Author Topic: Found my images on this micro site I've never heard of... (Read 8356 times)

Allsa · « **on:** March 17, 2014, 11:27 »

Has anyone heard of GoGraph? I just discovered my images are being sold there without my knowledge or consent. A medium size image costs $40 US!!! Check and see if yours are there http://www.gograph.com/

dingles · « **Reply #1 on:** March 17, 2014, 11:31 »

I would say it is a shady place it is black-listed on my server as it provides anonymous dynamic DNS. P

cthoman · « **Reply #2 on:** March 17, 2014, 11:39 »

Canstock and Fotosearch...

http://www.microstockgroup.com/general-stock-discussion/gograph-com-stolen-images/msg241101/#msg241101

Allsa · « **Reply #3 on:** March 17, 2014, 11:48 »

Are they a legitimate reseller for CanStock, then?

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #4 on:** March 17, 2014, 11:51 »

I'm not sure how I missed this the first time around, but I just had a look at the site and the license terms - my stuff is there via CanStock. Quite what sense it makes to says this is "inexpensive" when the prices are from $5 (xs) to $65 (xl) and the same stuff can be had at CanStock prices escapes me

http://www.gograph.com/index/aboutus

I don't see any big rights giveaway in the permitted uses or print run length
http://www.gograph.com/index/eula

Given what I'm seeing in recent (last year or so) CanStock sales - where distribution sales have all but vanished - I assume this isn't working very well for them.

I keep dithering about whether to pull my portfolio from CanStock - I really hate my work being spread about like this...

Allsa · « **Reply #5 on:** March 17, 2014, 12:11 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on March 17, 2014, 11:51

I'm not sure how I missed this the first time around, but I just had a look at the site and the license terms - my stuff is there via CanStock. Quite what sense it makes to says this is "inexpensive" when the prices are from $5 (xs) to $65 (xl) and the same stuff can be had at CanStock prices escapes me

http://www.gograph.com/index/aboutus

I don't see any big rights giveaway in the permitted uses or print run length
http://www.gograph.com/index/eula

Given what I'm seeing in recent (last year or so) CanStock sales - where distribution sales have all but vanished - I assume this isn't working very well for them.

I keep dithering about whether to pull my portfolio from CanStock - I really hate my work being spread about like this...

CanStock is one of my favorite sites, I can't remember them ever screwing us.

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #6 on:** March 17, 2014, 12:38 »

Quote from: Allsa on March 17, 2014, 12:11

CanStock is one of my favorite sites, I can't remember them ever screwing us.

Duncan and CanStock are fine - it's the bazillion partner sites that their parent, FotoSearch, distributes the content to. I have no opt out for that, they won't provide a list either. I am increasingly uncomfortable with having so many sites to keep an eye on when we are given so little information about anything that is going on.

Given the low sales at CanStock it's easy enough to walk - as you say nothing bad has happened to date, but I think the garbage with DepositPhotos and Shotshop has me a little more cautious than before.

EmberMike · « **Reply #7 on:** March 17, 2014, 13:21 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on March 17, 2014, 12:38

...Given the low sales at CanStock it's easy enough to walk - as you say nothing bad has happened to date, but I think the garbage with DepositPhotos and Shotshop has me a little more cautious than before.

Agreed. These partner programs and API distributions are really worrisome. There has always been an element of microstock in which you needed to be willing to give up some amount of control of how your images are distributed. It's the nature of the beast, high-volume licensing can't be controlled 100% and tracked 100% of the time. But I feel like we're slipping too far down this path of unknown distribution.

We really have no idea how many APIs are in use, how many partner sites are out there, and how many of them are paying us pennies while selling our stuff for big bucks. There seems to be no criteria for becoming a partner or API distributor, at least not to the extent that we're being protected in any way, so these partner sites can pop up all over the place and we have no idea how many there are or what sort of arrangements they are operating under.

sdeva · « **Reply #8 on:** March 17, 2014, 15:24 »

Found my images on this site too. It does not show my name/ copyright - and the wording of the image text seems similar to Canstock.

