Shutterstock Adds 4K Video

Shutterstock, the publicly traded stock photography and video site, has quietly launched support for 4K video. As the company tells us, it has already amassed a catalog of over 11,000 videos that are now available for anybody who needs ultra high-res images of somebody scrolling on an iPad or having a fun meeting in the office.

There is a very slim chance that you have a 4K screen on your desk or in your living room, but it’s really just a matter of time (years?) before you will. As demand for 4K content increases, demand for 4K stock video will also surely increase, and the company is trying to position itself as an early leader for users who need this kind of video content for their projects.

At just over 10,000 videos, the 4K library is still a small slice of Shutterstock’s overall video catalog, of course. The site features well over 1.3 million HD video clips, after all, and about 150,000 low-res clips. The HD library is growing at about 12,000 videos per week, according to Shutterstock, and it is also adding 4K videos at a rapid clip.

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“With so much attention on 4K electronics, there’s becoming a need for higher resolution video for businesses, brands, filmmakers and content producers,” said Shutterstock VP of new business Ben Pfeifer. “Similar to our existing stock footage collection, we’re building the best 4K library of its kind, with clips sourced from top contributors around the world. More and more we’re seeing videographers capturing content in 4K so they’re ready for the next wave of demand.”

As for the content, Shutterstock tells me that the company expects it to mirror its HD collection, but with an increased concentration of time-lapse videos.

It’s worth noting that 4K video on Shutterstock is significantly more expensive than other formats. A 10-second clip, which weighs in at about 600MB, can quickly set you back $299, while the HD version just costs $79.