sleep at night. It's not all about money when it's something you feel strongly about. That's just my opinion.
Oh, and on another note, when I found Chad's post on the Yahoo micropayment group showing that quote of his I just about lost my lunch. What a * turncoat. In case you guys missed his full post that includes his quote you can see it here if you have a Yahoo account:
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/micropayment/message/18515
Lizard - 3904 images
cuneytselcuk - 315 files
grp_photo - 1861 files
sharpshot - 1948
frankmedrano - 497
skvoor 1873
marcopolo 2104
Vonkara - 165
Marinini - 305
jsnover - 1522
Mellimage - 386
djp68 - 259
besietenueve - 507
Joe Gough's - 1529
jwblinn - 210
photoshow - 4448
Marianne - 818
ajn - 832
keeweeboy - 1496
vtupinamba - 3572
nickp37 - 829
dirkr - 364
cphoto - 600
RT - 1389
Karimala - 1246
pixelbrat - 355
-
Lizard - 3904 images
cuneytselcuk - 315 files
grp_photo - 1861 files
sharpshot - 1948
frankmedrano - 497
skvoor 1873
marcopolo 2104
Vonkara - 165
Marinini - 305
jsnover - 1522
Mellimage - 386
djp68 - 259
besietenueve - 507
Joe Gough's - 1529
jwblinn - 210
photoshow - 4448
Marianne - 818
ajn - 832
keeweeboy - 1496
vtupinamba - 3572
nickp37 - 829
dirkr - 364
cphoto - 600
RT - 1389
Karimala - 1246
pixelbrat - 355
rene - 820
-
Even though my downloads there are consistent (especially with the large files!), I am gonna stop uploading new images there as well. I do understand how Subscription Plans are attractive to companies that have a need for vast quanities of images to download but I don't like Fotolia's Subscription policy. I'll see how this plays out before I upload anymore!
-
Lemme try and make some sense of this all.
Suppose I list my favorite ice cream flavors in the order...
So if I go into a store to ...
Should I leave the store without ANY ice cream..
Me? OH No.....I came for ice cream, and I ain't leaving the store empty handed.
So what in essence I hear you all saying is because they don't have your flavor, you ain't having no ice cream at all.
Cranky MIZ
Am I the only one who thinks this makes no sense?
no, you're not PaulieWalnuts.
i get the feeling that Miz
is probably working for FL. or worse, maybe a reviewer for FL !
Yikes! ;D ;D ;D
P.S.
MIZ ,hope your hidden stock of "heavy sauce" hasn't run out yet .. go easy , bottoms UP!!! ;D ;D ;D)
-
You are all funny. Subs are not a problem at all, in my opinion. The search engine is.
Fotolia will never sell subs like SS, so subs sales will be marginal. Perhaps few per week. I can live with that. That would not be a great loss in my income. (i recon that 5% of my total sales would be subs). I saw it on other agencies. I cant remember when I sold subs. sale on DT. Credit sales are main thing.
The real problem is screwed up search engine, whis is not related to keyword orded and image rating any more. That is the problem. For example, for word "money" I had about 50 images at 5 first pages. Now I have 0 images on first 5 pages. (and for most of other words also). Now my images are being placed on page 68, or so...
That is the bigger problem, since they changed search engine, my sales dropped 60%, and they are still low. Subs sales are not bothering me at all, because I know I wont be selling them in large numbers, so there is not real loss.
-
Lizard - 3904 images
cuneytselcuk - 315 files
grp_photo - 1861 files
sharpshot - 1948
frankmedrano - 497
skvoor 1873
marcopolo 2104
Vonkara - 165
Marinini - 305
jsnover - 1522
Mellimage - 386
djp68 - 259
besietenueve - 507
Joe Gough's - 1529
jwblinn - 210
photoshow - 4448
Marianne - 818
ajn - 832
keeweeboy - 1496
vtupinamba - 3572
nickp37 - 829
dirkr - 364
cphoto - 600
RT - 1389
Karimala - 1246
pixelbrat - 355
rene - 820
debljames - 233
-
You are all funny. Subs are not a problem at all, in my opinion. The search engine is.