I'm increasingly uncomfortable with this vast dissemination of images with accompanying loss of control. The DP-Shotshop issue is still fresh in mind and that only makes things feel much worse.

Need to figure out how to handle this whole issue of API/ resellers, partners etc. Its starting to feel like a dark and endless abyss.

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #9 on:** March 17, 2014, 16:28 »

I just posted in the CanStock forums asking for an opt out from distribution sales

http://www.canstockphoto.com/forum_read.php?id=6255

Even the parent company, FotoSearch, doesn't have any indication of the copyright holder of the work and I'm just not getting enough distribution sales to soften me up to tolerate this.

I know at some point a while back we we around the block over the issue of stripping out our copyright information from uploaded images - somehow it seems like this is another step in that direction. Not only is the copyright gone from the images but there is nothing on the agency/distributor page that indicates who owns that image.

I'm not expecting them to say "OK fine" but it's worth asking...

Ron · « **Reply #10 on:** March 17, 2014, 16:33 »

About gograph, they have been a partner for years and the copyright attribution will be sent to the buyer upon sale. I had a communication about this with the owner of gograph.

Quote

When an image is purchased from GoGraph, the buyer is provided your username and credit information. GoGraph provides this image credit line with each purchase, so that the images are easily credited, as per the licensing requirements.

DonLand · « **Reply #11 on:** March 17, 2014, 18:16 »

So the question I have is if FotoSearch or GoGraph sell and image for $40, how much do we make?

Ron · « **Reply #12 on:** March 17, 2014, 18:31 »

Quote from: DonLand on March 17, 2014, 18:16

So the question I have is if FotoSearch or GoGraph sell and image for $40, how much do we make?

https://www.canstockphoto.com/payout_schedule.php

pancaketom · « **Reply #13 on:** March 17, 2014, 19:11 »

Quote from: Ron on March 17, 2014, 18:31

Quote from: DonLand on March 17, 2014, 18:16
So the question I have is if FotoSearch or GoGraph sell and image for $40, how much do we make?
https://www.canstockphoto.com/payout_schedule.php

so 20% or 8$ for a 40$ sale? How old school IS. (which was pretty lousy too).

Rinderart · « **Reply #14 on:** March 17, 2014, 19:35 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on March 17, 2014, 16:28

I just posted in the CanStock forums asking for an opt out from distribution sales

http://www.canstockphoto.com/forum_read.php?id=6255

Even the parent company, FotoSearch, doesn't have any indication of the copyright holder of the work and I'm just not getting enough distribution sales to soften me up to tolerate this.

I know at some point a while back we we around the block over the issue of stripping out our copyright information from uploaded images - somehow it seems like this is another step in that direction. Not only is the copyright gone from the images but there is nothing on the agency/distributor page that indicates who owns that image.

I'm not expecting them to say "OK fine" but it's worth asking...

Always wondered Jo Ann. If we bail on any site, How do we know all there Pardners will delete also? even if we know who they are. Im about finished also having My work at a gazillion Places and not knowing.

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #15 on:** March 17, 2014, 19:40 »

Quote from: pancaketom on March 17, 2014, 19:11

Quote from: Ron on March 17, 2014, 18:31
Quote from: DonLand on March 17, 2014, 18:16
So the question I have is if FotoSearch or GoGraph sell and image for $40, how much do we make?
https://www.canstockphoto.com/payout_schedule.php

so 20% or 8$ for a 40$ sale? How old school IS. (which was pretty lousy too).

You get 20% of what CanStock gets, which isn't always what the buyer pays (i.e. there's a split between distributor and CanStock and you get 20% after the split, not before.)

@Rinderart - other than checking all the sites listed in the partner program thread here and a Google image search, I'm not sure we have anything. Part of my objection to the agencies considering it private information as to who they've done deals with

pancaketom · « **Reply #16 on:** March 17, 2014, 20:17 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on March 17, 2014, 19:40

Quote from: pancaketom on March 17, 2014, 19:11
Quote from: Ron on March 17, 2014, 18:31
Quote from: DonLand on March 17, 2014, 18:16
So the question I have is if FotoSearch or GoGraph sell and image for $40, how much do we make?
https://www.canstockphoto.com/payout_schedule.php

so 20% or 8$ for a 40$ sale? How old school IS. (which was pretty lousy too).

