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#GNN - #Yahoo-owned photo-sharing and storage site Flickr announced this morning the rollout of a new licensing program aimed at the service’s members who are looking to have their work discovered, featured on prominent news sites, including Yahoo’s own properties, as well as generate additional income through commercial licensing.
Some photographers may receive a message from Flickr’s curators via Flickr Mail inviting them to the program, while others can sign up to to be considered.
Flickr describes the program as a new way for photographers to “partner with photo agencies, editors, bloggers and other creative minds who are seeking original content.” On the accompanying Flickr marketplace website, Flickr lists media brands like The New York Times, Reuters, Gizmodo, Monocle, and BBC among the partners, as well as Getty Images.
However, we’re hearing that Flickr’s relationship with Getty is strained because of this program, as essentially Flickr has pulled in-house what Getty used to do for them.
In addition, Yahoo says it will also look for ways to help showcase these photos on its own properties, including Yahoo News and Travel, plus Tumblr. And there may be opportunities for connecting photographers with original photo assignments, promises this morning’s announcement, but further details were not provided.
The blog post points to a page on Flickr’s website at flickr.com/marketplace, which today only offering sparse information about the new program. However, the “Marketplace” site could hint at a larger vision ahead for Flickr, which could be looking for a way to better compete with other photo sites catering to the semi-pro and professional photographer crowd.
To be clear, Flickr has always offered tools that allow photographers to designate how their work is to licensed, as with its Creative Commons program. But this new program now sees Flickr becoming more actively involved with those focused on the commercial photography market.
The move comes at a time when a number photography and stock photo sites are making changes of their own to tap into the the growing audience of photographers who are looking to share their work online and have the opportunities find them, instead of the other way around. In more recent months, for example, Fotolia launched Dollar Photo Club to target the microstock photo market, and Getty rolled out updates to its iOS apps, including iStock, to better compete on mobile.
Meanwhile, 500px has been establishing itself as a go-to destination for professionals looking to host online portfolios and commercially license their work. In February, the site launched its own commercial licensing program called 500px Prime, which promised not to join “the race to the bottom” with licensing fees that start at $250 and go up, with 70% of the proceeds going directly to the photographer.
Adds 500px COO Evgeny Tchebotarev, “what’s more, 500px Prime is the only photo stock platform that gives buyers demographic tools, such as ability to target search to photos that appeal to men or women or to different continents and countries.”
It’s unclear what sort of licensing fees will be provided with Yahoo’s new program, or if that will be up to the individual photographer to negotiate.
We’ve asked Yahoo for further information about its “Curated Connections” program, as the blog post calls it, and will update with those details, when and if provided. More to come.
CORRECTION: 500PX PRIME PAYS 70% TO PHOTOGRAPHERS; ARTICLE UPDATED TO REFLECT.
Flickr describes the program as a new way for photographers to “partner with photo agencies, editors, bloggers and other creative minds who are seeking original content.” On the accompanying Flickr marketplace website, Flickr lists media brands like The New York Times, Reuters, Gizmodo, Monocle, and BBC among the partners, as well as Getty Images.
However, we’re hearing that Flickr’s relationship with Getty is strained because of this program, as essentially Flickr has pulled in-house what Getty used to do for them.
In addition, Yahoo says it will also look for ways to help showcase these photos on its own properties, including Yahoo News and Travel, plus Tumblr. And there may be opportunities for connecting photographers with original photo assignments, promises this morning’s announcement, but further details were not provided.
The blog post points to a page on Flickr’s website at flickr.com/marketplace, which today only offering sparse information about the new program. However, the “Marketplace” site could hint at a larger vision ahead for Flickr, which could be looking for a way to better compete with other photo sites catering to the semi-pro and professional photographer crowd.
To be clear, Flickr has always offered tools that allow photographers to designate how their work is to licensed, as with its Creative Commons program. But this new program now sees Flickr becoming more actively involved with those focused on the commercial photography market.
The move comes at a time when a number photography and stock photo sites are making changes of their own to tap into the the growing audience of photographers who are looking to share their work online and have the opportunities find them, instead of the other way around. In more recent months, for example, Fotolia launched Dollar Photo Club to target the microstock photo market, and Getty rolled out updates to its iOS apps, including iStock, to better compete on mobile.
Meanwhile, 500px has been establishing itself as a go-to destination for professionals looking to host online portfolios and commercially license their work. In February, the site launched its own commercial licensing program called 500px Prime, which promised not to join “the race to the bottom” with licensing fees that start at $250 and go up, with 70% of the proceeds going directly to the photographer.
Adds 500px COO Evgeny Tchebotarev, “what’s more, 500px Prime is the only photo stock platform that gives buyers demographic tools, such as ability to target search to photos that appeal to men or women or to different continents and countries.”
It’s unclear what sort of licensing fees will be provided with Yahoo’s new program, or if that will be up to the individual photographer to negotiate.
We’ve asked Yahoo for further information about its “Curated Connections” program, as the blog post calls it, and will update with those details, when and if provided. More to come.
CORRECTION: 500PX PRIME PAYS 70% TO PHOTOGRAPHERS; ARTICLE UPDATED TO REFLECT.