Fotolia will never sell subs like SS, so subs sales will be marginal. Perhaps few per week. I can live with that. That would not be a great loss in my income. (i recon that 5% of my total sales would be subs). I saw it on other agencies. I cant remember when I sold subs. sale on DT. Credit sales are main thing.
The real problem is screwed up search engine, whis is not related to keyword orded and image rating any more. That is the problem. For example, for word "money" I had about 50 images at 5 first pages. Now I have 0 images on first 5 pages. (and for most of other words also). Now my images are being placed on page 68, or so...
That is the bigger problem, since they changed search engine, my sales dropped 60%, and they are still low. Subs sales are not bothering me at all, because I know I wont be selling them in large numbers, so there is not real loss.
That is my main reason for not uploading. The low priced subs just made it easier to stop. If my sales hadn't tanked, it would be a harder decision. The subs are lower priced but only up to 'L' size, so I don't see too many people switching from the sites that sell full size.
-
You forgot my name, I added it.
Linda B (AlienCat)
Lizard - 3904 images
cuneytselcuk - 315 files
grp_photo - 1861 files
sharpshot - 1948
frankmedrano - 497
skvoor 1873
marcopolo 2104
Vonkara - 165
Marinini - 305
jsnover - 1522
Mellimage - 386
djp68 - 259
besietenueve - 507
Joe Gough's - 1529
jwblinn - 210
photoshow - 4448
Marianne - 818
ajn - 832
keeweeboy - 1496
vtupinamba - 3572
nickp37 - 829
dirkr - 364
cphoto - 600
RT - 1389
Karimala - 1246
pixelbrat - 355
rene - 820
debljames - 233
aliencat 513
-
Yeah, but they clearly said (a month ago) they will not reverse search engine. As far as I can figure out, it favoriszes newest images. So by stoping uploading, I am doing even worst thing. At contrary, I will upload new stuff so they populate first pages, and get back my visibility again, at least some part that I used to have.
How many of you are on the list? 20-30? People upload few thousand images per day at FT (check ID numbers), do you really think they will even notice you stop uploading? How many photos do you upload per week? I upload about 50+ (sometimes 100+) new images every week, and I live on that, If I dont sell images, I wouldnt be able to pay my bills or buy food. So it is for me sell cheap or die. I dont agree with new policy, but simply I dont have a choice. I am student, in 2 years I should become medicine doctor, and when I have real job, than I can easily say "FT, you can suck my balls, I dont want to play with you anymore...". But now, my existance depends on FT (even with 60% down earnigs, they are still my #1 earner, I used to have 700+$ per month, now I have barely 300$, it is much lower, but it brings food on my table, and I am not in position to play cat and mouse with them. At least not now. I cant delay my payments in any way, I need money now, and all I can get. Therefore I will continue to upload at FT (and on other sites I am working with) at my usual pace. But I am really angry at their policy. Especialy the fact that subs dont count in ranking. (and of course bad search engine at first place).
-
and one more thing - when search engine was screwed up last month, I was perhaps most louder person at FT forum trying to point out it is bad thing. Gues what? I was baned from FT forum, and nobody suported me. Why should I suport you guys now? They made a fool out of me, convincing me that sales are doing good, and that is has nothing to do with search... then many people was complaining, and only I got ban from forum. I dont care about FT forum, but nobody told it was wrong, I was fighting to bring back old search engine, and nobody suported me after. So, I wont do any more wars for anybody. I fight only for myself, by making more quality images than Yuri does. lol.
-
You should be able to make more with SS, DT, StockXpert and istock than with fotolia. I can stop uploading there because the money from them isn't significant compared to the other sites. Just bigstock and 123rf combined make more for me than fotolia.
