Like Flickr some time ago, photo sharing site 500px just launched a photo licensing service under the name of ‘Prime.’
500px is one of the world’s largest photo sharing sites with over 300 million registered users. In a recent blog post, the company announced: “Our vision is to fundamentally change the way photos are licensed [and] a big part of this is changing the way photo licensing companies work with photographers.”
[REWIND: 500px Secures 8.8 Million In Series A Funding]
Licensing fees start at $ 250.00 and the photographer will earn 30% from each sale. The information on what kind of licenses will be available (single image, multiple images, etc.) is still unclear though.
500px outlined its vision for ‘Prime’ further in these 3 fundamental points:
- We are pricing all licenses in a way that brings dignity to the photographer, we are not joining the race to the bottom. Our licenses will start at $250.
- We are giving you, the photographer, 30% for every one of your images that we license. It doesn’t matter how it is bought, who buys it, or under what license, your 30% comes off the top.
- We are using the power of the 500px community to give buyers insight into how photos will be received and perceived before licensing them. Imagine searching images by potential vitality, hero status and visceral reaction. This is revolutionary and something only 500px can do.
Without more detailed information, it is hard to say how ‘Prime’ will pan out for the photographer, but for someone like me who has been working with stock agencies for almost 2 decades, the mentioning of a 30% share rings some alarm bells. On average the fees are shared 50:50 between agency and photographer, sometimes even 60:40 for the photographer’s advantage.
Let us know what you think.
[Source: 500px]
