They are property so you could will them to someone

I leave it to my heirs to find out what to do

I have prepared an envelope containing addresses to all sites,
usernames and passwords, to be opened if I happen to die.

edit: typo fo->to

Quote from: Perry on July 30, 2012, 03:08

I leave it to my heirs to find out what to do

I have prepared an envelope containing addresses to all sites,
usernames and passwords, to be opened if I happen fo die.

That's a good idea, but also make sure your will explicitly states that you leave the rights to your microstock portfolio to a particular person.  As pointed out, make sure you take a look at that older thread to see how the big micros responded to the question.

Hmmm.
I see iStock needs 'photo ID' of the benefactor. That's awkward.
My husband is computer phobic; when I'm away, he doesn't even check his emails. No way he'd set up a Paypal account to be paid into.
My sister gave away her computer last year, though she has access at work.
My parents have never had need of a computer.
I was thinking about leaving my ports (FWTW) to a charity, but the 'picture ID' thing would be impossible; as it would in the UK for many people, as we don't have ID cards, pre-1998 driving licences don't have photos, and not everyone has need of a passport.
Hmmm. I guess I'll need to check with iStock.
In the hope that most of us won't expire for a good few years yet, and with the fluctuating picture sales market, do we have to go and get additions/deletions to our wills every time we join/leave an agency? I guess indies have to do that all the time? Must get expensive with lawyer's fees?
It looks like maybe a blanket 'all portfolios extant at the time of my death' wouldn't cut it? It also looks as though any legal advice my lawyer might give me wouldn't necessarily cut it with iStock or maybe any other agency.

Copyright is an asset you can enherit.
The portefolio can be set to a value and sold, or the copyright can pass directly to the enheritants.

Your enheritants own the copyright of your material 70 or 75 years after you are dead.
So they can continue to make revenue from your material.

it would be smart to make a list of bank accounts, paypal login and logins to the agencies, and describe how you have everything arranged.

that depends on the defined legal entity.

Borg, sorry, I cannot see the problem... you can change the paypal / bank account details to something suitable at any time.

I used to do quite a bit of estate work, so I'd like to share a bit.  The procedure is much the same if a person (in this case the photographer) dies or is declared incompetent by the Court.  After death, a Personal Representative is appointed by the Court, or in the case of incompetence a "Conservator" .  This PR used to be called the Executor.  The PR is often named in the will and the Court will almost always automatically appoint that person.  At that time the court will issue a paper, called "Letters" to the PR.  In the case of incompetence, these are called Conservator's Letters.  In a death situation the are called Personal Representative's Letters.  Additional certified copies of the PR Letters can be issued but there is usually a small fee, several dollars per Letter.  The PR will send a PR letter to the Agency which will then send royalties to the PR during the period the will is being probated.   Sometimes in a large or complicated estate, probate can go on for years. In the case of incompetence, the royalty payment arrangements are usually permanent until the death of the ward (incompetent  person).  In a probate (death/probate) case, the PR collects the royalties until the estate is settled.  The royalty income during probate will usually go into the residue of the estate to be distributed as directed in the will.  When the estate is settled, the PR will pass ownership of the agency photos to the beneficiary and will notify the photo agency of the change of ownership.  Sometimes a copy of the will may be requested by the Agency.  This is usually sent by USPS certified mail.  Then the Agency will make the necessary paperwork changes and business will proceed as normal with royalty payments made to the beneficiary.  You may ask "What if the photographer has no will (called intestate)." No, it rarely goes to the Government. The often surprising answer is that there is usually no such thing as no will.  In the USA everybody has a will.  It is written automatically by the state that is the deceased person's legal residence. (this may vary from state to state).  There are specific rules here about who inherits, this being determined mostly by the closeness of bloodlines.  Often the order is spouse, children, parents, siblings, etc etc.  When a person makes a will, he or she is CHANGING the will made for them by the state.  Only if an individual dies intestate and has NO living relatives does the estate wealth go to the government.

I hope this helps.  It may seem complicated but it really is just a large collection of simple, usually logical, steps.