The Future is Stock Footage, Rather than Images – Part 2

Peter Sargent | October 11, 2005, 11:54 AM

I was asked the other day about the applications for Ribbit Films and their chromakey stock footage (see my previous blog). A colleague pointed out that large television networks such as Fox are already using their own “video clip art.” So, why would they want Ribbit’s footage for their “bumpers”?

Point taken. They do have this stuff. But I would venture to guess that they don’t have an endless inventory of such footage. Let’s say they want to use a soccer goalie in action and they already have such footage. But do they have the right angle? Are they getting to proper perspective on the goalie in action? Don’t forget that this is really an artistic decision, and those producing these effects will often have a unique perspective on how they ultimately want the footage and their imagery to look.

Secondly, this stuff is cheap. I mean, you telling me that a post-production company (or one being funded by a huge TV network) doesn’t see the value in getting exactly what they want in their footage for a few hundred bucks? With footage so cheap, why should they settle for something in their own library that isn’t exactly what they want?

And finally, even in the case where larger networks may feel pressure to use their own stuff, there are hundreds (thousands?) of local affiliates across the US and the globe that don’t have access to any library of stock video footage. Ribbit’s business is all about volume (not necessarily the size of their individual customers), so the little guys are just as valuable. So, I guess when I mentioned you ought to think small, I wasn’t speaking just of the applications…but perhaps for the customers too.

Peter Sargent – Research Director