Shutterstock has been conspicuously absent from this conversation due to huge volume. That is not DPC right now. Also shutter is one of the few sites where RPD is actually going up. That is due to increased on-demand sales. I think that is why people are so concerned about DPC. They see it as stealing the on-demand from SS.

I kind of see SS in the same position as IS was a few years ago. IS had raised prices a few years in a row and it benefited contributors with increased earnings. Meanwhile behind the scenes, the contributor base and images were growing faster than the customer base and purchases. So when they turn the raises off or worse decide to have pay cuts, then the reality of things comes crashing in.

SS has enjoyed a similar ride with On Demand and other sales benefiting contributors more than negative contributor to customer ratio. I fear history will repeat itself when the positives of On Demand level off and the realities of the marketplace catch up with it. Maybe, they will be able to stay ahead of it by introducing something new, but it seems it has to eventually catch up with them.

RPD is the most meaningless stat that you could possibly use. It doesn't account for volume.

I've found my volume has been decreasing over time, so RPD has become important to me. I don't know if that has been the case for others, but that is the trend I'm seeing.

This is kind of how I see the brief history of micro:

1. Started with high volume and low prices with little competition.
2. Prices increased and volume decreased. Competition also increased, but incomes were increasing.
3. Prices plateaued or decreased, royalty clawbacks started, volumes and incomes decreased or leveled off. Competition continues to increase.

Maybe, this is just how it has gone for me, but the recent trend is sort of disturbing. It certainly has sustainability problems. RPD doesn't fix that alone, but sales at higher RPD sites are a start.

But don't you agree that you and I are better off if we work to protect our long term interests against tactics that undercut our potential sales. It seems to me that saying "produce good product and everything will work out" is a bit optimistic. If we would collectively say "no" to bad industry policies everyone would be better off. The problem here is that too few people are willing to say no. The agencies know this and are exploiting it. The OP is quite happy to get sub commissions for on-demand purchases because he has decided that it is OK. I have decided that it isn't OK. I wish he had my point of view but I respect that he doesn't. Nevertheless, I do feel that his perspective will in some small way hurt my sales in the future.

It's really not about 1 person... it's about 10,000 with the same attitude. That is where the problem lies.

Unfortunately, I think people have to see it for themselves before they change their minds. They have to find a better place than the status quo to sell their work and/or experience the frustration of falling sales, royalty rates, or other setbacks. Not everybody is there yet and they may never be. I think opinions will eventually come around, but it may take a while. It would definitely be nice to speed it up. 

if old cow(s) want to keep the crown, old cow(s) have to stay uptodate and face the competition.
old cows are only sitting comfy because our old images gain first page first para. which is more or less
filling our coffer.
but eventually, old cow(s) need to stand shoulder to shoulder with their new work
or else be replaced.

My fear isn't being gobbled up by new fish. It's everyone becoming cannibals and no longer being safe at my favorite restaurants because of the chaos.

Quote from: PhotoBomb on July 21, 2014, 16:30

Yes he is. 7000+ images - So Sad.

So sad to see that not everybody agree to let the others make their own choices�
Yes, this is really so sad�

True. Nobody can make decisions for others. At the same time, the decisions other contributors make affect everyone.

Yeah, the registered trademark is a little concerning. That's something you definitely want to get resolved for your own protection.

Quote from: cthoman on July 21, 2014, 11:36

Quote from: PixelBytes on July 21, 2014, 11:28

Where do images sell for .20?  All the subs sites are .25 or higher aren't they?  I don't agree with any model that lowers the floor of what we get paid now.

Fotolia

Fotolia have subs that pay .20?  First I heard of it. 

Canva sounds interesting.  Thanks for that Jo Ann.

And lower and regular sales that pay even lower. I thought it was a little amusing that people got all upset about DPC when regular sales seem to pay just as little.

Where do images sell for .20?  All the subs sites are .25 or higher aren't they?  I don't agree with any model that lowers the floor of what we get paid now.

Fotolia

Quote from: PixelBytes on July 18, 2014, 11:05

Quote from: Audi 5000 on July 17, 2014, 18:57

My guess is he stopped posting here because of these kinds of comments.  If there is ever a more professional atmosphere around here I wouldn't be surprised to see him back again.

Since you didn't know who it was you are assuming a lot.  There's a reason nobody liked this guy.

I think it's a pretty safe assumption.

Well, I missed you. I like a variety of opinions even if I don't always agree with them.

cthoman, I (they) closed my account right after few messages exchange and information that I'll be paid <50cr in 1-2 weeks, all in June. This is just not serious.

I'm not sure what to tell you. I contacted support when I closed my account before. 1-2 weeks seems like a quick turn around, since they are removing images and have to wait for them to clear the system and calculate any remaining sales, partner sales, etc. I don't remember how much time it took, but a month or two doesn't seem out of the ordinary for most agencies to completely expunge an image from the system. Just keep on top of them and keep asking.

I watched both of the videos on their blog and clearly they're still very, very centered on video (the guy from Accel, who will be on the board, mentioned only video in talking about what Pond5 does). I have only a few of my images there - the upload process was pretty icky and the sales not really there so I stopped.

I'd love to see someone grow to challenge the existing agencies, but video isn't my thing. Does anyone see much in the way of photo sales at Pond5?

Illustration has been pretty slow in sales, although it is a nice royalty when they come in. They have improved the upload process quite a bit this year. It still could use bulk submit controls which would make it really easy. Hopefully, they are working on that.

Quote from: cthoman on July 16, 2014, 10:25

Kind of surprised by iStock and Thinkstock in my return to IS. They sell quite a bit. I made twice as much there in June than I did at SS. I guess it may taper off when I'm no longer new, but still surprised. It's strange (kind of scary too) having the thought that IS may be the new subscription leader.

Not at all. If you're effectively new there, you're doing extremely well. Most are finding that new files are doing badly, and as far as anything is selling, it's older work. (That applies to iS itself; not, from what I read, to TS.)

Single sales aren't great at IS, but probably near where they were when I left. Which I guess is bad relatively speaking to the "good old days", but it is probably still good compared to other agencies. It's definitely been an eye opening experience returning to some of these places. Don't even get me started on the train wreck of Fotolia.