Author Topic: Shutterstock starting terminating accounts of people criticising them (Read 22640 times)

Jimbo · « **on:** May 30, 2020, 07:28 »

...meanwhile, I read on some Facebook groups that Shutterstock terminated and suspended the accounts of some contributors who criticize them on the Forum and Social media. In one case I read that even the Portfolio continuous to be on sale but without the name of the contributor! How low can you fall?

Rage · « **Reply #1 on:** May 30, 2020, 07:40 »

Yup, lots of these stories. Forum account blocked, contributor account blocked but photos still visible on the profile page URL without name

Guess its implementation by force now. If this happened to you let's band together here and figure out what's going on

Sent from my HD1901 using Tapatalk

Hannafate · « **Reply #2 on:** May 30, 2020, 07:47 »

I am so glad I bailed out last year.

cobalt · « **Reply #3 on:** May 30, 2020, 08:49 »

„Shutterstock goes to war against their own producer community in the middle of the corona pandemic and global recession cutting income of producers aggressively with just 6 days notice. Those who complained most about losing income abruptly got deleted from the platform“

Seriously, which brilliant mind at HQ thought this would be a fantastic headline to be spread all over social media??

How will that grow their business?

It really is so sad. We have seen so many similar things before. Going to war against producers is simply bad for business. No company with a sane mind intentionally provokes a global online shitstorm.

The content can easily be moved elsewhere and the customers go where the content is. It takes a while, yes.

But why would producers support a company that treats them like this.

SS was such a great place. What happened? It feels like this is a completly different business.

Mrblues101 · « **Reply #4 on:** May 30, 2020, 09:25 »

Quote from: cobalt on May 30, 2020, 08:49

SS was such a great place. What happened? It feels like this is a completly different business.

I think they just can't keep the business by using the traditional payout rate.

We are all angry with them and they have been very unprofessional with us, but I think this is a situation of either "we make a drastic change" or "we end up bankrupt"

I'm not defending them, I'm just trying to understand the movement.

cathyslife · « **Reply #5 on:** May 30, 2020, 09:29 »

Quote from: Hannafate on May 30, 2020, 07:47

I am so glad I bailed out last year.

Me, too.

dragonblade · « **Reply #6 on:** May 30, 2020, 09:45 »

SS are acting like a bunch of n***s. Meanwhile, their online mods are acting like the Gestapo.

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #7 on:** May 30, 2020, 10:23 »

Quote from: Mrblues101 on May 30, 2020, 09:25

Quote from: cobalt on May 30, 2020, 08:49
SS was such a great place. What happened? It feels like this is a completly different business.

I think they just can't keep the business by using the traditional payout rate.

Not true. If they hadn't introduced the pay up front annual subscription option (some time recently; not sure exactly when) they could have continued as they were.

If they hadn't effed up their enterprise business - which has nothing to do with the subscription payouts - they wouldn't need to suddenly grow faster in the subscription business. If they had any sort of creativity, they wouldn't have decided to grow by slashing prices, which hurts all of us - all agencies as well as contributors - in the end

If you look at their Q1 numbers, they were profitable but just not growing the way Wall Street would like. This isn't a story of a business on the brink of failure trying to rescue itself.

And then we can look at their massively expensive office space in the Empire State building.

This was *not* in any way a change necessitated by an unsustainable business model. That's a fiction trotted out pretty much every time an agency wants to stick it to their contributors and enrich themselves

Shelma1 · « **Reply #8 on:** May 30, 2020, 10:30 »

May I recommend tweeting about the pay slash, the reco to go to Adobe instead, and the petition, and adding @adage (Advertising Age) and @adweek (Adweek) to get their attention? They’re the major newsmagazines for the advertising industry. Maybe we can get them to run a story about it. If anyone can think of other publications to add that reach large numbers of buyers...

Also, @freelancersu ...Freelancers Union, based in NYC. They also write stories.

Mrblues101 · « **Reply #9 on:** May 30, 2020, 10:34 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on May 30, 2020, 10:23

Quote from: Mrblues101 on May 30, 2020, 09:25
Quote from: cobalt on May 30, 2020, 08:49
SS was such a great place. What happened? It feels like this is a completly different business.

I think they just can't keep the business by using the traditional payout rate.

Not true. If they hadn't introduced the pay up front annual subscription option (some time recently; not sure exactly when) they could have continued as they were.

If they hadn't effed up their enterprise business - which has nothing to do with the subscription payouts - they wouldn't need to suddenly grow faster in the subscription business. If they had any sort of creativity, they wouldn't have decided to grow by slashing prices, which hurts all of us - all agencies as well as contributors - in the end

If you look at their Q1 numbers, they were profitable but just not growing the way Wall Street would like. This isn't a story of a business on the brink of failure trying to rescue itself.