-
I should, but for some reason I dont. SS is good, it is my #2 earner, DT gives me 100-150$ per month, with same images that are on FT (about 3000 of them non exclusive). 100$ per month is nice, but not enough to make a living out of it. Before may 2008 FT was my 40% of total income. SS is good to, but only SS is not enough. I am uploading the same images on every site, and FT was best in selling them since may. Now they still do better than others, but not nearly good as they used to do. StockXpert is pretty low for me, 50-100$ per month. It is OK, but not enough to live on it. Istock is marginal for me. It took me 4 months to make 100 bucks. I dont even count IS as real earner... comparing to fotolias 700$ per month, as it used to be before may....
I dont want to complain any more, I'd rather find some more ideas for making images... that will bring more money for sure.
-
....can't we all just learn to get along?
Cranky MIZ
-
Ha ha, I love Jack Nicholson in comedies :-)
-
I should, but for some reason I dont. SS is good, it is my #2 earner, DT gives me 100-150$ per month, with same images that are on FT (about 3000 of them non exclusive). 100$ per month is nice, but not enough to make a living out of it.. I dont even count IS as real earner... comparing to fotolias 700$ per month, as it used to be before may....
I dont want to complain any more, I'd rather find some more ideas for making images... that will bring more money for sure.
chode , if i were earning 700 from FL, i would be the last one to join this revolt.
melastmohican, soon you may have to change your user name to melastfotolia ;D ;D
-
Fotolia was dead for me for 3 years after tried first time. Now I tried again and I do not like it any better. I am focusing my efforts on SS and new guys that popped in last 3 years when I was not paying attention to microstock.
-
frog flavor.................. humnn........ 8)=tom
-
You should be able to make more with SS, DT, StockXpert and istock than with fotolia. I can stop uploading there because the money from them isn't significant compared to the other sites. Just bigstock and 123rf combined make more for me than fotolia.
Same here Sharpshot. BigStock + 123 > FT
And SS > (FT *6) 8)
-
The recent changes in the search engine at FT have put my earnings up to 2nd place beating IS. I sold over 300 more images in May than in April which was my previous bme for downloads.
-
Yes that smells some amount of despair.
-
Sadly, I have to agree with MIZ. I admire all your stand and your action, but I am afraid it won't matter squat to FT. They have the whole world of photogs to suck in. ... but I'm sure they really give a rat's butt about my one pic... long live the revolution!! 8)=tom
GOTTA AGREE WITH TOM AND MIZZ.
and I'll indulge in this revolting topic by playing the devil's advocate! ::)
All this is only going to make FT laugh at your empty threats.
If you all pull your images en-masse.
NOW, that would be more than just lots of la dee da rattle of garbage cans!
Somehow I don't think anyone will dare do it . It 's just empty vessel making a lot of noise!
;D ;D ;D
-
beat ya all! I stopped uploading there well over a year ago.... deleted all but one pic. got one picture there. One.
my problem was keeping my credits safe... they kept disappearing.... I was never given an explanation. I'll never go back to FT.
Sadly, I have to agree with MIZ. I admire all your stand and your action, but I am afraid it won't matter squat to FT. They have the whole world of photogs to suck in. For every one of us that backs out, there are 3 newbies to take our place. MIZ is correct, you better be prepared to follow thru, cause............. you'll probably have to.
You can add my name, but I'm sure they really give a rat's butt about my one pic... long live the revolution!! 8)=tom
(http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/5242/rtheys2008062xs1.th.jpg) (http://img167.imageshack.us/my.php?image=rtheys2008062xs1.jpg)
-
i really dont understand why you dont want upload anymore... i have 8.500 pics online and since the subs startet only 2 sub-sales.. normale sales where great... there is really no reason to stop uploading at fotolia.. this month i upload there ca. 600 pics and 550 are approved... so i like fotolia... and there sales
-
XeniaII don't tell them that! Are you crazy?
