Effective Sept. 9, Getty Images introduced four different price levels for images and removed Image Partner identification in some cases. Images in the less-expensive tiers will not show the Image Partner collection names in the search results and asset detail views.
Image Partner names will still remain visible in the advanced search view, in the shopping cart and in the image collections menu. The rationale is that most customers do not understand the differences between collections, and find the many collection names confusing.
"The higher prices will be associated with images that are more expensive to produce, that have higher production values, that appear to be more authentic, and that deal with subjects that are rarely available through microstock or other low cost providers," Getty says.
Getty did not explain how it determines the cost in time and effort to produce a given image. Or, why the people and lifestyle images, subjects available in great depth in microstock, and leading sellers on the Getty site, no longer merit having the brand name associated with them. In addition, the company didn't explain how an image manages to "appear to be more authentic."
Getty Images states that the changes are driven by client demands in rapidly changing and challenging time. More search enhancements will be developed in the coming months.