Big Photo Company Scoops Up Citizen Paparazzi Agency

from the point-shoot-paid dept

Wed, Mar 14th 2007 7:44pm — Carlo Longino

A couple of weeks ago, we posted a story saying that people with cameraphones were destroying the business of paparazzi, since they're sending their images directly to news outlets without the expectation of getting paid, or to agencies that aggregate the submissions, then sell them on to publications. Following up on that, it's interesting to note that the photo giant Getty Images, which among other things, has a wire of celebrity photos, has purchased one such agency. It's bought Scoopt, one of the early companies in the space, and will distribute photos users submit through its channels, increasing their exposure -- and probably further undermining the paparazzi. Again, while paparazzi replacement may not be the most noble goal of citizen journalism, it's looking like an early success story.

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lavi d (profile), 14 Mar 2007 @ 10:11pm

Fascinating
Isn't it interesting how different players in the entrenched media markets deal with the fallout from new technology? Those with tighter hooks and more money (RIAA, MPAA) fight tooth and nail, those with less money and power (newspapers) spasm wildly and those on the bottom of the economic rung... adapt.

Amazing.
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billy, 15 Mar 2007 @ 5:24am

Interesting
Isn't it also interesting how most people have lives so incredibly boring or dull that they have to obsess about other's lives? *grins evilly*
I say this in regard to people's obsession with celebrities.
I love movies a lot, but care not one bit about the actor's and actresses' private lives. I cannot for the life of me understand why people care so much who sleeps with who or dates who or wears what clothes. It just seems .. pathetic.
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Geoff, 15 Mar 2007 @ 6:38am

Re: LAvi D
Oh how accurate you are! I couldn't have said it better myself - although I did need to read it thrice cause I didn't understand it the first two times (grade 3 was a bitch!)....Net-net of this - Adapt to your surroundings and prosper or stick to your old and stodgy ways and become the next blacksmith in your village!
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TheDock22, 15 Mar 2007 @ 10:27am

I won't weep
I do not care if paparazzi are put out of business due to technology. Most of them are rude, greedy, and stalk celebrities just to get that thousand-dollar photo. I do no agree that most people are uninterested in celebrities since it's an American fascination.

In the end, they are people. As much as we love candid shots of them, they shouldn't be stalked and harassed by this horrible group of people. Most people will snap a picture when they see a celebrity without harassing them, so these sites are a good thing IMHO.
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