My favorite stock imagery company, the inimitable Veer, was apparently bought for some crazy amount of money by Corbis, a larger and less designer-friendly corporation.
This statement today in the press release announcing the purchase tells it all:

“We’re bullish about the future of the stock photography industry and are seizing this opportunity during a period of market disruption to take bold steps toward capturing momentum,” said Gary Shenk, CEO, Corbis.

Blech. A sad day for relatively independent stock agencices, commercial photographers and illustrators and type designers, and the designers and creators that look forward to their guidance.
P.S. I will continue to regularly patronize Veer so long as the company continues to offer solid, useful visual intellectual property within a superb interface.