June 22, 2007
Industry Leaders Define Current Visual Trends
Getty Images' research partnership with Yankelovich Inc., a leading market-research firm, will give it greater insight into the present communications environment. Conversely, Getty's in-house creative research department adds a visual dimension to Yankelovich's research, allowing marketers to understand the effect images have on target audiences.
The companies' first joint project focuses on environmental concerns. The resulting report, Going Green: Understanding Green Consumers, examines why the popular pro-environmental attitudes rarely translate into changes in lifestyle or purchasing patterns. The report also addresses how the green trend impacts specific business categories. Key findings will be presented in a June 27 Yankelovich Webinar.
According to Denise Waggoner, vice president of creative research at Getty Images who specializes in visual-trend forecasting, research is at the core of the stock-image business. Amber Calo, senior manager of creative intelligence at Corbis, agrees. She says that photographers and image buyers seek trend-related information. "By analyzing consumer trends and insights, we're walking in the same shoes as account planners. We ask the same questions and strive to deliver imagery that will resonate with their target markets," she says.
Corbis releases trend-related research and analysis each quarter. During this week's Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival, the company unveiled visual and cultural trends affecting creative imagery.
Images that remain popular: female entrepreneurship, flexible work locations, use of wireless technologies, the vitality of baby boomers and their active participation in family life. Corbis also anticipates that new lifestyle trends and upcoming events - such as and medical tourism (people traveling to countries where medical procedures are less expensive), record numbers of children enrolling in U.S. schools in 2007 and the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing - will fuel demand.
iStockphoto Among 100 Most-Visited U.S. Web Sites
By: Julia Dudnik Stern
During the past three years, iStockphoto has become one of the top 300 sites visited, according to Alexa Internet. In the U.S., the microstock provider ranks among the top 100 highest-traffic Internet properties. The traffic also translates into sales, with an image downloaded every 2.5 seconds.
Bloggerazzi Image Infringement Saga Continues
By: Julia Dudnik Stern
The Web site of Perez Hilton, a gossip blogger currently defending himself in multiple copyright infringement lawsuits filed by eight picture agencies, has lost its ISP. Perez has been using proprietary celebrity photos in his blog without paying or crediting image owners (see story 973). A Daily Variety report suggests the company providing hosting did not wish to be named in the lawsuits and had previously warned Perez that it would discontinue services if it were notified of additional infringements.