Alaska Stock Images Settlement Demand Letter

[Matthew Chan]

Here is a brand new settlement demand letter from Alaska Stock Images. I have to admit their version is shorter and more "gentler" than past letters and I have chosen to NOT use the term "extortion letter" in their case.

http://extortionletterinfo.com/alaska-stock-extortion-letter.pdf

[Robert Krausankas (BuddhaPi)]

Much gentler indeed!, I would be willing to bet they'd be more than happy to negotiate as well.

[Matthew Chan]

I think if Alaska Stock Images handles correctly with reasonable settlement amounts, they could have a winning formula with the right balance.

If I received that letter AND also a "reasonable" settlement amount, I might be tempted to cooperate.  Also, I would not have such a venomous attitude that I would not buy a photo from them.

As it stands, Alaska Stock stands out so far as having the most reasonable and gentle letter. I wonder how it will pan out for them over time.

Matthew

[MrNiceGuy]

That is a very nice letter. I received an unreasonable one from their law firm 2 weeks ago. They want $7500!!!

I sent you a copy Matt to your gmail account.

I have communicated with Oscar and if Alaska stock is not willing to be reasonable, then I will hire him.

[Matthew Chan]

Thank you for sending your copy of your follow-up letter by IMUA Legal Advisors who apparently represents Alaska Stock Images. It is a bit tougher. I have redacted your information to preserve your anonymity. Thanks for your help.

http://www.extortionletterinfo.com/alaska-stock-imua-letter.pdf

[Oscar Michelen]

IMUA Legal Advisors (John Grant is the attorney there) have become increasing involved in this field.  They have hsndled claims for Superstock, Corbis and now Alaska Images. 

[MrNiceGuy]

I have sent a request to Alaska Stock's attorney for a more reasonable settlement offer and got no response. I also sent a second email with an offer based on Oscar's advice and still no response. They came at me with both guns a blazing and now there is no response.

[SoylentGreen]

Is Alaska Stock new to the settlement demand letter game?
If so, I wonder if they're trying different approaches to see which pays off faster/better?

S.G.

[VIN1028]

Hello Mr. Chan , Mr. Michelen --

I just discovered this website today and am I glad! We received a demand letter from IMUA (exact same letter as the one posted in this thread) want $15K on a 1" x 1" image buried 4 layers deep into our website. The web page where the image (nothing out of the ordinary nor professional quality) lies is only used as reference material and does not benefit our services in any way. The artist they claim to represent is an individual (not an image stock company) based outside the U.S. The settlement demand is obviously OUTRAGEOUS given the intent (lack thereof), size, and placement of the image on our website. Looks like IMUA has upped the ante and Getty demands now pale by comparison.

Any guidance and insights are greatly appreciated. I am aware of Mr. Michelen's letter program and would be open to enlist if you feel my case is applicable.

Thank you very much.

[MikeD]

Wow, Ryan McGinnis and Photo Attorney are not going to like being upstaged by these guys, guessing they will increase their next extortion requests to $16,000 per image.

[SoylentGreen]

Interesting.  Now we may be reaching the point wherein the letter recipients would be willing to go to court over this.
Until now, most demands were low enough that a court fight wasn't usually cost-effective.

S.G.

[MrNiceGuy]

I have sent 2 emails to the law firm for Alaska Stock offering a settlement amount. I have had no response from them.

They should take my offer. I'll just wait until they file a lawsuit and then file bankruptcy. They will rack up thousands in atty fees.

[Oscar Michelen]

keep us posted!

[MrNiceGuy]

After being ignored by Alaska Stock's attorney, I contacted Dennis (manager) at Alaska Stock. He was friendly and more than willing to give me a very reasonable settlement. He made it easy and I am glad this whole thing is behind me. If you don't have the stomach for negotiating, you can hire Oscar and he will get you a fair price from Alaska Stock.