Getty Cuts Editorial Royalties To 35%

Getty Images notified its editorial photographers on November 9th that it is revising its editorial contract and cutting the royalty rate to 35 percent. Under the current editorial contract Getty pays photographers 50 percent for some sales and 35 percent for others.

Photographers have been given 30 days to sign the new contract. They are told that if they don’t sign their current contract will be terminated when it expires.

The company says that the new contract terms will enable it “to more easily modify content use across more and new license models, products, services and selling environments, including subscriptions, high-volume customer deals and new or emerging pricing, licensing and payment models.”

While Getty expects customers to use more of its content in the future, it appears that the added volume is not expected to offset the lower prices that will be charged for its use. Thus, the only way Getty can cover its fixed costs and profit is to reduce what it pays the creators of the content it distributes.

One benefit for photographers from the new contract is that they will now be paid 60 days after the sale is book rather than the current 120 days