Author Topic: New video subscription prices on Shutterstock - The dark days are here (Read 16987 times)

Sstr · « **on:** April 15, 2020, 04:49 »

3- 5 dollar sales coming soon.
Time to take action???

Shutterstock just introduced a 10 clip for $159 and a 20 clip for $195 dollar subscription.

https://www.shutterstock.com/pricing/video

Noedelhap · « **Reply #1 on:** April 15, 2020, 04:59 »

The end is near. Greedy corporate pigs.

Tommy · « **Reply #2 on:** April 15, 2020, 05:10 »

Just received the email about this. What a joke.

gnirtS · « **Reply #3 on:** April 15, 2020, 05:15 »

I just read this and had to double check.

So $10 per clip. INCLUDING 4k clips.

Contributors get roughly 1/3 so people selling video are likely to earn a whopping $3.33 per 4K clip.

And obviously this will enable buyers on clip pack and other packages to transition it means you're going to lose out on current sales to be replaced by these joke sales.

If other sites are selling your clips for a fair price, it maybe better to remove video off SS to stop sales declining there.

Ultimately under current packages its $100 a 4k clip whereas it'll now be 10. Even if you dont NEED all the clips per month its still cheaper. From a buyer point of view, if you use more than a handful of clips a year you'd switch. So you wont be paying the normal price.

click_click · « **Reply #4 on:** April 15, 2020, 05:34 »

Is there any official answer from SS regarding the royalties on those plans?

Sucks to see that, again, we're the last ones to hear about "good news" from an agency, now being Shutterstock.

Bummer. Recently started uploading footage again, explicitly NOT uploading to iStock/Getty due to their insulting royalties.

Due to the Covid-19 crisis I'm more than ever relying on stock royalties and then SS decides to do this... Might as well upload to IS again just to rake in any penny I can get...

I doubt that SS will change their corporate decision if a couple hundred contributors will complain...

SpaceStockFootage · « **Reply #5 on:** April 15, 2020, 05:41 »

Quote from: gnirtS on April 15, 2020, 05:15

If other sites are selling your clips for a fair price, it maybe better to remove video off SS to stop sales declining there.

How likely is that though?

"Hmm, Shutterstock have reduced their prices quite considerably? That's nice of them... but I think I'll try and find a considerably more expensive site and see what I can buy there instead."

Horizon · « **Reply #6 on:** April 15, 2020, 05:46 »

Was to be expected! I am beyond even caring about SS anymore. I have been toying with the idea of removing all clips from SS and let some production company handle them but not many will touch them once they have been in micro-stock! seems that having them here just render a "bad" name. $:-\$

gnirtS · « **Reply #7 on:** April 15, 2020, 05:59 »

Quote from: SpaceStockFootage on April 15, 2020, 05:41

Quote from: gnirtS on April 15, 2020, 05:15
If other sites are selling your clips for a fair price, it maybe better to remove video off SS to stop sales declining there.

How likely is that though?

"Hmm, Shutterstock have reduced their prices quite considerably? That's nice of them... but I think I'll try and find a considerably more expensive site and see what I can buy there instead."

That depends how much they want your particular clip vs any generic clip of the same topic.

Large companies also have accounts on multiple sites. If the same clip is on both sites obviously they'll use the cheaper. If its not, they'll likely use it on the other sites they have subscription too.

spike · « **Reply #8 on:** April 15, 2020, 06:24 »

Quote from: SpaceStockFootage on April 15, 2020, 05:41

Quote from: gnirtS on April 15, 2020, 05:15
If other sites are selling your clips for a fair price, it maybe better to remove video off SS to stop sales declining there.

How likely is that though?

"Hmm, Shutterstock have reduced their prices quite considerably? That's nice of them... but I think I'll try and find a considerably more expensive site and see what I can buy there instead."

If enough people do it, it's very likely.

But yeah, microstock, no union, tragedy of the commons, yadda yadda yadda

Eco · « **Reply #9 on:** April 15, 2020, 06:26 »

This was inevitable, unfortunately. With the likes of iStock Premium Access, Envato Elements and Storyblocks gaining traction and their collections growing, other companies must respond or risk losing their share of the pie. For as long as there are contributors that are willing to feed these companies (and these will always be) this process will continue and other companies will eventually follow (such as Pond5's HyperStock). This, it seems, is the natural process of evolution in the stock video industry driven by the massive growth in supply that far outpace the demand. In the end, we have nobody but ourselves to blame for this process.

panicAttack · « **Reply #10 on:** April 15, 2020, 06:34 »

Ok it looks like SS is going IStock way to me and that means they are only getting HD footage while 4k are going to Pond5 edit:and adobestock

this is easy to do.

