Sales by subscription and on Bigstock

This week, Bigstock sent out a notification to its authors that this small photobank has expanded its functionality to include the ability to sell images by subscription, which will go into effect in February 2013.

Translation of the letter from Bigstock regarding the introduction of the subscription model:

As you know, we have already offered anyone interested in purchasing images on Bigstock the opportunity to take advantage of prepaid credit benefits. Starting next week, we will be able to provide them with an incredibly popular way to purchase images – a subscription.

How will this affect authors’ earnings?

The subscription will ensure a greater number of downloads, leading to an increase in earnings on Bigstock. Here’s how earnings for image sales through subscription via Bigstock will be calculated:
• Each time an image is downloaded via subscription, the author receives royalties.
• The more images purchased via subscription in the previous 12 months, the higher the royalty amount, up to a maximum of $0.38 per download.
Here is the scale and royalty ties to the download levels (subscription sales):

Number of sales in the last 12 months		Earnings from sales
From	To	In dollars
1	199	0,25 $
200	999	0,27 $
1,000	1,999	0,29 $
2,000	9,999	0,31 $
10,000	19,999	0,33 $
20,000	49,999	0,35 $
50,000+		0,38 $

• Any download will be counted in the calculation of the number of earnings, regardless of which license the image was purchased under.
• Earnings from sales through credits and affiliate programs will remain unchanged.
• With a subscription, it will not be possible to purchase images with an extended license, only with a standard one. The level of earnings from extended sales will still be up to $29.70.

Anything else new?

Yes. We have established a print limit for the standard license of 250,000 copies. We believe this should increase the number of image sales under the extended license, which will raise the author’s earnings on Bigstock.

Additionally, we have simplified the terms of the standard license for purchasing images, so that Bigstock better aligns with the general standards of the royalty-free sales industry.

Let’s see, let’s see. After all, as far as I remember, when Shutterstock acquired Bigstock, they highlighted the specialization of this service specifically in unit sales as one of its advantages. It created a kind of diversification: Bigstock for unit sales, while Shutterstock primarily cultivated subscription sales.

I wonder, are there many authors with more than 50,000 sales to receive the maximum earnings from subscriptions? I, for instance, have about 300-350 sales a year on this stock, and some others who are quite successful on other stock sites have even fewer.
In general, time will tell.