iStockphoto Moving into Audio

InternetNews.com’s David Needle on assignment for WebNewser at the UGCX.

Executives from iStockphoto detailed their success and failures in a keynote address kicking off the first User Generated Content Conference & Expo today.

CEO Bruce Livingstone, who started the company almost ten years ago, said the idea of photo sharing was one he felt passionate about. “We wouldn’t have charged anything except for the crazy IT costs as the site grew,” Livingstone recalled.

Today iStockphoto has almost 60,000 contributors and more than 4 million files in its database.

After several delays, the company will launch the beta of its audio site on Wednesday. Audio files will be available for blogs, videos and other use. More than 10,000 audio clips will be available.

In addition to photos and audio, there is iStockvideo, which came to be after frequent requests from customers. “In late 2006 we launched video and in two years it’s become a substantial part of our revenue,” said Livingstone.

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