Let's keep all the DL's for ourselves....shhhhhh.
Cranky MIZ
-
@rjmiz
you are ride it have to be our silence :-)
let them all pull out theire portfolios.. than they buy my images... for 16 credits or for 0,28 thats all the same to me as far i get my 100 credits daily *g
-
Are you a reviewer for them Miz?
-
Hmmmmmmm,
Because I was not paying attention to microstock for six months or so I missed this storm in the tea-cup.
I've just had a look at my stats slightly more objectively on FT.. 302 images, averaging about $20/month, had BME last month with $27.30, very few subscription sales. Maybe the search engine change was good for me? We'll wait and see...
What annoys me about FL is the amazing rejection rate since I started uploading there again. And the weirdness that is their search engine.
Anyway, I wont stop uploading there, but if this were a more serious part of my income I would be considering it.
Getting rejections for 'Too many images in this category' and then not being able to find any similar engines with their *@#$ search engine is really, really annoying. Particularly when the same images are accepted on other sites and sell occasionally.
The other frustration is that I get the acceptance/rejection emails with the image number in them, and no useful text... I then have to go find the image on their site to update my stats spreadsheet. At the moment I'm uploading about 10 images a week so it's not a problem, but if it was more I'd be pulling out my hair... (Although it's better that StockXpert, no notice at all....)
I have been wondering if their high rejection rate at the moment (Other people who are much better stock photog's than me have mentioned it) is because they are trying to keep the collection growth rate down due to technical infrastructure limitations?
Just my 2c worth..
-
Just thought I'd add:
No subscription downloads so far on FL...
-
me neither. 0 subscription downloads in 1st week. I knew it wont play a significan role. They can never be SS. Only problem left is poor search engine. :(
-
let them all pull out theire portfolios.. than they buy my images... for 16 credits or for 0,28 thats all the same to me as far i get my 100 credits daily *g
Wow what a turn! Are you an incarnation of Chad?
"i dont will upload to microstock anymore.. my heard always cry when i sold a pic for 25 uscent.. in euro only 17 cent!"XeniaII
http://www.microstockgroup.com/index.php/topic,1162.msg9666.html#msg9666
-
i really dont understand why you dont want upload anymore...
Because some peple react when they feel treated badly.
i have 8.500 pics online and since the subs startet only 2 sub-sales.. normale sales where great... there is really no reason to stop uploading at fotolia.. this month i upload there ca. 600 pics and 550 are approved... so i like fotolia... and there sales
Good for you. Congratulations. Broken record - you just missed to tell again and again that you are currently earning ~100 credits a day and decided to go exclusive with them in the future.
But please accept that there actually are people who think and act different, who are concerned when they think their agency acts against them and is moving to the wrong direction.
Cheers,
lathspell aka turbopute
-
i really dont understand why you dont want upload anymore...
Because some peple react when they feel treated badly.
i have 8.500 pics online and since the subs startet only 2 sub-sales.. normale sales where great... there is really no reason to stop uploading at fotolia.. this month i upload there ca. 600 pics and 550 are approved... so i like fotolia... and there sales
Good for you. Congratulations. You just missed to tell that you are currently earning ~100 credits a day and decided to go exclusive with them in the future (not that this was of any importance but I've read this for so many times now that I was actually missing it).
But please accept that there actually are people who think and act different, who are concerned when they think their agency acts against them and is moving to the wrong direction.
Cheers,
lathspell aka turbopute
-
Hello. Especially to those familiar faces that I have not spoken to for a while. And thank you for contacting me regarding this matter.
I am certainly not afraid to halt all uploads to Fotolia for a good cause... one that benefits myself or any of its contributors. I left a message with Chad this morning and told him that I would not make that choice until I hear their side of the situation. This being the weekend, I probably will not hear from him until Monday so I expect to make my decision then.
Fotolia is my biggest money maker so they have my heart in that area. Nonetheless, I could discontinue all future uploads without making a harmful impact on my overall income. In other words, yes, I can afford to stop uploading to Fotolia and I am willing to do so after I speak with Chad.
