IPTC welcomes inquiries regarding participation, membership and our standards. Please contact us<\/a>.<\/p>\n The International Press Telecommunications Council (IPTC) is a consortium of news agencies, media outlets, software vendors and related organisations.<\/p>\n We provide five main benefits to our members and to the industry:<\/p>\n The organisation holds two member meetings<\/strong> each year, in the Spring and Autumn\/Fall. From 2020 to 2022, these events have been held online as Zoom meetings, but we are aiming to hold at least one meeting physically from 2023 onwards.<\/p>\n The three meeting days provide workshop-like sessions, discussions about topics from the IPTC\u2019s working areas, and presentations from invited experts.<\/p>\n One of those meetings is also combined with a more formal Annual General Meeting<\/strong> where basic organisational decisions are made.<\/p>\n We also hold regular Working Group meetings<\/strong> and development sessions by video conference, and views and proposals are shared on email discussion groups.<\/p>\n We have recently started a series of IPTC Members-Only Webinars<\/strong> hosting presentations from IPTC Working Groups, member organisations, and invited guests.<\/p>\n Video recordings of past meeting presentations and webinars are available to members at no cost.<\/p>\n We also organise conferences that can be attended by the public, notably the IPTC Photo Metadata Conference<\/strong> which has been held annually for over 15 years.<\/p>\n Generally, only IPTC members can attend Working Group meetings, our Spring and Autumn Member Meetings, and Member Webinars.<\/p>\n However, anyone interested in the IPTC\u2019s work can attend a face-to-face meeting or regular conference call sessions as a guest for a limited time. This can help potential members to decide whether IPTC membership is appropriate for them.<\/p>\n If you are interested in attending a Working Group meeting to get a sense of what it is like to be an IPTC member, please contact us.<\/p>\n Committees and Working Groups of the IPTC are the backbone of the organisation.<\/p>\n A\u00a0Committee<\/strong> conducts IPTC activities at a more global level and is responsible for the business of the company. The hierarchy of responsibilities:<\/p>\n The IPTC\u2019s only source of income is membership fees. IPTC standards for news exchange are available at no cost, and we receive no royalties or usage fees.<\/p>\n The motto for the IPTC\u2019s standard development work is \u201cmade by the news industry, for the news industry.\u201d<\/p>\n The members are represented by a Board of Directors and a Chair who hire a Managing Director and contract consultants for specific duties.<\/p>\n Development work is handled by committees and smaller working groups. Some of them focus on general issues, such as the exchange of general news; others on more specific areas such as photography, rights or sports results. The membership votes before a standard is published, although exact voting rights vary by type of membership.<\/p>\n We post our latest news and developments to our website,\u00a0iptc.org.<\/a>\u00a0We also maintain a website specifically for developers,\u00a0http:\/\/dev.iptc.org,<\/a>\u00a0for help, best practices, and guidelines regarding the use and implementation of our standards. Also many projects have a presence on\u00a0our GitHub organisational account at https:\/\/github.com\/iptc\/<\/a>. The IPTC also makes presentations at major news technology events such as WAN-Ifra Expo and CEPIC Congress. Attending our two main meetings each year, and taking part in our Working Groups\u2019 discussion groups via email are a good way to keep informed.<\/p>\n Members receive a Member Update newsletter by email every 1-2 months.<\/p>\n Non-members can also subscribe to the\u00a0Friends of IPTC Newsletter<\/a>\u00a0where we give updates about recent activity, new standard versions and events that are open to members of the public, such as the IPTC Photo Metadata Conference.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n IPTC is a membership organisation. This section answers questions about joining IPTC as a member. If you are interested in joining, please visit our\u00a0How To Join<\/a>\u00a0page, or email\u00a0office@iptc.org<\/a> with your questions.<\/p>\n The IPTC\u2019s funding comes solely from membership fees. By becoming a paying member of the IPTC, your organisation is making a statement about its contribution to the world of standards in the news and media industries.<\/p>\n Members receive many benefits, including participation in working committees and the ability to request changes or make contributions to the development of standards. Both news and IT professionals use IPTC meetings to network among other delegates and invited guests. Members also have access to the IPTC\u2019s internal working documents and to members-only discussion groups; this is before any changes to standards are made available to the public, which happens only after endorsement by IPTC members. Of course, voting members also have voting privileges.<\/p>\n Finally, being a member of the IPTC makes a statement about your business \u2013 that it is one of the leaders of the news industry and is committed to the overall well-being of worldwide journalism and effective exchange of information.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Standards are “signed off” by the IPTC Standards Committee, made up of representatives of IPTC Voting Members. No new or updated standard can be published without the majority approval of the IPTC Standards Committee.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n If you are a software developer looking to implement our technical standards in your software, please look at the pages describing the relevant standard on this site<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nAbout the IPTC<\/h2>\n
What is the IPTC?<\/h3>\n
What does the IPTC do?<\/h3>\n
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When and where does the IPTC meet?<\/h3>\n
Who can attend IPTC meetings\u00a0and discussions?<\/h3>\n
How does the IPTC conduct its work?<\/h3>\n
\nA\u00a0Working Group<\/strong>\u00a0is team of persons responsible for a specific area of technical matters.
\nA\u00a0Work Lead<\/strong>\u00a0is a person who is responsible for a specific area of technical matters.<\/p>\n\n
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Who pays for the IPTC?<\/h3>\n
Who runs the IPTC?<\/h3>\n
How do I follow the activities of the IPTC?<\/h3>\n
<\/a>About Participation and Membership<\/h2>\n
What does it cost to become an IPTC Member?<\/h3>\n
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If the standards are free, why join the IPTC?<\/h3>\n
Can small companies or sole practitioners join the IPTC?<\/h3>\n
About Our Standards<\/h2>\n
Who uses IPTC standards?<\/h3>\n
What makes something an \u201cIPTC standard\u201d?<\/h3>\n
How do I obtain IPTC standards?<\/h3>\n
How much does it cost to use an IPTC standard?<\/h3>\n
What does an IPTC standard look like in a product?<\/h3>\n
As a vendor, why would I want to implement IPTC standards in my product?<\/h3>\n
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Can I use IPTC standards even if English is not used at my company?<\/h3>\n