Rage · « **Reply #11 on:** April 15, 2020, 06:51 »

*, but isn't the 4k at 10$ a clip only if you make an annual commitment for a certain no of clips? Still means we get paid a pittance and the company pockets the unused part if the subscription.

Want to set up a change.org petition against this and politely hound the SS management on twitter/forums etc? Maybe they'll make this more fair to us

Sent from my HD1901 using Tapatalk

SpaceStockFootage · « **Reply #12 on:** April 15, 2020, 07:23 »

Quote from: gnirtS on April 15, 2020, 05:59

That depends how much they want your particular clip vs any generic clip of the same topic.

Similar, but I think it would be more accurate to say "how much they want your generic clip vs any generic clip of the same topic". I'd be surprised if people shop around as much as everyone seems to think, but if they do, that just makes it more likely they'll now use SS rather than another site. Those that don't shop around, and use Pond5 or Adobe for example, are a lot less likely to use SS in the first place... unless they stumble across an ad for their reduced prices. I think people put a bit too much faith in how amazingly unique and brilliant their content is... I can't see an individual removing their content resulting in buyers not being able to find anything close to what they need, so they have to go elsewhere.

Quote from: spike on April 15, 2020, 06:24

If enough people do it, it's very likely.

If enough people decide to buy something similar for a much higher price... then it's very likely that people will people decide to buy something similar for a much higher price? Erm... yeah, I guess so!

Uncle Pete · « **Reply #13 on:** April 15, 2020, 07:30 »

Quote from: SpaceStockFootage on April 15, 2020, 05:41

Quote from: gnirtS on April 15, 2020, 05:15
If other sites are selling your clips for a fair price, it maybe better to remove video off SS to stop sales declining there.

How likely is that though?

"Hmm, Shutterstock have reduced their prices quite considerably? That's nice of them... but I think I'll try and find a considerably more expensive site and see what I can buy there instead."

Right, artists are stuck between a rock and a hard place. You can take less or hope for more if a buyer doesn't have a SS subscription. There's still the buyer that needs one video, who won't pay for ten? But the volume buyers, the people that use the most, will be going for cheaper plans.

Looks like this follows the same pattern as photos, then Vectors and Illustrations were good earning, until the agencies had as many as they needed. Now video was good, until there are enough, so cuts coming. Every time, as soon as the agency has whatever they consider "enough" coverage and file choices, the commissions drop.

Must be enough really good video of many subjects and enough 4k of most things, so the agencies don't need to pay a top price to get that.

everest · « **Reply #14 on:** April 15, 2020, 07:47 »

Agree with this. Unavoidable. Big competitors are offering this so they had too. Now it is to be seen if it is time worth to upload clips all together if a large volume does not compensate higher prices. Too many people uploading footage now. Cameras have made it so easy to produce content as it was with photography many years ago. Nothing anybody can do about it. We are still in a fierce market where agencies and contributors compete to their bones.........

Quote from: Eco on April 15, 2020, 06:26

This was inevitable, unfortunately. With the likes of iStock Premium Access, Envato Elements and Storyblocks gaining traction and their collections growing, other companies must respond or risk losing their share of the pie. For as long as there are contributors that are willing to feed these companies (and these will always be) this process will continue and other companies will eventually follow (such as Pond5's HyperStock). This, it seems, is the natural process of evolution in the stock video industry driven by the massive growth in supply that far outpace the demand. In the end, we have nobody but ourselves to blame for this process.

gnirtS · « **Reply #15 on:** April 15, 2020, 07:52 »

Quote from: panicAttack on April 15, 2020, 06:34

Ok it looks like SS is going IStock way to me and that means they are only getting HD footage while 4k are going to Pond5 edit:and adobestock

this is easy to do.

Thats a decent idea. 4K makes up a tiny % of my video sales at SS anyway. That and the odd search engine actually excludes downsizble 4k clips if a buyer clicks on the HD filter....

Rage · « **Reply #16 on:** April 15, 2020, 07:56 »

Reiterating, is it worth raising noise over. We should definitely create a racket, possibly as a deterrent to this race to the bottom. Some asks

1. Contributors to be pre informed and consent/suggestions taken
2. A clear understanding to contributors on how this affects payouts, should be expect a fixed value on each video subscription sale similar to images
3. Can the prices be a little more realistic, it does not have to be a drop as steep as going from $164 today to $10 for 4k

Deterrent
We stop uploading vidoes till they send out an official response and make these changes

Points of communication
1. change.org
2. twitter - SS management
2. Twitter - large buyers, suggest Adobe or Pond5
3. Instagram / Facebook
4. Maybe get large players like blackbox/influencers involved

I think the worst thing we could do is take this without raising hell. It just tells them that they can do this more often.

