The downloadable Metadata Manifesto outlines principles and practices for those who create, use or manage digital images.
The Stock Artists Alliance (SAA) was founded in 2001 as an international organization of photographers who produce images designed for rights-protected license, in contrast to the more recent and increasingly popular royalty-free model. Since the mission of the SAA is to protect the business interests of its members, it not surprisingly is very focused on minimizing the unauthorized use of member imagery. Earlier this year, for example, it conducted a study in conjunction with PicScout examining unauthorized commercial Web site usage of member rights-managed imagery sold through one of the leading stock photo firms. According to Eyal Gura, PicScout's CEO, "We were astonished to find out these images were being misused at 11 times the rate of the average that PicScout uncovers." Which represents a significant loss of income, to both the distributor and photographers.
From the pespective of the SAA, part of the problem is the lack of metadata embedded in the images. While such metadata as keywords and author information is present on stock photo sites, it's not typically connected with the image in any way post sale. David Riecks, Chair of SAA's Imaging Technology Standards committee, states that "We need industry-wide commitment to metadata. We need technology that makes it easy to embed it, preserve it, and facilitate tracking and rights management. Without a dedicated industry-wide effort, using and managing digital assets will continue to be problematic, and photographers stand to lose more than anyone."
Whether the stock photo industry will rally to the call of the Metadata Manifesto remains to be seen, but both professional photographers and image users are likely to find the suggestions of this freely downloadable document of interest. |
