I appreciate that Shutterstock tells people in advance that they'll be down for maintenance. Unlike some other sites experiencing PP anxiety.

Only about 25% of my sales are in so far. The first 2/3 of the month...and a couple of days at the end...are still missing or way under reported.

Are you sure it's from Shutterstock? What sort of "proof" are they looking for? It could be a scammer trying to get your SS# or credit card # or something.

I wrote PAY ME.

Quote from: Shelma1 on July 15, 2013, 15:40

Quote from: Noedelhap on July 15, 2013, 15:38

Exactly how much right do they have to withhold our money for so long? When can we consider it a breach of contract and is there anything we can do about it in terms of legal action?

Of course. They have to pay us the money they owe us.

They seem to have wriggled out of a time scale in the ASA, so maybe this delay is not breach of contract.
ASA 5b
"In response to a written request, iStockphoto will endeavor to make payment of royalties in respect of purchased downloads of Accepted Exclusive Content on a monthly basis on or about the 15th day of the month following the purchase of Accepted Exclusive Content, except when sales reporting from a Distribution Partner is delayed, in which case payments will be made in the month following the date such sale is reported, provided such royalties aggregate a minimum of US$100, failing which royalties owing will be retained until they exceed such minimum."

The sales reporting was not delayed. Remember, lobo said last week that they'd be pushing through the royalties for both May and June. That means they already have the reporting for both months.

But they're owned by Getty...a U.S. corporation. Wouldn't a class-action suit in the U.S. be doable?

My sales at shutterstock continue to rise every month, while my sales at iStock dropped by almost half this month (if the month continues as badly as it started).

Getty Images contributor hotline: 206-925-6577.

Nobody answers the phone, but you can leave a voicemail.

This post will self-destruct in 15 minutes.

Come on, now. This is ridiculous. It's been weeks since we should have gotten PP royalties. Flooding and a holiday is no excuse. I live in one of the areas hardest hit by Sandy but still didn't miss any work deadlines. Our agency had no power, so they rented a room in a hotel with business facilities so people could meet there and keep working. Those of us without power were happy to be somewhere with heat and running water. Three days after the hurricane hit I was driving 3.5 hours each way (thanks to road closures and flooded tunnels) to work 13-hour days. I know Lobo thinks that's comparing "apples and fish sticks," but the rest of the world meets its deadlines. A show of effort by the IT department at iStock is long overdue.

I foresee a day when iStock is absorbed into Getty, and current exclusives have their content represented there. And the rest of us are either on the PP sites or out entirely.

Having seen merger after merger in the ad biz, the bigger agency almost always absorbs the smaller one and jettisons the employees who no longer fit in. Getty is keeping the artists they feel are worthy, beginning by "mirroring" their images. I'm not sure they want to be in microstock, really.