I got a pop-up survey on istock today, which I opted to participate in, and the questions were all focused on prints. The survey asked if I'd be likely to buy a framed print of an istock image, how often I purchase framed prints throughout the year, etc.

Didn't they already try something like this in the past? I don't recall it being very successful, so I wonder why they'd bother resurrecting this program.

I think it might be more successful if they started a dedicated art prints site and only selected stock photos that had some appeal.  Are art buyers going to wade through millions of stock images that wouldn't look good as prints?

Yes exactly. Art and stock are two different things. There are times when I have come across really gorgeous stock images that might look good as a print, so they might have some sales for this. I wonder why, though, they don't focus their efforts and money on doing their STOCK image site correctly, instead of trying to diversify even more. 

Quote from: sharpshot on August 03, 2012, 10:57

I think it might be more successful if they started a dedicated art prints site and only selected stock photos that had some appeal.  Are art buyers going to wade through millions of stock images that wouldn't look good as prints?

Yes exactly. Art and stock are two different things. There are times when I have come across really gorgeous stock images that might look good as a print, so they might have some sales for this. I wonder why, though, they don't focus their efforts and money on doing their STOCK image site correctly, instead of trying to diversify even more. 

Maybe the office cleaner's turn to come up with an idea.
What went wrong the last time? I had the impression it was something to do with the chosen printer rather than iStock, but I'm not sure.

DT tried it in October, 2009. It didn't work after 2 months. http://www.dreamstime.com/thread_19735
"The logistical hassle and dependence on third party services made us reconsider the future of this program. It is also the reason why you didn't see too many updates. This program wasn't able to take off properly. Furthermore, our customers experienced significant inconveniences and shipping delays. None of them were Dreamstime's fault, but these flaws jeopardized our image in front of customers. All these correlated with the logistical hassle and synchronization burden made it obvious that we need to remove the program as it doesn't meet our standards. We will discontinue the product starting Dec. 15th."

They do partner with The Canvas Art Factory though (Australia, I think this is legit) -

Over 9 million high resolution images
We are also able to offer images through our association with Dreamstime.  Below is just a small selection of Dreamstime images.

http://www.thecanvasartfactory.com.au/store/pages/Over-9-million-high-resolution-images.html