The leading stock provider announces a new online store and acquires image100 and its collection of images.The wide array of royalty-free imagery available on the Internet expanded this week with Corbis' acquisition of a production agency specializing in royalty-free work and with Corbis' creation of a new Web-based storefront dedicated to royalty-free images.
Corbis Corp., of Seattle, acquired image100 Ltd., of London, adding more than 40,000 images to the company's royalty-free collection. Specific financial details of the purchase were unavailable.
Corbis also announced the launch of rf Shop, a new online store offering nearly 200,000 royalty-free images, and new partnerships with Jupiterimages, MedioImages, Blend, Image Source, Brand X, and others whose images are now available to users for licensing at the Corbis Web site.
"Clients in every segment, including advertising/design agencies, corporate marketers and publishers, use royalty-free imagery for projects that benefit from flexible user and perpetual rights," said Jennifer Hurshell, Corbis' senior vice president of commercial image licensing.
As the range of royalty-free offerings grows, independent professional photographers face new challenges trying to stay viable and competitive in the image arena.
Click here to read how consolidation is shaping the image market.
Doug Rowan, former CEO of Corbis Inc. who now serves on the board for Seattle-based OnRequest Images Inc., said in a phone interview that the growth of the Internet has created challenges for photographers that can be viewed as both positive and negative.
"The Internet is providing independent photographers new opportunities to expand their business," Rowan said. "The thing to remember is that individual pictures are exclusive to an agency like Getty or Corbis, but the photographer is not. If you look at what works with OnRequest Images, their business model enables them to connect the best photographer for an individual job with an already existing job."
Rowan said another leading concern for photographers is centered on controlling and managing images and receiving the royalties due to them.
"One of the challenges photographers face is how to manage the business of photography, and I think one of the things they should do is look at the innovators that are helping photographers further their careers and income."
Rowan said that New York City-based Digital Railroad Inc. gives photographers a new way to compete in the face of expanding royalty-free offerings.
"Digital Railroad just raised a significant amount of funding because they are committed to providing photographers the tools and features they need to edit and display their images for sale," he said.
"They're a strong alternative to Getty and Corbis because Evan Nisselson is a professional photographer, and he is committed to helping photographers succeed on their own terms."
Nisselson, CEO and founder of Digital Railroad, and a widely esteemed veteran photographer, has said he is committed to empowering photographers and returning control of their imagery that they've lost over the years.
During a phone interview this week, Nisselson said, "As it has been in the past and will be in the future, buyers will always look for the most unique image that is contextually relevant. That is what wins at the end of the day. The best image always wins as long as it can be easily found within budget for the buyer and is quickly downloadable."
Digital Railroad enables its members to capture photo images, upload them to a unique archive, manage the rights of usage and using Digital Railroad's RSS feed technology sell the images to agencies and publishers around the world.
Click here to read more about Digital Railroad's rights-managed photo feeds.
Ken Lee, a professional photographer and founder of the digital photography blog DP in Depth, echoes the concerns in regard to technology, "Today's professional photographers are expected to be experts in computers, digital cameras, Photoshop, retouching and computer networking. I feel that many photographers are overwhelmed trying to do everything on their own."
Steve Troup, board member of Atlanta-based Professional Photographers of America Inc. and president and chief executive officer of Buckeye Color Lab, agrees that the key to survival in this growing competitive field is reinvention.
"For photographers who deal with royalty work … the market is flooded now with more images, reducing the income they can generate," Troup said.
"Also, digital makes it easier for everyone to be a professional, so the amount of images out there is going through the roof. Like most everything in the photographic industry today, I would imagine that royalty photographers are reinventing their businesses in response to the new market opportunities."
