Acquired – Alamy goes to PA

Building story … check back for updates and reactions

PA Media Group – owned by national and regional newspaper groups in the UK including the Daily Mail and News UK – has acquired stock photo platform Alamy .
Their photo department PA Images and the newspapers have suddenly got themselves a massive general stock photo library… maybe enough to rival the ‘others’!

• The last photo purchase by PA was sports agency EMPICS in 2004

• Alamy contributors scroll down for how the deal works for you.
• Scroll down for industry reaction in the comments area.

Clive Marshall, Chief Executive of PA Media Group said: “This transformational acquisition will significantly increase our customer base and provide the PA Media Group with a strong presence in the international market for the first time. Alamy has created a fantastic ecosystem of content creators and content users around a superior e-commerce platform. The acquisition adds real scale and diversity to PA Media Group’s photo services. As a result, customers will have access to a wider, richer image portfolio which combines great editorial and stock imagery, accessible through a global platform. In addition, this acquisition will further strengthen the financial performance of the company and help secure the future of our core news agency business.”

James West, co-founder of Alamy, said: “PA Media Group is a natural home for Alamy. As well as having one of the UK’s most comprehensive photo archives, PA shares our ethos of integrity and quality, and has an excellent reputation built over 150 years. Alamy can look forward to a fantastic future as part of the PA Media Group.”

Alamy contributors had this in an email:
‘…Together with PA Images’ live news, sport and entertainment photography service this acquisition will allow the two businesses to fully capitalise on the huge demand for both stock and news imagery from customers around the world.’

‘Please be assured that it’s business as usual at Alamy with no change in our service to you. We will continue to operate as before, with no current plans to change prices or terms. ….’

• Below is a notice of the sale from James and a few answers for Alamy contributors:

Does this acquisition change anything for me? In terms of commission rates/contracts/processes, etc? 

No, it doesn’t. Alamy continues to operate as usual.

Alamy prides itself on offering a better commission rate than most other agencies. Will PA Media Group continue to offer the same commission rates to Alamy’s existing contributors?

There are no plans to change that.

How do PA Images’ commission rates compare with Alamy’s?

The two businesses operate different models – for instance, PA Images’ relationships are mainly with agencies while Alamy works with a wider community of individual photographers.

As such, there is no like-for-like comparison between the two business’ payment structures.

Are there plans to reach parity? If so, in what direction?

There is no like-for-like comparison between Alamy’s and PA Images’ payment structures. The two businesses continue to operate separately.

Are Alamy’s contributor images going into the PA Images archive?

Alamy’s and PA Images’ archives will sit alongside each other. There are no plans to add Alamy’s portfolio to the PA Archive. 

Will Alamy’s contributor images be distributed via the PA newswire?

There are no plans to distribute Alamy’s contributor imagery via the PA newswire.

 Will Alamy content be sold by PA Images?

At present, Alamy contributor sales continue to be managed within the Alamy platform and via Alamy’s distributors.

However, ways of working will be reviewed over the coming months and we will consider what elements to integrate and which to keep separate. 

Will there be any change to the way rights are managed?

No, there will not. The PA Media Group has long history of building successful relationships with photographers and photography agencies and ensuring that rights are managed.