Flicker flogs pictures to Getty

PHOTOGRAPHIC agency, Getty has signed a deal with Yahoo's photo-sharing site Flickr to automatically harvest the pictures it wants for commercial purposes.

Getty co-founder and Chief Executive Jonathan Klein said he wants to assess images posted to Flickr for their technical, legal and subject-matter suitability for commercial use.

Flickr users can declare whether they want their images considered for commercial use and Getty will pay for each one they use. Getty collects between $29 and $200,000 for an image, depending on how much the image is used.

Photographers will receive 30 percent to 40 percent of the licensing fee or 20 percent if the image may be used with fewer restrictions.

Klein said it would not cost his outfit much, but it did mean that Getty could get access to a huge community of photos and find new talent. µ

L'Inq
Seattle Pi