I can't help you with information about sales there - I'd never heard of them before your post.

I did go and look at the site though, and for me, the biggest no-go is that they don't read metadata from uploaded files - you have to provide it in a separate file or enter it on the site.

https://submit.pressfoto.com/documents.html?doc=meta

Another big missing piece is what they actually pay. Front page says "up to" 50% and the ranks page has a useless table with how much each rank is paid in USD (40� to 70�) but without knowing prices, who knows what that means

https://submit.pressfoto.com/documents.html?doc=ranks

The contributor agreement says 50% of net revenue goes to the contributor for on demand sales (i.e. PressFoto deducts any currency or other fees first before doing the split) and for subscriptions, it's a share of the pool of revenue. Does not mention a minimum (unless that's what the ranks table is trying to say)

https://www.pressfoto.com/pricing

I'm guessing if they were selling well we'd have heard something here.

Monkey Business Images, Pressmaster, and Wavebreak Media (though Zoonar) are there, for what that's worth., but they seem to be everywhere

On an unrelated note, they have 22,000 free files on Freepik

https://www.freepik.com/pressfoto

I think the contributor has the choice about whether to offer free files (but I can't imagine why one site would help another site build traffic via freebies - how does that help PressFoto?)

Thank you very much, you are very kind! 

Imagery from NASA is public domain, although they do request that you add a disclaimer along the lines of 'contains imagery furnished by NASA' when using their content. Also, anything that contains logos or recognizable people can't be used commercially.

I remember listening to a podcast back in the day, and the head of media (or some similar title) at NASA was being interviewed... and he was specifically asked if people could sell NASA content as stock footage and stock images, and he said that it's absolutely fine.

It's still up to the agencies whether they accept it or not but most do as far as I'm aware.

Thanks for the information, i didn't know that, and well many more things about the use of images to make composites.

Look at this article on Dreamstime blog.
https://www.dreamstime.com/blog/composite-images-new-secret-to-success-stock-photography-51072

Forget about Shutterstock aka Shitterstock, you are gone! As someone said, Hasta la vista baby ! It''s hard but that is!

My account deleted for now reason and I did not get any warning. Just discovered it was GONE! I've been with them since 2007 and have an ok sized portfolio of mostly vectors 600+. I've reached out to their customer support who keeps telling me that they're investigating the problem. It's been weeks now and they still haven't resolved this. Has this happened to anyone else? Any suggestions on how to resolve this?

Do you have some money there?

I think this would be a good news for Dreamstime.


US justice department sues Google over accusation of illegal monopoly

Lawsuit accuse tech company of abusing its position to dominate search and search advertising
The US justice department filed a lawsuit against Google on Tuesday, accusing the tech company of abusing its position to maintain an illegal monopoly over search and search advertising.

�Two decades ago, Google became the darling of Silicon Valley as a scrappy startup with an innovative way to search the emerging internet. That Google is long gone,� the suit alleged.

Today Google is a �monopoly gatekeeper for the internet� that has used �pernicious� anticompetitive tactics to maintain and extend its monopolies.

The antitrust suit is the most significant legal challenge to a major tech company in decades and comes as US authorities are increasingly critical of the business practices of the major tech companies.

The long-awaited case, filed in Washington DC, alleges that Google unfairly acts as a gatekeeper to the web through a series of business agreements that effectively lock out competition.

Justice officials have also challenged an arrangement in which Google�s search application is preloaded, and cannot be deleted, on mobile phones running its Android operating system. The company pays billions each year to �secure default status for its general search engine and, in many cases, to specifically prohibit Google�s counterparties from dealing with Google�s competitors,� the suit states, in a move that has �foreclosed competition for internet search�.

Google�s alleged anticompetitive practices are �especially pernicious because they deny rivals scale to compete effectively�, and thwart potential innovation, the suit alleged.

In a statement Google called the suit �deeply flawed�. �People use Google because they choose to � not because they�re forced to or because they can�t find alternatives,� the company said.

Google dominates online search in the US, accounting for about 80% of search queries.

The suit marks a stunning reversal for Silicon Valley which has largely avoided clashes with Washington even as European regulators have levied huge fines against Google and others.

European regulators have fined Google a total of $9bn for anticompetitive practices. In 2018 Donald Trump attacked the EU decisions. �I told you so! The European Union just slapped a Five Billion Dollar fine on one of our great companies, Google,� Trump tweeted. �They truly have taken advantage of the US, but not for long!�

Since then the mood has changed, with Trump and other conservatives joining liberals including senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders in attacking the dominance of tech firms including Amazon, Google, Facebook and others.

While Democrats have largely stuck to criticizing the scale of big tech�s dominance Republicans, including Trump, have accused the major tech companies of censoring conservative speech.

Trump�s attorney general, William Barr, reportedly pushed for the justice department to file its suit against the company against the wishes of lawyers who wanted to take more time on the case. �Today, millions of Americans rely on the internet and online platforms for their daily lives. Competition in this industry is vitally important, which is why today�s challenge against Google � the gatekeeper of the internet � for violating antitrust laws is a monumental case both for the Department of Justice and for the American people,� said Barr.

The case comes after a hard-hitting House subcommittee report concluded big tech wielded �too much power� and was censoring political speech, spreading fake news and �killing� the engines of the American economy.

The charges mark the first time since the famous Microsoft lawsuit of 1998 that the US government has accused a company of operating a monopoly under the Sherman Act, a law that dates back to 1890 encouraging competition between enterprises.

