ImageSpan Platform Delivers a First - One-Click Buying of Digital Content via a Search Result
Sausalito, CA, March 03, 2009. ImageSpan Inc., today introduced LicenseStream Creator 2.0, a new version of its market-leading licensing automation platform that opens content for business with game-changing innovations to accelerate massive online distribution and increase revenues. With LicenseStream 2.0, content creators of all types – from individual creators to enterprises – now gain the ability to publish content directly to the Web and global search engines, enabling anyone in the world to find their search-optimized content and pay for it with a mouse click.
“LicenseStream Creator 2.0 is the first-ever service to enable creators and owners to publish transaction-ready content directly to the most utilized channel on the Web – the search engine,” said Iain Scholnick, chief executive officer, ImageSpan. “This has never been done before and the implications are clear: this innovation will dramatically speed the pace of transactions and drive incremental revenues. In this era when crumbling old-line media and distribution channels are being replaced by aggressive, Web-based middlemen, the ability for any creator or enterprise to go directly to consumers is a huge boon.”
The ability of LicenseStream Creator 2.0 to transform the content itself into a vehicle for commerce is another game-changing first.
“LicenseStream Creator 2.0 offers content creators and licensors – including photographers and videographers -- a way to turn their content into a storefront by making it intelligent, so that it flows freely across the Web with defined ownership, rights and restrictions, enabling flexible pricing based on use,” said Scholnick. “By making content intelligent, LicenseStream Creator 2.0 transforms the primary challenge– which is transaction processing and content distribution -- into an opportunity. And by making content transaction-ready, LicenseStream Creator 2.0 paves the way for hyper-distribution.”
LicenseStream Creator 2.0 also includes new marketing tools, including the ability to publish entire content catalogs directly to major search engines which can then be search-engine optimized for an unrivaled direct-to-customer experience. Version 2.0 also now includes a more visual, intuitive interface that allows for improved collaboration and a more seamless workflow, enabling content creators and owners to license, distribute and track their work as well as manage royalties and collect fees with ease, and freeing them to focus on producing innovative, powerful content and on getting that content to market fast. ImageSpan plans to update the accounts of existing LicenseStream Creator subscribers to the new version of the service over the next month at no cost.
Lou Lesko, the owner of Blinkbid, which provides estimating software for more than 4,000 creative professionals, said that LicenseStream fills a glaring void for content creators.
"For the last two years I've been on a crusade to bridge the gap between the creative world and the business world,” said Lesko. “LicenseStream is an outstanding service to that end. It enables you to make money without requiring your direct involvement. The technical term is ‘making money while you sleep.’ The world is your marketplace and LicenseStream is your agent."
Subscribers also will be able to access LicenseStream 2.0 via plug-ins for the popular Adobe Creative Suite® 4 software from Adobe® Systems, which provides a broad spectrum of creative options for all facets of print, Web, film and video production. The plug-ins include bi-directional support for images and video that both guide content providers and licensees through the LicenseStream process, and allow CS4 to query LicenseStream to determine whether specific content already has been licensed through the service. LicenseStream Creator subscribers can continue to access the service via plug-ins for the Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® photography workflow software and the popular Adobe Bridge Creative Suite ® 3.
Additional new LicenseStream Creator 2.0 features include:
- Improved integration between the LicenseStream Creator portal and service, enabling subscribers to obtain the information they need, when they need it
- Marketing tools, including webinars on how to leverage LicenseStream to grow revenues, and tips on e-mail marketing, using third-party networks, and building visibility for an online storefront
- A Flash uploader for easily uploading batches of images
- Improved content management, including the ability to select multiple images and apply them in batches to lightboxes for export to customers and partners
Lee Roth, a Hollywood-based photographer has photographed a who's who of Hollywood's top A-list talent, said LicenseStream 2.0 is “an ideal platform for the professional display and syndication of Roth Stock Digital Media’s image libraries.” Roth, who covers more than 150 red carpet events per year including the entertainment industry’s most prestigious events, said that his studio has set up three LicenseStream stores so far using the existing LicenseStream Creator PRO, and he is looking forward to using new LicenseStream 2.0 features including the ability to publish directly to search engines, add global restrictions to his content, and use filters to easily locate content in his account. “LicenseStream Creator enables our clients to search and view samples, and perform self-service transactions,” he added, “which in today’s hectic world of photo editors is of paramount importance for expedience and efficiency.”
Licensing technology developed by ImageSpan supports standards created by the Picture Licensing Universal (PLUS) Coalition, an international non-profit organization dedicated to simplifying and facilitating the communication and management of image rights. Representatives of McGraw-Hill, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Pearson all announced at a recent event in New York that they will adopt licensing standards created by the PLUS Coalition. Specifically, the publishers said that they will adopt the PLUS Picture Licensing Glossary in their contracts and that they encourage image suppliers to begin embedding PLUS license metadata in all images within one year.
About ImageSpan
ImageSpan is the creator of LicenseStream, the market-leading licensing automation platform for all media types and businesses, from individual creators to enterprises. LicenseStream makes content intelligent, so it moves freely across the Web with defined ownership, rights and restrictions, enabling pricing based on use. By making content intelligent, LicenseStream creates new efficiencies and frees resources to develop new distribution and marketing channels to drive incremental revenues. Enterprise partners using the ImageSpan platform include Omnicom, Visible World and online advertising agencies. ImageSpan offers a number of delivery options including deployment through Adobe software. Founded in 2003 and based in Sausalito, California, ImageSpan is the exclusive provider of license registry services to the PLUS Coalition, the international, multi-industry standards body for image licensing. For more information, please go to www.imagespan.com or call (888) 921-1221.
Its nice to see a possible future alternative to Photoshelter in the market esp after the demise of DRR. Its also nice to see that some VCs think this market is still worth a punt.
The front end still looks to need a lot of work though compared to the competition and needs a much slicker customizable feel.
Posted by: Wisit Rujira | March 24, 2009 at 04:03 AM