Quote from: Camillo on August 20, 2024, 18:02

....

I stopped uploading to shutterstock in 2020. Was all in but 10 cents is not worth the trouble. Im not very succesful at all in these stock companies but adobe stock is doing better for me than shutter ever did. Shutter was great with video sales.

your choice, but the 10c cheapest sale isn't a true measure - i can't remember anyone here reporting their RPD was < $.20 /image --  mine varies from$.50-.75 /image - only slightly less than AS but with higher actual income/mo (which is what really matters)

I quit SS when my RPD went to <20c for several months in a row, that and their ethics made me pull the pin.

How on earth can they accept something that is NOT even close to what Sydney looks like, and that Opera House is not even close to what it really looks like. It should clearly state it is a fictional view of a fictional place they called Sydney.

Potentially the biggest markets in the world, especially in the future. I know about motiongraphics and pixta, but are there other, more Asia specific places that sell stock (footage in particular for me)

Thanks!

iStock/Getty have a partnership with Visual Group China, Since 2006, VCG has been the exclusive distributor of Getty Images' library in China. 
Getty Images appointed Visage Media Services as its Indian subcontinent representative. "Getty Images, the imagery company, has signed an agreement with Visage Media Services to exclusively represent Getty Images creative collections in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal and Maldives. This agreement according to Getty Images marks the beginning of a new era for access to high quality photagraphy in India.
Previously, the Getty Images collections had been available to clients in these markets from the Getty Images Singapore office."

I am not sure if other agencies have arrangements.

Seems to me that getting out of stock all together and removing a portfolio is poking oneself in the eye.    Just leave the portfolio to produce whatever it can under new plans but stop investing in creating new content if it doesn't make business sense to continue to do so.     

Unless you have other options for that portfolio and then it would make sense to remove it.

wow it sounds like a lot of us have been caught up in this. I have had one asset removed, with no idea which one and exactly what term it violates.

There is a big difference between submitting something to an auction site, them selling and then skimming their commission off the sale price and us submitting to an agency. The auction is a once off scenario, payment for services rendered. The Agency has a long term commitment. Just because their income is 70% to 85% does not make that amount profit. There are a lot of expenses that come out of that income, including but not exclusive, insurance, IT equipment, Software, various personnel that have to be paid, utilities etc (the list goes on), and last but not least the shareholders  who provide income for the growth of the company but expect something in return (dividends). All this cuts into the income received. They are probably doing well to get 15% profit. The reality is that after you expend time and resources on your images/video etc, you submit to an agency and then you let them do all the work .... that is what you are paying them for.

I knew an author way back who had a very successful book, we knew how much the book cost to buy (approximately $30), he then said he made 20c royalty per book. This was way less than 15%. But just like us and stock images he did not have to do the work once it was in the hands of the publisher.

If you feel that the compensation is not worth the effort then this profession is probably not for you.

The thing that concerns me here is the issue of download bombing causing portfolios to be suspended. This is open to malicious players causing successful contributors to be suspended and lose income .... why is the contributor the one who suffers in the first instance .... these suspension probably have a long term effect on where they appear in the algorithm as well.

I respectfully ask Mat to clarify that this does not happen and that there is a clear protocol in place. The ones who have had suspensions also need clarification that can be communicated so none of the rest of us fall into the same traps. Violations should be easily identified to all of us. No-one likes to have ambiguous reasons given. It is like being arrested because you did something criminal, but they wont tell you what you did, but they are going to put you in jail anyway.

it's the afternoon of the 20th in Australia and still no sign of downloads or reports

looks like i qualified which is great but seems no adobe products exist for linux    i was kind of excited to try lightroom but not sure i'll enjoy the experience if i have to use in on some ancient laptop i dust off.  is there a web version of anything out there?

My husband runs a virtual windows desktop off his linux system. That might be a way forward for you.

20 days waiting here for photos

Quote from: WendyT on January 09, 2024, 20:39

Quote from: riffmax on January 08, 2024, 18:53

And I don't know who that gal is in my bathroom mirror! LOL!

Welcome back, I am sure you will do well. I have a haunted mirror, there is some old biddy in there that wont let me see the real me! (67 here going on 37ish)

Wendy, hello! I have thought of you often over the recent years. It is so nice you're still around!

I know what "they" should do about those * mirrors...and certainly the technology exists. There needs to be mirrors that have filters on them so that we can kid ourselves that we still look like we did at 37ish!

Have been thinking about you too. I am sorry to hear that things went so bad over the last few years, I had a rough few years and last year was my "annus horribilus" too. I am only just getting back to thinking about stock.
I am glad you are getting back into music, it is one of the things that soothes the soul.
Annie had good advice as usual
As for the mirrors they definitely need to do something about them I take my glasses off it is amazing how much of a soft filter that is. No more wrinkles

And I don't know who that gal is in my bathroom mirror! LOL!

Welcome back, I am sure you will do well. I have a haunted mirror, there is some old biddy in there that wont let me see the real me! (67 here going on 37ish)

Quote from: Lina on December 03, 2023, 04:13

Quote from: hatman12 on December 02, 2023, 22:21

This doesn't sound right at all.  US witholding tax is 10% not 5% and only applies to a company registered and operating in the US and making distributions to residents abroad.

US witholding tax is max. 30% not 10%. It depends on agreement USA has with contributor's country.

withholding can be 0% , which is how I have all the US agencies setup

hatman the double tax treaty between Australia and the USA is 5% ... each country has its own tax treaty, if no tax treaty is in place then the withholding tax is 30%.

Steve I am guessing you are in the USA.  For companies that are based in the USA as a foreign contributor the IRS requires forms to be completed. This then determines the amount of tax withheld. If no form is completed then they will take 30% in tax. 0% is not an option.

If you are a USA contributor to a company based in the USA then you would comply with your own IRS rules whatever they are. As an Australian contributing to an Australian company, I am self employed and work out my tax obligation when I do my tax returns, so no tax is withheld by the Australian company.

I am guessing that this is why Canva is setting up offices all over the world. USA contributors will more than likely be registered to the USA office and will comply with those tax rules ...  this would then do away with the need for tax treaty between USA and Australia for those contributors (this has been done by other companies).  In this case the blanket email has just caused confusion and I am still waiting for a reply.