Istockphoto LP

Digital imagery has exploded this century thanks to the trailblazing efforts of iStockPhoto. It all started in 2000, let me set the stage. Prior to that time Microsoft (aka the Evil Empire) and Bill Gates began quietly buying as much stock photography as they could afford. Millions if images were monopolized and they began to ratchet up the cost of these images.
The entrepreneurial culture at iStockPhoto gave free-​thinking artists an alternative and we all jumped off of the evil empire. Amateur photographers contributed photos and designers like me who rely on these images like a drug addict needs crack began buying them up. The low cost led a cycle of exponential growth and they quickly became a major player. By 2006 Getty Images took notice and gobbled up iStockPhoto up and the cycle started all over again.
Fast forward to 2013 and iStockPhoto ‘s aggressive price increases caught up with them. No longer were they providing low cost photography to hip artists. With an exponentially increasing cost structure, artists shunned iStockphoto. New kids on the block popped up everywhere using the same business model, but in a much bigger scale. Fierce competition caused me and many of my colleagues to take our business elsewhere.
In 2014 they had to respond to the massive exodus and they reinvented themselves. The changed the pricing structure, converted all user accounts and have emerged as a competitive player.
With digital photography becoming more and more accessible, this industry has some fierce competition. Businesses thrive or die with the click of a mouse. Photo users are free thinking artists who like to support fringe businesses and we avoid the Evil Empire like the plague. In the end we taught them a thing or two.