Quote from: mlwinphoto on September 08, 2013, 19:04
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I suspect that all non-exclusives will eventually be moved entirely to the PP sites and removed entirely from iStock itself.  Then exclusives can stop moaning about any perceived advantages that nons currently have in the Main collection in terms of cheaper pricing and best match placement anywhere in the first 10 pages.....

Oh, boo hoo for the minus whoever (exclusive) you are.   

Quote from: mlwinphoto on September 08, 2013, 19:04
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I suspect that all non-exclusives will eventually be moved entirely to the PP sites and removed entirely from iStock itself.  Then exclusives can stop moaning about any perceived advantages that nons currently have in the Main collection in terms of cheaper pricing and best match placement anywhere in the first 10 pages.....

If the downtrend continues there, the only exclusives left may be the pseudo-exclusives.

They are making this choice really easy for me at the moment, giving them a few more days and them bye, bye if things don't improve greatly on the video side!

It's no better on the photo side - sales have catastrophically crashed, for me at least.

Quote from: fotoVoyager on September 10, 2013, 14:36
It's no better on the photo side - sales have catastrophically crashed, for me at least.

I had pretty good sales the last few days of August and then sales seemed to have crashed starting Sept. 1.
Yes, am exclusive.

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it's mostly co-workers that go out and buy a Canon Rebel at costco and feel they are now a professional lol...

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something strange is in the pipes for the middle of this month, you are probably right in that the writing is already on the wall and I need to jump. I am just being a chicken because I do this full-time and have a family to feed. I just need a little encouragement

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No inside information but if you have read all the iStock News letters you can see something is going to happen with search soon. It may be to little to late and I am only guessing. I just need someone to hold my hand while I jump

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Quote from: jjneff on September 10, 2013, 16:08
No inside information but if you have read all the iStock News letters you can see something is going to happen with search soon. It may be to little to late and I am only guessing. I just need someone to hold my hand while I jump

Are you intending to leave iS altogether? If you're just jumping video exclusivity, I think that's a relatively risk-free jump to start with, based on what I've read, not personal experience.

sorry Neff but you seem to change your mind on a weekly basis

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Weekly how about daily  No in all honesty I am making a final decision this week because I am sure people are tired of watching me on the fence! Yes I am talking about just video and the hold up is Getty. I have done really well at earning around $1400.00 per month from my Getty sales which I will loose most of and drop to say 400-900 per month.

Quote from: jjneff on September 10, 2013, 16:28
Weekly how about daily  No in all honesty I am making a final decision this week because I am sure people are tired of watching me on the fence! Yes I am talking about just video and the hold up is Getty. I have done really well at earning around $1400.00 per month from my Getty sales which I will loose most of and drop to say 400-900 per month.

Ah, I didn't know about your Getty video sales, so disregard my comment above.

Removing images from iStock will increase sales on other agencies, I have no doubt about that. I am waiting to see the totals for the next couple of months (September/November) to make a decision, which would be purely business. If the totals are meager, and it looks like they will be right now, removing files would make sense, since I'd have nothing much to lose and a little to gain. It's simple arithmetic.
Even since Istock introduced exclusivity, I thought - the day will come when they start pushing out non-exclusives. And that's what they're doing right now, by practically giving away our work.

Quote from: Elenathewise on September 10, 2013, 17:08
Removing images from iStock will increase sales on other agencies, I have no doubt about that. I am waiting to see the totals for the next couple of months (September/November) to make a decision, which would be purely business. If the totals are meager, and it looks like they will be right now, removing files would make sense, since I'd have nothing much to lose and a little to gain. It's simple arithmetic.
Even since Istock introduced exclusivity, I thought - the day will come when they start pushing out non-exclusives. And that's what they're doing right now, by practically giving away our work.

It's not so much that Istock are giving away our work ... it's mainly that they keep over 80% of the proceeds for themselves.

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Quote from: Elenathewise on September 10, 2013, 17:08
Removing images from iStock will increase sales on other agencies, I have no doubt about that. I am waiting to see the totals for the next couple of months (September/November) to make a decision, which would be purely business. If the totals are meager, and it looks like they will be right now, removing files would make sense, since I'd have nothing much to lose and a little to gain. It's simple arithmetic.
Even since Istock introduced exclusivity, I thought - the day will come when they start pushing out non-exclusives. And that's what they're doing right now, by practically giving away our work.

curiously you have uploaded 467 pictures this year

Quote from: Elenathewise on September 10, 2013, 17:08
Removing images from iStock will increase sales on other agencies, I have no doubt about that.

Elena, I put a lot of stock in what you say about the industry because I know you are smart, observant, and cautious. 

Can you share why you are certain that removing photos from istock will definitely increase sales at other sites?

I'm Curious too! by the way Lisa I feel the same about your opinions

Quote from: lisafx on September 10, 2013, 19:18

Quote from: Elenathewise on September 10, 2013, 17:08
Removing images from iStock will increase sales on other agencies, I have no doubt about that.

Elena, I put a lot of stock in what you say about the industry because I know you are smart, observant, and cautious. 

Can you share why you are certain that removing photos from istock will definitely increase sales at other sites?

Thank you Lisa:)  I know from speaking to buyers that many search for images across several agencies. If they're looking for something on iStock and don't find it there they'd get it from others. Of course someone may argue that instead of your image they can get a "substitute" from someone else's portfolio, but if you have fairly unique style and content that wouldn't be an issue.
Another factor to consider is that many buyers are also looking for better price, I've had enough feedback on that. If Istock undersells other agencies, your content there will be sold for less and your royalties will be the lowest possible. If you don't have your image on Istock and the buyer still wants it they'd go for the next best deal, including buying from your own site (happened to me many times).
My interactions with buyers also tell me that many don't mind paying up to 50 USD per image for high quality content, so lowering the prices on agencies like Istock and Fotolia seems to be purely due to competitive price wars, not reflecting actual buying potential.

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