You get 20% of what CanStock gets, which isn't always what the buyer pays (i.e. there's a split between distributor and CanStock and you get 20% after the split, not before.)

-snip

so more probably somewhere around 10% or less or 4$ for a 40$ sale. I still haven't seen any double distributor deals yet - so the first skims 50%, the next another 50% (or in the case of Getty or IS - 80%) then the next another 50% and you are down to 12.5% of the sale and that is if they are taking 50%. If they were taking 80% after the 3rd skim you'd be left with .8 percent - so 80 cents for a 100$ sale! Unfortunately I fear it is only a matter of time.

Uncle Pete · « **Reply #17 on:** March 17, 2014, 21:46 »

Be trying to say that for a couple of years.

Some of these Partner Programs, distributors who sell to distributors? Are like kissing your work goodbye and never knowing where it will be or who will be selling it. Not only that, competing with yourself for lower returns and no artists credit on the use.

Quote from: Rinderart on March 17, 2014, 19:35

Im about finished also having My work at a gazillion Places and not knowing.

EmberMike · « **Reply #18 on:** March 17, 2014, 22:20 »

This stuff has been around for years but it didn't seem this bad back then. There were fewer partners, and they at least seemed like they were making some effort to look legit and professional. Lately it seems like any joker with a bad website can get their hands on an API and start selling images.

And now we're hearing more about these deals where the partners can sell an image for $20 or $30 or more and pay us a subscription royalty.

Maybe this is all old news, but it sure seems way worse these days.

sdeva · « **Reply #19 on:** March 18, 2014, 01:39 »

Sharing my post in forum as it seems to concern a number of us:

http://www.canstockphoto.com/forum_read.php?id=6256

munrotoo · « **Reply #20 on:** March 18, 2014, 05:21 »

What is the purpose of all these partner sites anyway? Why do the agencies do that? It seems like fotosearch would just be better to shut these places down and forward everyone to their site.

DonLand · « **Reply #21 on:** March 18, 2014, 12:40 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on March 17, 2014, 16:28

I just posted in the CanStock forums asking for an opt out from distribution sales

http://www.canstockphoto.com/forum_read.php?id=6255

Even the parent company, FotoSearch, doesn't have any indication of the copyright holder of the work and I'm just not getting enough distribution sales to soften me up to tolerate this.

I know at some point a while back we we around the block over the issue of stripping out our copyright information from uploaded images - somehow it seems like this is another step in that direction. Not only is the copyright gone from the images but there is nothing on the agency/distributor page that indicates who owns that image.

I'm not expecting them to say "OK fine" but it's worth asking...

I'm waiting for a response also. Here I thought CS was one of the fair sites.
Also wondering why we only receive 20% from any FotoSearch sales.

farbled · « **Reply #22 on:** May 18, 2014, 18:25 »

Quote from: Rinderart on March 17, 2014, 19:35

Always wondered Jo Ann. If we bail on any site, How do we know all there Pardners will delete also? even if we know who they are. Im about finished also having My work at a gazillion Places and not knowing.

I've been making a serious effort to get my images to only one or two sites. Yesterday I noticed a bunch of my Canstock photos on Fotosearch still for sale all the way through the shopping cart process. The sad part? I removed all my images from Canstock weeks ago. Now I'm trying to get them off of Fotosearch. I have yet to get any reply from either CS of FS. I wonder if any have sold, odds are that's something I will never know.

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Author Topic: Found my images on this micro site I've never heard of... (Read 8356 times)

Allsa

dingles

cthoman

Allsa

Jo Ann Snover

Allsa

Jo Ann Snover

EmberMike

sdeva

Jo Ann Snover

Ron

DonLand

Ron

pancaketom

Rinderart

Jo Ann Snover

pancaketom

Uncle Pete

EmberMike

sdeva

munrotoo

DonLand

farbled

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