Best wishes to all of you. I hope you guys have a wonderful summer!!!
-jaimie
-
i really dont understand why you dont want upload anymore...
Because some peple react when they feel treated badly.
i have 8.500 pics online and since the subs startet only 2 sub-sales.. normale sales where great... there is really no reason to stop uploading at fotolia.. this month i upload there ca. 600 pics and 550 are approved... so i like fotolia... and there sales
Good for you. Congratulations. You just missed to tell that you are currently earning ~100 credits a day and decided to go exclusive with them in the future (not that this was of any importance but I've read this for so many times now that I was actually missing it).
But please accept that there actually are people who think and act different, who are concerned when they think their agency acts against them and is moving to the wrong direction.
Cheers,
lathspell aka turbopute
8500 images and just 100 credits a day???
-
Fotolia is no different from any of the others. They all have benefits, and they all have a downside.
Like Canstock. Man the sales are so slow, but they have a great keyword tool that I use a lot.
I do not have a great issue with FT at all, except their rejections lately, and I guess they are moving in another direction, we just have not figured it out yet.
-
@loop
yes thats boring .. mostime i shot food, and it dont sells good *g
regards xenia
-
@lathspell
"Good for you. Congratulations. You just missed to tell that you are currently earning ~100 credits a day and decided to go exclusive with them in the future (not that this was of any importance but I've read this for so many times now that I was actually missing it).
But please accept that there actually are people who think and act different, who are concerned when they think their agency acts against them and is moving to the wrong direction."
No i dont miss it, because is it my personal decission. I really dont know why you are so unfriendly. I accept that people are not happy with the way that fotolia goes... no problem. But for me it is ok, so you also have to accept it.
-
I don't have to stop uploading to Fotolia - they have effectively done it for me. Over the last two weeks I had 0% approval there, while DT and ISP had approximately 60% with the same images.
-
I don't have to stop uploading to Fotolia - they have effectively done it for me. Over the last two weeks I had 0% approval there, while DT and ISP had approximately 60% with the same images.
Welcome to the club...I HAVE stopped uploading, but since I have a large port there that earns a good amount of $$$ each month, I'll leave my stuff up there until the subs take over. It would be in Chad's best interest (as well as FT's) to take a class in biz/communication 101 to not THREATEN contributors and instead, ASK for feedback that might benefit all...I'm really concerned for both (mine and FT) our futures on the site.
...and to address your original point: there is no one at the reviewer helm, it is an semi-automated rejection system with a monkey pushing the buttons.
-
...and to address your original point: there is no one at the reviewer helm, it is an semi-automated rejection system with a monkey pushing the buttons.
Ah, that explains a everything! :D
-
Fotolia has recently announced another raise in subscription commissions. The commissions are now in line with most competitors.
While I still disagree with subs counting only 1/4 toward ranking, I am willing to upload to them again. I have gone on record several times stating I like the sub model, and that my main problem was Fotolia's very low commission.
Will I actually begin to upload again? That's another question. I'm very unhappy with the way many contributors were treated in the forums when they questioned the low commissions. I may soon give them photos again, but right now I simply enjoy working with the other microstock sites much more. Maybe I just need some time off from FT and let the trust rebuild.
In the meantime, I do not wish to be remain on the list which says I am no longer uploading to Fotolia. It would not be truthful, and I wish to fully disclose that I may work with them again in the future.
-
I am with Dan here. Since the commission raise and the other subtle changes I am considering to recontinue uploading. Only thing holding me back at the moment is that I am too busy with my main job.
-
The second raise does change things for me. There is no opt out but they don't offer sizes over the L size. I am going to start uploading again. I experimented again with opting out at StockXpert this month and my sales fell more than I would expect this time of the year. At some point I hope to move on from the microstock subscription sites but at the moment I can't afford to.