1. Centralized administration and management. The benefits of being able to locate content and rightsholders from a single source, and of being able to transact licensing, payment, and content procurement through that source, are the primary incentives for user participation in collective licensing of any type. In the marketing literature of service providers, these benefits are often referred to as "one-stop shopping." By providing a central mechanism for managing or distributing intellectual property, service providers eliminate the burden placed on users of locating and negotiating agreements with individual rightsholders, reduce the paperwork, administration, and risk associated with direct licensing, and offer a single content source that is easy and efficient to access. Thus centralized administration of intellectual property–a key incentive for rightsholders–is also important to users.

2. Economic benefits. Because service providers can generate economies of scale in their operations, their user fees may be smaller than those incurred by direct licensing. Cost savings can be realized in other ways as well. The use of already available content, if it is appropriate to the task, is cheaper than producing new content in-house. And providers themselves offer special financial incentives, such as quantity discounts to frequent users.

3. Type and quality of content. A user is initially drawn to a service provider by its repertoire, or by the rightsholders the provider represents. Thus the quality of the items in the repertoire is of major importance, and is measured in terms of fidelity (e.g., high-resolution digital images), the exquisiteness and exactitude of the creative work being used (e.g., the uniqueness of a work and whether or not it was created by a prominent or professional person in the field), and the richness and value of the contextual information accompanying the intellectual property (e.g., detailed, authoritative documentation). Equally important is that the repertoire contain a critical mass of materials to meet long-term user needs.

Good-quality, comprehensive content is also valued for the inspiration that users can draw from it when developing their own ideas and projects. Users of stock photography agencies find that these agencies’ large, varied repertoires are an idea resource as much as an image resource.

4. Assurances. Because the stability of electronically delivered resources is still uncertain, users take great risks in relying on these resources. If a repertoire, or a product derived from it, is "pulled" because it is not proving economically feasible, users may face serious consequences of their own. Assurances that the repertoire will be available in some form, even if the provider ceases operations, is therefore of primary importance. Providers can minimize the risk that many users fear of investing in and using digitally based resources by agreeing to: 1) place a copy of their digital repertoire in escrow, 2) guarantee each user a complete set of the repertoire in the event of provider default, or 3) make good-faith efforts to turn over the administration of the repertoire to another reputable party should the provider cease operations.

5. Tools. Users value tools that allow them to access, license, and retrieve content on electronic networks. Service providers are now commonly building sophisticated search and retrieval tools for use with their repertoires. Other tools that enhance the use of the repertoire include image-viewers, digital lightboxes and shared digital lightboxes, large print viewers, and print tools. Data analysis tools, hypertext links, and annotation utilities are also being developed and made available for scholarly use. Online selection and ordering tools such as shopping carts, order history utilities, and real-time pricing calculations make order fulfillment easier. When providers start using online payment systems (still a rare occurrence), the concept of seamless "shopping" will come full circle.

Automated rights clearance and licensing systems are now emerging in the intellectual property management industry. An actual implementation of such a system is in place at Index Stock Photography, which has developed a "Photos to Go®" application that allows personal, small business, and small publication users to "point, click and buy" (and download) images for use in limited contexts.8 The purpose of this suite of tools is to reach new and untapped markets by offering "hassle-free shopping." As service providers streamline their operations and expand their infrastructures to include electronic networks, full-service licensing systems like "Photos to Go®" may become more frequent, especially for uncomplicated licensing situations. rable terms as a means of persuading them to affiliate with the provider, and as a bargaining point in negotiating an agreement.

6. Services. Providers tout their personal and ancillary services as factors distinguishing them from their competitors. Among the more popular services are research assistance, training, custom content development (i.e., commissioning artists to create specially designated materials), sample catalogs, efficient and knowledgeable staff, and short turnaround times..

7. Securing legitimate access and use. The opportunity to secure intellectual property in a legally and socially responsible way is an important reason for working with a service provider. Doing so not only respects the rights that copyright grants to creators, but also ensures that the user receives defense and indemnification against claims of infringement.