Loadsa refunds?

[Phil Robinson]

And me this morning. Are these all the same customer? Mine was a 'corporate website'.

[spacecadet]

Two more refunds tonight, two $75.73 sales now down to $30.74 each. There must be a half off sale going on!

Same here. Only difference in licence- personal screensaver use removed. Ho hum. You know you're making a lot more sales when some turn into un-sales. Still, bright side, it's only minus $22 net.

Not good to have a negative balance for August so soon though.

[Paul Thompson Images]

yep, just the one 75 to 30 for me.

[Callie]

Same here - $75.73 sale refunded and resold for $30.74, corporate website use.

[stipe]

Having had five decent $75 sales at the end of July they have all be refunded and replaced with $30 sales today. Anyone else had the same?

 

Yes, experienced right the same thing, unfortunately. Very disappointing but we can not do anything.

 

 

Country: Worldwide

Usage: Non-Editorial Electronic and web uses

Media: Corporate website, single design

Industry sector: General business services

Image Size: Any size

Start: 01 July 2013

End: 01 July 2016

5 years multiple web use incl. personal screensaver use $ 75.73

 

 

Country: Worldwide

Usage: Non-Editorial Electronic and web uses

Media: Corporate website, single design

Industry sector: General business services

Image Size: Any size

Start: 01 July 2013

End: 01 July 2016

5 years multiple web use. $ 30.74

[dov makabaw]

Don't feel left out anymore - had a sale for $33 today. Just a matter of time before the refund I guess!

 

 

dov

[dov makabaw]

 

Why not ask Alamy directly? I had a 50% refund in May from a sale made about ten months previously. I asked, and was told that they had decided not to use the image; it was unusual to allow a refund after such a long time (the payment had gone through last August), but it was a key customer.

 

I can understand the straight refunds to key customers. It's when an image gets refunded and then re-sold for half the price that I find puzzling. It seems like an odd way of doing business, but perhaps there is a good reason for it (?).

 

My understanding is that Alamy record sales at the earliest opportunity. Once the price is finalised the price is adjusted to include any discounts. The alternative would be to defer the reporting of sales until the price is finalised. Makes sense to me.

 

dov

[John Gaffen]

Same happened to me,  I did not see you original thread David, before I posted mine,  I  had a sale at the end of July which  has just been reduced from $75.73 down to $30.74 today, most annoying!

[Reciprocity Images]

Exactly the same license details here, same refund...

 

Also have one of the similar $33 sales that popped up at the same time. License details on that one are slightly different ("Editorial web use, multiple placement; rights granted in line with customer agreement which may vary from invoice details above."), though date range is exactly the same. May be the same client?

 

-Jason

[Callie]

I also have one of the similar 33$ sales popping in today. Curious. Loadsa refunds but more sales, maybe a deal done on a price reduction to get the extra sales?

[Addict]

no refunds but i am through complaining on here; the world is changing and we all know why stock has fallen; it's no good to complain, it won't change anything. If you like photography keep shooting; if you're addicted you will keep uploading even for $1 sales.

[Reciprocity Images]

 

Also have one of the similar $33 sales that popped up at the same time. License details on that one are slightly different ("Editorial web use, multiple placement; rights granted in line with customer agreement which may vary from invoice details above."), though date range is exactly the same. May be the same client?

 

-Jason

 

Like this?

 

Country: Worldwide

Usage: Editorial

Media: Editorial website

Placement: Single Placement

Image Size: up to full area

Start: 01 July 2013

End: 01 July 2016

Editorial web use, multiple placement; rights granted in line with customer agreement which may vary from invoice details above

 

$ 33.00

 

Got 3 of those today.

 

Cheers,

Philippe

 

Exactly.

 

Mine was also of a similar subject matter to the first ($75) sales. Would be curious if anyone is able to locate any of these images/sales.

 

-Jason

[Reciprocity Images]

.

[AndyMelbourne]

I had a $33 yesterday, found it in the huff post so a good price really.

[wiskerke]

And nobody will ever get $75 again.

 

wim

 

(only 3 facepalms on Alamy)

[Phil Robinson]

 

> $75 sales...refunded and replaced with $30 sales today. Anyone else had the same?

 

Yes, & now the "dream" hand-sized FF Sony w/zoom needs to be $4500 $4350 or less...

 

But most interesting about this thread:

many "Let-Us-Not-Discuss-Low-Pricing-thread" 

zealots are...get ready...take a seat...here it comes:

 

DISCUSSING ^LOW PRICING!!!     

You're absolutely right. And wouldn't it be nice to have somewhere private to do it.