Sent from my HD1901 using Tapatalk

Dio · « **Reply #17 on:** April 15, 2020, 07:59 »

I certainly prefer royalties in excess of $100 per clip than $3.33 or whatever they decide to pay, but likewise I don't really fancy being a harbinger of doom (plenty of those around already) and rather strike a more positive note.

To put things into perspective, those are not unlimited subscriptions (à la Storyblocks). Granted, you'll potentially get a lot less per clip, but likewise sales might be more frequent from buyers who wouldn't buy your stuff in the first place, on a per-clip basis. Only time will tell if this works out better or worse. A $100 clip sale per month is great, but 50 sales per month at $3.33 is even better.

Those willing to pull out portfolios and place them elsewhere, well, it's the economy, ... Unless you can shoot (model-released) social gatherings on Mars or have other fanciful concepts no-one else dreamt of, or your are perhaps some sort of Vincent LaForet, then no-one cares. Your stuff is not available, someone else's stuff is, and in plentiful quantity. You may also try to sell direct and see if you can fare any better on your own.

It's the economy, ...

50% · « **Reply #18 on:** April 15, 2020, 08:08 »

the main problem with pretty much all agencies is that we don't get a fair split from the selling price and that is 50%!

Uncle Pete · « **Reply #19 on:** April 15, 2020, 08:37 »

Quote from: 50% on April 15, 2020, 08:08

the main problem with pretty much all agencies is that we don't get a fair split from the selling price and that is 50%!

You get my vote.

As soon as I win the lottery and don't need the money, I'm opening a 50% agency. Of course nearly everyone will hate me because I won't accept Crapstock or all kinds of similar patterns, rotations or subjects that are Inch by Inch, and duplicates and I'll expect good quality images (obviously a subjective evaluation) and honest keywords for only things that actually appear in the image!

But that will make it so buyers know they are paying a higher price for the sake of not having to wade through a morass of everything passes, because "we have more".

Just to add, and I'm happy I never decided to invest the time in video, and stayed in the dark ages of stone tools. (aka still camera)

Today we launched new footage subscription plans to serve the growing demand of Shutterstock customers who require continuous access to high quality footage for their content needs. You can learn more about these new plans by visiting the pricing page. Earnings from subscription products will be displayed in the “Clip packs” category of your Earnings Summary.

There have been some questions asking where to see the new plan: https://www.shutterstock.com/pricing/video

I don't know how much anyone will actually get, but it sure looks like 10 and 20 monthly, video download packs have arrived? With an annual commitment to get these prices. These will be volume buyers.

Visualab · « **Reply #20 on:** April 15, 2020, 10:40 »

This is exactly like pond5 membership...not good but not bad as unlimited subs like envato or storyblocks..i see hard times for those agencies since shutterstock gets into subs plan model...
Btw we'll follow the photo path..

Brasilnut · « **Reply #21 on:** April 15, 2020, 10:48 »

The usual $20 for an HD clip now starting to feel like a huge price!

komikmiha · « **Reply #22 on:** April 15, 2020, 11:10 »

I just sent an angry email to Shutterstock telling them I will not be tolerating such behaviour. In case they try to sell my clips by underpricing them l will delete all clips and account. And I will really do that. I rather don't sell anything than sell for pennies. People saying this is a good business decision lack any modicum of knowledge how business works. Decisions like this are spasms of a dying company, not unlike what Pond5 tried to do recently and failed spectacularly. Idiotic moves like this, when the author is greatly underpriced and underpayed will just force creators to go to greener pastures like Adobestock.

So a big LOL at SS.

THP Creative · « **Reply #23 on:** April 15, 2020, 11:24 »

https://forums.submit.shutterstock.com/topic/99836-shutterstock-launches-a-new-footage-subscription-product/

KB · « **Reply #24 on:** April 15, 2020, 11:29 »

Quote from: gnirtS on April 15, 2020, 05:15

I just read this and had to double check.

So $10 per clip. INCLUDING 4k clips.

It's mainly the largest companies, obviously, who would go for a deal like this. So I would guess most of them would probably just spend the $2K upfront, and get an even better price -- $8.33 / clip (yes, even 4K).

That means, if we end up getting 30% of that (might be less, who knows?), that's a grand $2.50 per clip.

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Author Topic: New video subscription prices on Shutterstock - The dark days are here (Read 16987 times)

Sstr

Noedelhap

Tommy

gnirtS

click_click

SpaceStockFootage

Horizon

gnirtS

spike

Eco

panicAttack

Rage

SpaceStockFootage

Uncle Pete

everest

gnirtS

Rage

Dio

50%

Uncle Pete

Visualab

Brasilnut

komikmiha

THP Creative

KB

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