The deal that Deadline-parent Penske Media Corporation (PMC) and Shutterstock just unveiled will be phased in through the end of this year, and should cure headaches for both digital age companies.
Deadline and other PMC news outlets including Variety, WWD, HollywoodLife, TVLine, and BGR will be able to secure more photos that directly illustrate our stories than we can now by relying on outside services. PMC will tell Shutterstock about, and help photographers gain access to, the film festivals, runways, parties and other events that we want covered. The photos will be available to Shutterstock customers who need entertainment and fashion images.
The New York-based image licensing company also will become the exclusive official photographer for more than 50 annual PMC-sponsored events, including the Fairchild Summits and gatherings organized by Deadline, Variety, and WWD.
Meanwhile, Shutterstock will be able to offer its customers photos from PMC’s libraries — including historical shots from Variety and WWD which are both more than 100 years old. The companies didn’t disclose financial terms. But PMC will own both the new and old content.
“This alliance creates a significant opportunity for all PMC image and video content, both new and archived, to be more targeted, searchable, robust, and easily accessible by each of our brands,” PMC Chairman and CEO Jay Penske says.
Shutterstock Founder and CEO Jon Oringer says the deal will enable it to “capture unique moments with today’s top entertainment and fashion talent. We will grow together and create a remarkable service for the world’s top photographers, as well as media, publishing and creative companies.” Shutterstock initially will distribute images through its Rex Features news service and to Shutterstock Premier customers.
Another important part of the deal: PMC news outlets will use Shutterstock’s cloud-based digital asset management service, WebDAM, to manage their visual content.
“We aim to eliminate unnecessary steps in the workflow so the PMC brands can spend less time scouring for hard-to-find files, and more time creating iconic content.” says WebDAM Co-Founder and CEO Jody Vandergriff.
Shutterstock has more than 50 million pieces of content, which it licenses individually and by subscription. Photographers and other creators are paid when their material is used. Buyers spend about $750 million a year industry-wide on editorial images, it estimates.
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