This is truly one of the best reports about the Stock Photography Market aka Picture Business aka Stock Photo Business we´ve ever read.
However, it is not totally evident if it is a fully independent report or some kind of Cicero and Pro Domo.
We discovered the report casually by reading our favorite news site for extraordinary reports about exquisite dining areas around the world: the A21Group.
No. The A21group is not a food or beverage company. But, looking back how the company sometimes described its work and the surrounding circumstances in the presence ("Guests dined on fabulous Danish fare, with wines and cognac pouring freely throughout the evening. The annual `must read´ Stockbyte produced Image News magazine was delivered during a delicious vanilla ice cream dessert" [CEPIC 2004 Congress]) and past ("Enjoying tasty hors d'oeuvres and beverages, everyone assembled around the colorful new gallery lining the front entry of the SuperStock headquarters" ["SuperStock Gallery Opening"] or "the ‘Tiki Bar’ focused on serving great tasting drinks" ["SuperStock Holiday Party"]) there had been serious complaints that the A21 Group finally would become the Zagat for the Stock Photo Industry. =:-)
Anyway, A21 reprints a report of Ron Rovtar, Managing Editor of The Stock Asylum: "Recent Consolidations May Have Major Impact . . . ", which is also available on the original website.
First off, it is a joyful impression to see someone writing about the Stock Photo Industry who does not belong to the well-known brotherhood and establishment of metawriters.
Ron Rovtar writes about the implications of what recently has happend in the Stock Photo Industry:
So far this year a21 purchased Superstock, Veer bought Solus, PictureArts acquired Nonstock and Jupitermedia absorbed Comstock. (See also "Comstock Images Acquired by Jupitermedia", "Nonstock sold: PictureArts the lucky buyer, A21 Group didn´t make it", "Veer Acquires Solus Images: Acquisition strengthens Veer's foundation for growth")
Besides the rumors (reported here: 1; 2; 3; 4; and recently at Editorialphoto) that the big two G, Getty and Gates (Corbis), are out on the street to identify new acquisition targets, Ron Rovtar examines the influence the recent take-overs might have for the Stock Photo Industry:
All four buyers indicate interest in further acquisitions under the right circumstances and all four appear financially capable of growing large enough to be considered middle-sized agencies. The industry's midlevel was decimated during the 90s consolidations, leaving significant gaps in the overall organization of the industry. [...]And finally:
In stock photography, organization comes in four forms -- style, price, subject matter and basic usage (commercial or editorial). [...]
Had stock industry leaders of the early to mid 90's done a better job of distinguishing market segments (especially the emerging low end segment) and then offered appropriate products to each level, the industry would almost certainly be much healthier today. [...]
All these first-round consolidations left a considerable vacuum in the market. While many smaller distributors remained, few, if any, had collections or sales large enough to call themselves second-tier stock marketers.
Aiming to fill this void, several new distributors sprang up, including workbookstock.com, Solus and Alamy. These new distributors slammed smack into the bursting dot-com bubble, fallout from the World Trade Center attack, the recession, and the accompanying decline in advertising spending. [...]
Considering these figures, one might conclude that a stock company would need to post at least $50 million in annual revenues to legitimately call itself "midlevel." [...]
No one interviewed for this article wanted to predict exactly where all these changes will take the market. Even if the industry starts to grow again, it will remain a finite market and agencies trying to become true midlevel will need to pull sales away from Getty Images and Corbis. Certainly the two large distributors will react competitively to any potential loss of market share.[...]
Says one industry observer: "Every time you talk to picture buyers you hear them say, 'You know, I would like to buy stock from someplace other than Getty.' "
Picture buyers are repeating this Karma since the year 2000. But no one seems to like one solution recently presented at the PACA Annual Conference:
The PACA (Picture Archive Council of Amercia) 2004 Annual Meeting will be held May 15 & 16, 2004 in White Plains New York.
Quite interesting in this year´s program is of course the Art Buyers Panel: "Our past Art Buyer panels have been challenging, frustrating, and very informative. Those who attended New Orleans [last PACA meeting on November 2003] will remember the fireworks sparked when one art director said she prefers using GOOGLE to going to an agency, and then calling photographers directly." (Link)
[Hint for A21: you can´t release a third-party article as a stand-alone "Press Release, June 22, 2004"; this is "In the News" etc. otherwise ... . On the other hand, this "Recent Consolidations May Have Major Impact . . ." is the best Press Release ever]
[© Article "Recent Consolidations May Have Major Impact . . . " by The Stock Asylum]
[© Image Courtesy of NutcrackerUnite]
