Alamy has jumped into the mobile photography business with
Stockimo, a new iPhone app that lets photographers upload pictures taken from their iPhone.
Alamy CEO, James West says, “Images taken with smartphones by skilled photographers can have a commercial value. Alamy knows how to sell photography. Bringing the two together seems obvious to us. And as the capabilities of these devices develop, elements of this technology will filter through to professional cameras that we need to be ready for.”
Stockimo is open to anyone. Alamy contributors who were with the company before the Stockimo launch will receive a 50% royalty. Contributors who are new to Alamy and just submitting iPhone photos will receive a 20% royalty. These new contributors can upgrade their royalty to 40% if they sign a regular Alamy contract before April 30, 2014.
Stockimo differs from other photo apps, in that it's plugged directly into Alamy’s distribution network so photographers will get the same prices for their iPhone photos as they do for their camera shots.
Alamy has created a new brand for Stockimo so that the pictures can be easily differentiated from regular images in the search engine. Customers who have specific file size and quality requirements will be able to filter the Stockimo images in or out of their searches as required.
Sales are all done through the app, so the only place contributors will see uploads and sales is on the app. For existing Alamy contributors Stockimo sales will be handled totally separate from their Alamy sales history or balance of account or net revenue pages. All payment for Stockimo sales will be made via PayPal.
If you are currently an Alamy contributor and want to start using the Stockimo app, download the free app and log in on Stockimo. Make sure you use the exact same user email and password as you use on your regular account.
The Stockimo contract is different from the regular Alamy contributor contract. You sign the contract on the app.
A few of the big differences in the contract
• Stockimo images will be automatically available across our entire sales network, including all our distributors
• To make life easier for buyers contributors will not be allowed to set restrictions on the images
• Alamy will select the license type and sales model. Initially Stockimo images will be licensed on Alamy as both RF or RM depending on the answers the contributor gives at the time of upload
For more information check out this
link.
Alamy CEO, James West, explains more about why Alamy has decided to offer smartphone pictures to its customers.
“So what is it we like about mobile imagery? Well, the freshness and immediacy of a smartphone picture brings something new to the table. If you think that smartphones don’t make very good cameras, think again. The technical advances of smartphone cameras are narrowing the quality gap and that will only go one way. With clever gadgets like filters and snap-on lenses, the results can be outstanding.
“We’ve discussed our plans with our customers and they are excited about this new source of fresh and contemporary images. We’ve been testing the app with some of the world’s best commercial photographers and iphoneographers and our prelaunch version has been well received. We’ve tried to keep it very simple; upload, caption, tag and we’ll do the rest. We see Stockimo as the app of choice for the smartphone photographer, giving them the opportunity to submit images for sale even when they don’t have their main camera to hand. Stockimo images will be available to Alamy’s customers through www.alamy.com and our distribution network. They will be priced like regular images on Alamy.
“Some will worry that our venturing into mobile will be a distraction for the business. I see it as an addition to what we are currently doing and we’re certainly not pinning all our hopes on mobile. Stockimo images will be another product and revenue stream, as with news, video and most recently, vectors. We have and will continue to invest in our business.
“Stockimo is also a great opportunity for us to learn about smartphone technology. Cameras that use similar technology are already here and we will be ahead of the curve when they become commonplace. Taking an image with your digital SLR and then uploading it to Alamy via an app within the camera will be part of the workflow of the future. We want to be ready for when that happens.”
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Got a question? You'll find everything there is to know through the
FAQs on the Stockimo website. Need more help? Email
fhccbeg@fgbpxvzb.pbz.