[wiskerke]

Discussing low pricing is fine by me, but telling the client exactly that his competitor is paying for

 

Usage: Non-Editorial Electronic and web uses
Media: Corporate website, single design
Industry sector: General business services
Image Size: Any size
Start: 01 July 2013
End: 01 July 2016
5 years multiple web use incl. personal screensaver use: $pittance

 

is not.

 

Note:

I would find this totally acceptable though:

 

Usage: Non-Editorial Electronic and web uses
Media: Corporate website, single design
Industry sector: General business services
Image Size: Any size
Start: 01 July 2013
End: 01 July 2016
5 years multiple web use incl. personal screensaver use $ 75.73

 

- This was the original invoice.

(Check the calculator why this would be ok. The next thing you will notice that this is a very common bulk deal: look at all the people here reporting sales just like this in just a couple of days. The screen saver thing is a bit worrying, but memberservices gives an explanation if you ask them.)

 

This time this whole discussion started because I found out something about a certain deal involving meerkat pictures. At that time someone already had divulged the sale price.

No problem, until I found out what the real deal had been. Everybody else, following the links could immediately have seen what the problem was.

This was that discussion:

 

Meerkat 1 a day calendar. Typical bulk fee for if they're buying 365 images.

 

wim

 

edit:

OK a google search easily reveals the buyer, including a tear. Let's not discuss prices on the open net any further please.

 

Now if you do not understand what the problem was, please PM me, but do not discuss such a bad deal for photographers in the open.

 

We have a proverb here that goes along this line: sit still if you're getting a shave (- or you will get cut, is the implicit warning).

There is another proverb though: A barber learns to shave by shaving fools.

 

It's a thin line between being the fool and getting cut, and I don't like either.

 

wim

[John Mitchell]

I had a $33 yesterday, found it in the huff post so a good price really.

 

If that's the case, then we actually got a raise.

[Ed Buziak]

I had a $175 refund noted overnight on an image licensed in April 2013. However, the client re-licensed the same image for $250 for an increased print-run, but not extended date span... so someone somewhere is being honest!
 
Image is  - a typical small building site progress shot (which I can't figure out how to include in this reply).

 

Update: Thanks Philippe / Arterra Images.

 

[Anil Ghawana]

Having had five decent $75 sales at the end of July they have all be refunded and replaced with $30 sales today. Anyone else had the same?

 

Have a look at this thread > two similar instances > http://discussion.alamy.com/index.php?/topic/794-how-can-this-be-possible/  > absolutely identical, even the dates of such transaction downgrade !

[Addict]

istock now selling 1/2 of their imagery for 1/2 price forever so the photographer is now getting 1/2 of nothing forever - looks like we're going to start getting 1/2 as well - but i'm not complaining as i have said - i am just ducky and couldn't be happier

[Anil Ghawana]

istock now selling 1/2 of their imagery for 1/2 price forever so the photographer is now getting 1/2 of nothing forever - looks like we're going to start getting 1/2 as well - but i'm not complaining as i have said - i am just ducky and couldn't be happier

 

Well half (and then one-third) of quite a few download licenses (depending upon size & quality-level) may still be almost equal to what one gets for a $30.74 sale (not talking of 'novel use' still) reported in this thread. Besides the alleged $30.74, I have had sales of (gross)  $8.89, $12.35, $10, $12.14, $12.35, $23.79 etc. And, when one get 5-10 sales a day at iStock even during such 'sales promotion', the overall ROI may not be that bad. Add to that a few video clip licenses every week or two, and the score doesn't look all that pathetic. In terms of licensing, talking of RF there (at iStock) and 5-15 years 'Rights Managed' here at Alamy, the average going rate/use seem somewhat comparable at times. 5-year multiple web usage (reported above) seems to be getting pretty common here. Just my view.

[Michael Ventura]

So should I expect a refund coming? Tonight I had two sales with same specs, terms and fee but they are of two different images that are super similar RM, just a slight difference in a woman's posture who is fairly small in the frame. Why would a client use two nearly identical shots?

[dustydingo]

So should I expect a refund coming? Tonight I had two sales with same specs, terms and fee but they are of two different images that are super similar RM, just a slight difference in a woman's posture who is fairly small in the frame. Why would a client use two nearly identical shots?

 

A "spot-the-difference" competition?

 

More seriously, here's hoping they have a good reason and they buy them both for you.

 

dd

[markt]

I Had a refund today of a royalty free image; sold for $160 and refunded the same day.

 

When I had a refund on an image a couple of months ago I enquired as to the reason with Alamy Customer Services but I never received a reply from them.