And then we can look at their massively expensive office space in the Empire State building.

This was *not* in any way a change necessitated by an unsustainable business model. That's a fiction trotted out pretty much every time an agency wants to stick it to their contributors and enrich themselves

If things are like this, then I hate them

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #10 on:** May 30, 2020, 10:43 »

Quote from: Jimbo on May 30, 2020, 07:28

...meanwhile, I read on some Facebook groups that Shutterstock terminated and suspended the accounts of some contributors who criticize them on the Forum and Social media. In one case I read that even the Portfolio continuous to be on sale but without the name of the contributor! How low can you fall?

I've seen the blurred out name and avatar account because the person posted in a thread here yesterday. Does anyone have any specific information about a contributor account (not forum posting privileges) that's been suspended?

That was one of Fotolia's favorite tactics and I'd love to make noise about it if Shutterstock's done/is doing it. My quick scan of twitter and facebook this morning didn't reveal anything

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #11 on:** May 30, 2020, 10:57 »

Quote from: Shelma1 on May 30, 2020, 10:30

May I recommend tweeting about the pay slash, the reco to go to Adobe instead, and the petition, and adding @adage (Advertising Age) and @adweek (Adweek) to get their attention? They’re the major newsmagazines for the advertising industry. Maybe we can get them to run a story about it. If anyone can think of other publications to add that reach large numbers of buyers...

Also, @freelancersu ...Freelancers Union, based in NYC. They also write stories.

https://twitter.com/joannsnover/status/1266760548835713024

and

https://twitter.com/joannsnover/status/1266813913426878464

and

https://twitter.com/joannsnover/status/1268215825380470784

Justanotherphotographer · « **Reply #12 on:** May 30, 2020, 10:57 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on May 30, 2020, 10:43

Quote from: Jimbo on May 30, 2020, 07:28
...meanwhile, I read on some Facebook groups that Shutterstock terminated and suspended the accounts of some contributors who criticize them on the Forum and Social media. In one case I read that even the Portfolio continuous to be on sale but without the name of the contributor! How low can you fall?

I've seen the blurred out name and avatar account because the person posted in a thread here yesterday. Does anyone have any specific information about a contributor account (not forum posting privileges) that's been suspended?

That was one of Fotolia's favorite tactics and I'd love to make noise about it if Shutterstock's done/is doing it. My quick scan of twitter and facebook this morning didn't reveal anything

SS did the same thing back when they introduced the paystructure where some people go 25c and some 38c. They let everyone rant for a while then went in after the fact scouring the thread for those insufficiently loyal, removing posting privileges then deleting the threads and comments.

Not sure if they actually closed contributor accounts back then either.

cobalt · « **Reply #13 on:** May 30, 2020, 11:02 »

Agree with Jo Ann.

If you go to business websites and their own investor information and news, you can read the CEO happily announcing that they have no problems paying out the dividend, that there is no worry at all that the dividend might be cut or suspended due to corona and that cash flow is excellent.

This is not a struggling company laying of thousands of employees in a major global crisis.

This is simply aggressive greed.

Being innovative and coming up with new business ideas is hard work and takes good brainpower.

Drastically slashing what they pay suppliers is the easy quick fix and can lead to instantly improved balance sheets and bring in those juicy millions in bonuses for the management team.

This does not mean that they cannot ever change their rate card.

Just when you do it look at the whole picture, not just punch a few numbers.

You need to model how the producers react, especially how they react online...if you are an online business with a global marketplace.

Global recession, producer community abruptly out of work or unemployed, many of them living in countries with no basic state support....you cut their income with just 6 day notice...refuse to answer any real questions, ban people from the forums, delete contributor accounts,delete comments on instagram, hire rate monkeys to quickly push up your downgrades online...and still total silence from management.

Hiding under blankets is not the way to handle online drama. It just makes it much,much worse.

Any incoming online desaster must be immediatly clarified and controlled.

Banning people solves no problems. It just gives the producer community even more reasons to ghost you with uploads and direct attention to other companies.

And the sh—-t storm hasn‘t even started.

Due to language barries it takes 2-3 weeks before the producer community has really thought about what is going on, discussed it among themselves, before the really coordinated efforts start.

Nobody in the stock industry has ever done anything similar to what Shutterstock is doing now.

And because everyone is extremly stressed anyway because of Corona, Shutterstock is going to get hit much harder than fotolia or getty „back in their days“.

SS was a great agency. Now people feel betrayed.

Just a few days. It has been just a few days.

Rage · « **Reply #14 on:** May 30, 2020, 11:41 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on May 30, 2020, 10:43

Quote from: Jimbo on May 30, 2020, 07:28
...meanwhile, I read on some Facebook groups that Shutterstock terminated and suspended the accounts of some contributors who criticize them on the Forum and Social media. In one case I read that even the Portfolio continuous to be on sale but without the name of the contributor! How low can you fall?

