Those numbers are totals since the company’s website launched in 2011. VideoBlocks gives members access to an entire library of video and audio content for a monthly subscription. The company’s pay-per-piece Marketplace that launched in 2015 offers a 100 percent commission to content creators and has now paid out over $5 million from Marketplace sales.
“What makes this milestone really sweet is that our entire mission is about providing high-quality creative assets regardless of budget. This mission of accessibility and affordability really shines in those download numbers,” VideoBlocks CEO TJ Leonard said. “If members had downloaded the exact same content from a stock platform like Getty or Shutterstock, it would have cost well over a billion dollars.”
VideoBlocks was founded by videographer Joel Holland. While in high school, he realized it would cost over $3,000 to get the B-roll and audio assets for a video project. To confirm that there was a market for video stock, he started selling stock clips on eBay, spending a year traveling and shooting 30 U.S. cities. That’s how Footage Firm was born, and in 2011 the company became VideoBlocks.com when they switched from DVDs by mail to the online platform.
Now, the platform also offers 3D virtual reality and 360 stock videos. Along with the video clips on a wide range of subjects, the platform also offers After Effects templates, moving backgrounds and other assets for video. Last year, the company also started an Enterprise platform, which allows third party programs like Vistaprint Digital and Magisto to link to directly to VideoBlocks assets without disrupting the workflow.
With 100 million downloads, VideoBlocks is looking towards what’s next for the platform. Leonard says the company is watching the changing profile of the content creator, as small businesses and freelancers — and not just big companies with big TV budgets — look for content for blogs and social media.
VideoBlocks says it’s looking to the future by continuing to look for new types of content while looking to serve new types of customers.
“We entered the industry over 10 years ago because we thought the system was broken,” Leonard said. “We came with a unique subscription model to give the power back to the freelancer, the small studios and the digital marketers. The mass creative class is strong and growing quickly, we’re excited about expanding to new content types to continue reaching this group going forward.”
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