Shutterstock just acquired WebDAM

WebDAM provides marketing and creative teams with online tools for managing, searching, distributing, and collaborating on creative digital assets in the cloud, including images, videos, creative files, documents, and presentations. The company's offerings are particularly attractive to large enterprises, which make up a significant portion of WebDAM�s client base.

http://www.shutterstock.com/blog/shutterstock-to-acquire-webdam

Hmmm.. interesting.  Perhaps this means more very easy to license images for the end user - like the Facebook deal.  I wouldn't be against that.  Getting images easily accessible to where people need them and can buy them seamlessly is what will make microstock really bloom.

Didn't take the survey this year, also stopped entering monthly numbers.  For me the most important question is whether or not it's best to be exclusive and getting a better understanding of that is not really helped by the survey results.  Maybe some of the info is interesting but I don't see it as being very useful for making decisions.  I hope next year this can be addressed if it can't be from this year's survey.

It can get interesting and useful when we start to look at correlation or one other question which wasn't easy enough to look at for this blog post.  For example, how to the full time istock exclusives compare to the full time non-exclusives.
There was also a question if you changed exclusivity last year and if you saw an increase or decrease in income.  Did those going to exclusivity see an increase or decrease.  Did those going independent see an increase or decrease.  I think those stats would be interesting and useful.

how were your trying to post them?

You can attach them to your post if you want with the 'attach' buttons at the bottom of the posting area...

great idea.  Great for the buyers geting an image that isn't already used millions of times before and great for us getting a little more exposure.  ... and perhaps a little boost to the lost and forgotten images that really were not that bad.

.. sigh...

Hello leaf,

We discovered that there were some irregularities with September 2013 and October 2013 Partner Program royalties payments. There were a number of contributor accounts that were overpaid royalties over these two months. Unfortunately your account was one of the affected accounts.

We have calculated the over payment amount to be $416.10. Rather than take this amount out of your royalty balance in one adjustment we have decided to schedule the removal of these funds over a 6 month period. Starting before the end of February 2014 we will begin removing $69.35. Once per month for the next six months we will recoup the balance of the over payment. You will receive a monthly notification as immediately after the funds are removed.

Over Payment Total=$416.10

Monthly Recoup Amount=$69.35

If you have any questions please contact us via our Contributor Relations Contact Ticket feature.

Regards,
iStockphoto LP

As always - we'll Make It Up On Volume.  And none of these adverstisers could possibly spend more than a dollar for an image.  What do you estimate FB charges them to run the ad?

about the same as google adwords (speaking from experience)

Quote from: stockastic on February 23, 2014, 16:37

I guess if you really think 38 cents is fair, for an ad potentially seen by  millions of users - given that the real money was probably all hidden in the form of a big upfront pseudo-subscription payment from FB to SS, of which we get nothing... then probably I have nothing to add.

What's the difference between someone doing this and downloading it themselves from SS and then uploading that? 

Now you've got a huge new 'buyer' base that 99% of didn't have an SS subscription and wasn't going to open one just for this. 

And I'm pretty sure they can't download it.  FB is not licensing it to the ad creator.

... and it's free to them, so they'll use it like candy.  I know I do.  I've used probably 20 images from Shutterstock in the last couple days in my ads.  I'll run an ad for 2 days.. test what type of image performs the best then change the text.... test the text for a couple days, then try the best text with 6 new images.  There is nothing stopping me from testing a new set of 6 images every day to find the best one.  The photographer wins... I feel it is a great exchange and deal.  Facebook will make money because I'm running lots of ads, Shutterstock gets lots of customers, as a photographer I get lots of new customers and as an advertiser on FB I get free images in a very easy to implement user interface.

I've been running some ads on Facebook for a new project I'm building and have been really impressed by the Facebook/Shutterstock deal.  I love using it on Facebook and think the payment for the users on Shutterstock (38 cents I believe) is fair.

In use, when creating an ad on Facebook you are given the option of uploading your own images, using images you already have online or getting pictures from Shutterstock.  If you pick Shutterstock, you are given a search box and can simply select the 5 images you want to use (for free).  Facebook then uses all the images you chose in ads and you can see how they perform differently.  Very easy to do A/B testing with different images and it is surprising how much difference one image makes to another.  I'm paying for the facebook ads so I guess they use some of those funds to pay for the images.

This could be a huge market for Shutterstock IMO.  Very user friendly, very valuable and I feel, for what the buyer is getting, we are being paid a fair amount.

I still have only a half built site but planning on finishing it.
I'm still a fan

congrats on getting accepted

Quote from: Anyka on January 30, 2014, 02:01

I keep getting reminders by e-mail, so I suppose I messed up the profile update too.  But that does not mean my survey was lost, does it?

I'm also getting e-mail reminders after completing the survey?

I keep getting reminders by e-mail, so I suppose I messed up the profile update too.  But that does not mean my survey was lost, does it?

I made sure you were both entered in the survey.  The responses and the email list are totally separate so no, your answers were not lost.  You just didn't jump through the right hoops to get into the giveaway.  I fixed that now.  MailChimp (the email service I've been using) has a complicated workflow to update your profile settings which is why there is so much confusion.

Sorry, for the survey.

getting close to last year's total of 750

Less than a week until the thank-you draw is made.  I'll be making it Monday Feb. 3.

I sent out two emails yesterday.  One confirming the people who were entered in the draw and another say there is only a week left to fill out the survey.  if you didn't get an email confirming you were entered in the draw, you probably aren't.
Let me know if there is a mistake ([email protected])