I've seen the blurred out name and avatar account because the person posted in a thread here yesterday. Does anyone have any specific information about a contributor account (not forum posting privileges) that's been suspended?

That was one of Fotolia's favorite tactics and I'd love to make noise about it if Shutterstock's done/is doing it. My quick scan of twitter and facebook this morning didn't reveal anything

Lots on Twitter and FB Jo Ann. Attaching some screenshots, and apparently if you have money in your account at the time of closure that money is kept by them

Sent from my HD1901 using Tapatalk

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #15 on:** May 30, 2020, 11:43 »

Quote from: izzikiorage on May 30, 2020, 11:41

Lots on Twitter and FB Jo Ann. Attaching some screenshots, and apparently if you have money in your account at the time of closure that money is kept by them

Thanks for posting those. Dirtbags...

https://twitter.com/joannsnover/status/1266775289427718145

I just wanted something concrete before I tweeted about it

I feel a blog post coming on - shades of 6 years ago with Fotolia

blue · « **Reply #16 on:** May 30, 2020, 11:48 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on May 30, 2020, 10:43

Quote from: Jimbo on May 30, 2020, 07:28
...meanwhile, I read on some Facebook groups that Shutterstock terminated and suspended the accounts of some contributors who criticize them on the Forum and Social media. In one case I read that even the Portfolio continuous to be on sale but without the name of the contributor! How low can you fall?

I've seen the blurred out name and avatar account because the person posted in a thread here yesterday. Does anyone have any specific information about a contributor account (not forum posting privileges) that's been suspended?

That was one of Fotolia's favorite tactics and I'd love to make noise about it if Shutterstock's done/is doing it. My quick scan of twitter and facebook this morning didn't reveal anything

Perhaps this one : https://www.shutterstock.com/g/gordan. It is Lizard's account (https://www.microstockgroup.com/profile/?u=163)

blue · « **Reply #17 on:** May 30, 2020, 11:56 »

Quote from: izzikiorage on May 30, 2020, 11:41

Lots on Twitter and FB Jo Ann. Attaching some screenshots, and apparently if you have money in your account at the time of closure that money is kept by them

Augustin Lazaroiu's account on SS : https://www.shutterstock.com/g/megasoft/

blue · « **Reply #18 on:** May 30, 2020, 12:20 »

An article about SS new earning structure on Fstoppers : https://fstoppers.com/originals/what-wrong-shutterstock-489338

Chichikov · « **Reply #19 on:** May 30, 2020, 12:40 »

They are also deleting posts on the forum.

This is what, in our marvelous liberal democrat society, we call freedom of speech…

Firn · « **Reply #20 on:** May 30, 2020, 12:55 »

Wow. Thanks for the warning!
I guess I hereby officially leave the Shutterstock forum forever. Hello, Microstockgroup Forum!

Horizon · « **Reply #21 on:** May 30, 2020, 13:43 »

Unfortunately this is what you get when computer geeks with a diaper management are trying to run a business. Turning against their producers of images!

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #22 on:** May 30, 2020, 13:50 »

Quote from: blue on May 30, 2020, 12:20

An article about SS new earning structure on Fstoppers : https://fstoppers.com/originals/what-wrong-shutterstock-489338

Another story worth re-tweeting with comments, if you're on twitter

https://twitter.com/joannsnover/status/1266795369792327680

DallasP · « **Reply #23 on:** May 30, 2020, 14:03 »

Quote from: cobalt on May 30, 2020, 11:02

Agree with Jo Ann.

If you go to business websites and their own investor information and news, you can read the CEO happily announcing that they have no problems paying out the dividend, that there is no worry at all that the dividend might be cut or suspended due to corona and that cash flow is excellent.

The words of CEOs are almost meaningless usually but, that measly 2% dividend isn't too difficult to pay out with their $300m cash sitting there and everyone's (all'yalls) assets to back them for future quarters.

Oh ... I didn't see this Q4 was a measly $.57 EPS. They aren't doing great. I'd almost feel bad if I gave a f*

EIPHOTO · « **Reply #24 on:** May 30, 2020, 14:46 »

Regarding the above post - why would someone not be entitled to the payments in their account if they close their account and the amount is great than $35?

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Author Topic: Shutterstock starting terminating accounts of people criticising them (Read 22640 times)

Jimbo

Rage

Hannafate

cobalt

Mrblues101

cathyslife

dragonblade

Jo Ann Snover

Shelma1

Mrblues101

Jo Ann Snover

Jo Ann Snover

Justanotherphotographer

cobalt

Rage

Jo Ann Snover

blue

blue

blue

Chichikov

Firn

Horizon

Jo Ann Snover

DallasP

EIPHOTO

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