The end of a Giant - StockXpert

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Well Getty has finally chosen to shut down StockXpert, but they are not making it easy to understand. I will give my break down and you can read below the official report. So first off, if you have credits at SXP then you get a one for one trade with iStock (Buyers wont loose any cash they have paid). Now the tricky part, if you are just at SXP then you can request a finial payout of your balance, do so before Feb. 11th when they close the doors. If you are a member of iStock, then your balance will be transferred to that account. Everything makes sense so far right.

Now the wrench. Getty is launching a new subscription site called Thinkstockphotos...and if you are a member of SXP then they will be merging your images over to that site. They will only do this if you are opted in on third party option. So, now the odd part, you have a sale at Think...were does the money go...your iStock account, a new account at Think, nope...sounds like its back in SXP account. Even after they close their site, you will be able to log in and access the funds from Think...so why are they doing finial payouts and moving cash to istock for users...it all is very confusing. Hopefully they will clarify in the next few days. If you have an incite, feel free to comment.

Email 1:
StockXpert will cease regular operations. As of today we will no longer be accepting new uploads or signing up new members. Any uploads that are currently in the queue will continue to be reviewed until February 10, 2010. Then on February 11 searching and downloading will cease. The StockXpert website will continue to exist and will be accessible after this date for certain functions. You will still be able to access all of your account information, download history, and purchase receipts. SXP will still function for contributor payouts. And if you contribute images to the soon-to-be launched Getty Images subscription site we announced last month, you will still receive your royalties through your SXP account. If you aren't receiving any new royalties from the subscription site, you can request a one-time final payout by contacting Support http://www.stockxpert.com/support/contac .. . If you aren't already an iStock member, we encourage you to sign up and get involved by joining here . We will do whatever we can to make this process run smoothly for all of our members. Please read more about the future of StockXpert here http://www.stockxpert.com/forum/show_mes .. . Thank you for all of your support and patronage over the years.

Email 2: Thinkstock.com is a new stock image subscription site offering a comprehensive collection of select royalty-free photos, vectors, and illustrations from Getty Images, iStockphoto and Jupiter Images – and including StockXpert. It is the evolution of Jupiter Images unlimited we talked about on December 14 and launches with the highest quality imagery of any subscription service, from the biggest names in the industry. As an SXP contributor who is opted-in to subscriptions, some of your content has been migrated to Thinkstock.com. You can find your content on Thinkstock by searching for your first and last name in single quotes: 'John Doe'. Please note that the migration is still ongoing and will take some more time to complete. If don't see your opted-in files, be patient – they will show up eventually. StockXpert content will show up as the Hemera Collection. Thinkstock royalties will be paid to your SXP account once a month. Despite the coming changes to StockXpert http://www.stockxpert.com/forum/show_mes .. , you will still be able to access your account here for the purpose of receiving these payments. If you have any questions, please contact Support http://www.stockxpert.com/support/contac .. . Thank you