In the suit the government lawyers point out that Google was among those who argued Microsoft�s practices were anticompetitive, �and yet, now, Google deploys the same playbook to sustain its own monopolies�.

But the justice department said Google�s parent company Alphabet had learned one thing from the Microsoft case. �Referring to a notorious line from the Microsoft case, Google�s chief economist wrote: �We should be careful about what we say in both public and private. �Cutting off the air supply� and similar phrases should be avoided.��

Google�s employees have also �received specific instructions on what language to use (and not use) in emails�, the suit claimed. Google employees were instructed to avoid using terms such as �crush�, �kill�, �hurt� or �block� competition, and to avoid observing that Google has �market power� in any market.

Google has $120bn in cash and deep political ties in Washington. The case will take years before any decision is reached and will likely set off a cascade of other legal actions. Attorneys general across the US are already investigating the company and the justice department is conducting a separate investigation into Google�s ad-tech practices.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/oct/20/us-justice-department-antitrust-lawsuit-against-google

Quote from: Evaristo tenscadisto on October 16, 2020, 15:52

For me I will use my personal "equalizer".
Both parts can play the game so why should i continue to use their software when they are giving our artist work for free to clients?

Don't get me wrong it's only business so Let's play the free game:

For Premiere  i will use Da vinci  resolve  (free/better and with big community support)
For Photoshop i will use GIMP (free big comunnity support)
For lightroom  i will use Darktable (Free, recent 1 year community but fascinating choice)
For after effects  i will use FXhome HitFilm and Blender (HUGE community support)

Give it a try and you will save 61,49�/month.

We can start a coalition against AS. It's honestly good software. The open source ones are awesome too. Very good computer programs.

Adobe created the flash, the PDF, .... I can't go against them. I think it is a matter of business.

I think the problem is ours for not being able to unite, with some lawyers who lift every false return or agency accounting error off the ground. That it puts fines to commit to each image shared in networks illegally.


An association with a voice on the planet, we bring color to the information and we are not able to unite, but really, together without sex or kisses, just for the profession and elevate it to a worthy profession. Backed by international associations of Internet users.

United as a real collective. Simple. The fault is ours. AS is a company, and it commands the profit. At the very least, they are not twisted on us. They try.

A strike is the solution, but it is impossible, I know.

Flash was developed by Macromedia,  and Adobe bought that company. I used a lot Flash, Fireworks and Dreamweaver when i worked as webmaster in the beginning of 2000 year.

This forum has an utility, look https://microstockgroup.com/tools/keyword.php

I have a question, maybe it's something stupid, I apologize for that. If I already have images in the microstock that Wirestock has. If I upload images there, will they appear as repeated? That is, will my same images compete with each other? Thank you.

The question seems a bit silly, but if I wanted to recreate a scene from space, or something in which I must use a spaceship, could not I use one of the NASA videos? Would copyright be violated if it is used in a composition?

For years now. Do a search here, I�m sure it was talked about when it happened. They even had a �bridge� so you could mirror your images on whichever site you weren�t already on.

Thanks, I dind't know it!

Quote from: Evaristo tenscadisto on September 29, 2020, 09:07

Quote from: MotionDesign on September 28, 2020, 12:26

i think that you must own the copyright of all elements you use in your renders (3d models and textures).
Maybe there are websites that allow you to use the textures for microstock, but i'm not sure about this.
Personally i use only textures created by me (procedurally or from my shots).
If you use C4D i think that's fine to use the texture library that come with the software.

Can you provide the law where that is written? i am kind of curious. The way you put it, it seems that people cannot even take a shoot of an ikea chair (which have design)  or any other object in the world. I don't see people in movies own the copyright of all objects like sofas tv and so on that they buy for the film clip shoot. And i see a LOT of this objects being used in microstock clips.
Furthermore I can advance that there is no such thing in EU law that i am aware of it.

It's usually less about 'the law' and more about the terms of the sites in question... plus copyright law. i.e there's not really any law that says you can't do 'x' when it comes to your use of a texture/model, but there are license terms, and doing something with the item that isn't allowed means you've breached the terms of the license, so you don't have the right to use it. If you don't have the right to use something, it's then an issue of copyright law.

For example, the terms of TurboSquid:

Quote

You may NOT publish or distribute Creations of Imagery through another stock media clearinghouse, for example as part of an online marketplace for photography, clip art, or design templates.

So unless you've created your models and textures from scratch, you need to check the terms of service to see what is and what isn't allowed.

That's for models and textures... when it comes to household objects, products, logos etc, they're usually all covered by some form of copyright protection, and what's allowed will vary considerably on the item in question, how prominently it features in the shot, end usage etc etc... plus how stringently the stock site wants to apply those rules when accepting content.

That means that if I want to recreate a furnished room, the furniture designs must be unique, not similar to those of IKEA, for example?
Would I have to create models that are different for example from those of IKEA?

I have a question, i'm new user in Cinema 4D, Could i use free textures for my models and sell the renders of models on microstock? Sorry for my bad english. I speak spanish.

Quote from: kall3bu on September 24, 2020, 09:46

...Ones reached the payout limit, I will not yet ask for the money! I wait until I reached the double and will ask to pay me the half of it. ...

In general, I would advise against leaving money with any agency once you can collect it.

There's only one place the money is within your control and that's when it's in your bank account. Interest rates are at the moment at historic lows, but more typically, someone will earn money on the balance in your account; I'd rather it be me and not the agency.

That's true!