By Daryl Lang
© Dracorubio Images/Flickr/Getty Images
A diagram provided by Getty Images shows their two new image license sizes, which cost $5 to $35.
Getty Images, which angered some photographers in 2007 when it
introduced $49 licenses for low-resolution stock images, has
started offering tiny image files at even lower prices.
The aim is to attract budget-conscious Web designers to
Gettyimages.com. These customers
tend to favor microstock sites, including
iStockphoto (which Getty owns).
Getty says the new pricing is not designed to go head-to-head with
microstock, but to broaden Getty's product range.
Under the new plan, Getty is offering three tiers of “Web &
Mobile” licenses. The cheapest tier, which includes a license to
publish an image at 170 pixels wide, starts at $5 for royalty-free
and $15 for rights-managed images. The next size up is 280 pixels,
which costs $15 to $35. Larger images (413 pixels) now range from
$35 to $49. These prices apply to most images in Getty’s
collections. The cheap licenses come with some restrictions,
including a limit of three months of usage for rights-managed
images.*
By comparison, iStockphoto offers royalty-free images with few
restrictions for about $1 to $27, depending on the file size.
Andy Saunders, vice president of creative imagery at Getty Images,
says Getty’s new pricing plan means photographers can still tap the
market for small online images without turning to microstock.
“This gives photographers an opportunity to get into that
marketplace without changing their business model,” Saunders
says.
“We were trying to pick out specific uses. We don’t want to
cannibalize our existing sales, for obvious reasons,” Saunders
adds.
In 2007,
seven photo industry trade groups wrote to Getty objecting to
Getty’s $49 pricing plan. Getty responded by placing a
three-month usage restriction on $49 rights-managed images,
then by
limiting the size of $49 rights-managed images to 180 pixels.
The size restriction has since been lifted. A check of
Gettyimages.com Tuesday showed that rights-managed images are
available at the 413-pixel size for $49.
Related link
Getty Web
& Mobile Images
* Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said
the three-month restriction was for royalty-free images.
Getty Images Introduces Tiny Files Starting at $5
Aug 4, 2009
By Daryl Lang
A diagram provided by Getty Images shows their two new image license sizes, which cost $5 to $35.
Getty Images, which angered some photographers in 2007 when it introduced $49 licenses for low-resolution stock images, has started offering tiny image files at even lower prices.
The aim is to attract budget-conscious Web designers to
Gettyimages.com. These customers tend to favor microstock sites, including
iStockphoto (which Getty owns). Getty says the new pricing is not designed to go head-to-head with microstock, but to broaden Getty's product range.
Under the new plan, Getty is offering three tiers of “Web & Mobile” licenses. The cheapest tier, which includes a license to publish an image at 170 pixels wide, starts at $5 for royalty-free and $15 for rights-managed images. The next size up is 280 pixels, which costs $15 to $35. Larger images (413 pixels) now range from $35 to $49. These prices apply to most images in Getty’s collections. The cheap licenses come with some restrictions, including a limit of three months of usage for rights-managed images.*
By comparison, iStockphoto offers royalty-free images with few restrictions for about $1 to $27, depending on the file size.
Andy Saunders, vice president of creative imagery at Getty Images, says Getty’s new pricing plan means photographers can still tap the market for small online images without turning to microstock.
“This gives photographers an opportunity to get into that marketplace without changing their business model,” Saunders says.
“We were trying to pick out specific uses. We don’t want to cannibalize our existing sales, for obvious reasons,” Saunders adds.
In 2007,
seven photo industry trade groups wrote to Getty objecting to Getty’s $49 pricing plan. Getty responded by placing a
three-month usage restriction on $49 rights-managed images, then by
limiting the size of $49 rights-managed images to 180 pixels. The size restriction has since been lifted. A check of Gettyimages.com Tuesday showed that rights-managed images are available at the 413-pixel size for $49.
Related link
Getty Web & Mobile Images
* Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said the three-month restriction was for royalty-free images.
