In the last few days, Getty Images announced it was to allow millions of images from its photo library free for non-commercial use. However, there are implications for all involved. Getty Images will get a slice of the market it would be unable to win. Those users in social media that wouldn’t want to pay for use of Getty’s images can now use the images without fear of getting tied up in demands for payment and potentially expensive litigation, of which Getty is well known for.
Getty Images is to provide a code to users for embedding the images, which will mean the company will retain control over what is displayed. In effect, it’s gaining advertising opportunities and could, at any time, replace the image with an advert or clickable content. Imagine the tracking opportunities, too.
There’s another issue around this, and that is of the photographers supplying their images. Where they may have made some sales, will this now cut their opportunities to earn a living?
For those considering allowing Getty Images some real estate on the site, think carefully how this may change, and how it may look a year from now. Getty Images' Terms and Conditions allow for the service to change and adapt according to Getty Images' whims.
I suspect there may be many that are cynical over this move, and rightly so, imho.
Welcome to this WebmasterWorld Weekly Round-up.
The previous WebmasterWorld Weekly is
here.There's an interesting thread titled, "
How To Achieve Links and Succeed With Google, where WebmasterWorld Members discuss how best to gain those most valuable of links to achieve success. Why not join in the thread with your ideas, too.
Bitcoin has seen some changes over the past few weeks, and there are many wondering where next for this currency., especially with the news that major
Bitcoin exchange, MtGox, went offline"
And a
U.S. Senator is calling for a Bitcoin currency ban.
Last week Google announced
v201402 of AdWords API
There's a great deal of talk that
Microsoft is to cut the price of Windows by a significant sum. An interesting concept, and this may help the uptake of the OS.
There's also reports that
Microsoft is experimenting with free Windows 8.1 with Bing.
An interesting
advertising partnership between Google and Yandex was announced. Yandex said, "Through Google's subsidiary DoubleClick, the company's advertising clients will now have access to one of Russia's largest advertising inventories offered by publishers in Yandex's Advertising Network, while the advertising clients of Yandex will be able to bid for ad displays in the global inventory of DoubleClick AdExchange partners."
Google's Matt Cutts has said that
Google wants reports of scrapers that outrank your own site. What do you think about this request. We've seen the previously and I wonder if it's a new initiative to get tough on scraper sites.
Firefox announced a
deadline for Plugin activation which will run until 31 March.
Google recently tried to explain
what is a paid link, and which might not be considered paid. Watch the video and let us know if you think it's any clearer.
Yahoo is to
remove the sign-in buttons for Facebook and Google. The company did not specify when the change will take place, but i'm sure it'll roll out as soon as practical.
There was a
critical crypto GnuTLS bug which left many apps open to eavesdropping. Apparently, there is now a fix, so make sure you're covered.
Here's that link to the announcement by Getty that I mentioned in the start of this thread, where
Getty Images is now making watermark-free images available for sharing - similar to the YouTube iframed/embedded content model.
There's been a great deal of interest in this month's
look at Google AdSense. Join our thread and let's hear your AdSense observations.
In a relatively quiet start to March, WebmasterWorld's monthly look at
Google's SERPs changes, March is starting to pick up with suggestions of more changes coming in the SERPs.
Twitter has said that it's to
ban explicit adult content from Vine. No doubt it's been getting out of hand.
Google has said it has
redesigned AdWords Express for ease of access to information on-the-go. Do you use AdWords Express?
There's a great thread for those interested in local SEO. The thread is titled,
Local SEO Cheat Sheet. Come and join in the thread, and let's hear your views and experiences.
In one of Matt Cutts' latest videos, there an interesting question and an enlightening answer. We can all learn from this about the clarity of our writing.
Have a productive week, until next time...
Cheers
Neil
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WebmasterWorld Weekly Round-Up 9 March
