Shutterstock buys BigStockPhoto
The stock photography marketplace space just got a little bit smaller with the announcement of a significant acquisition.
Shutterstock, one of the biggest sellers online of stock photography, has purchased one of its smaller rivals, BigStockPhoto.
The purchase is an interesting one in that Shutterstock, while big, has never sold its images through any method other than by subscriptions, and BigStockPhoto has done exactly the opposite.  “BigStockPhoto is a leader in the stock photo industry, and an excellent fit for Shutterstock as we expand into the credit-based market,†said Jon Oringer, founder and CEO of Shutterstock. “This addition will enable Shutterstock to better satisfy the diverse payment preferences of stock photo buyers worldwide.â€
No financial details of the arrangement were disclosed, but for the time being both companies will still operate as separate entities.  From the tone of Mr. Oringer’s comments though, it isn’t difficult to assume that at some point you will see the two sites begin to offer both the subscription and a la carte purchasing options.
This deal follows a trend in the microstock marketplace that has seen some consolidation over the years.  Getty images purchased iStockPhoto some years ago, and then in February of this year they also purchased Jupiter Images.  That deal also included a smaller site named StockXpert.
While none of these deals seem nefarious, it does leave photographers with fewer options of which companies to deal with when wanting to sell their stock photography or unused inventory.  Marketplaces always thrive with competition, and luckily there aren’t too many more purchases to make to shrink the market too much more.  Luckily there are also instances of new sites opening up such as Deutsche Telekom opening up a UK branch of Polylooks.
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