Kurator (formerly Nimia) Acquires Framepool, Expanding Premier Footage Library and Establishing European Operations
Acquisition adds 3,000+ hours of remastered historical footage, 700+ contributors, and offices across Europe to Kurator's global media licensing platform
SEATTLE, WA — Kurator, the modern media licensing and rights-management platform (operating as Nimia at the time of the transaction), today announced the acquisition of Framepool, the renowned stock footage agency founded in 2001 by Stephan Bleek. The acquisition closed on June 1, 2020, and significantly expands Kurator's footage library, contributor network, and operational footprint into Europe.
The combination brings together two complementary leaders in the editorial and creative footage space. Kurator contributes a modern, AI-assisted licensing and rights-management platform, alongside its existing relationships with broadcasters, archives, and U.S. local news. Framepool contributes one of the most extensive premium stock and historical archive libraries in the industry, along with established European presence and decades of contributor relationships.
What the Framepool Acquisition Adds to Kurator
The acquisition meaningfully strengthens Kurator's offering across several dimensions:
A deeper, more diverse footage library. Framepool brings more than 3,000 hours of remastered historical premium footage and over one million stock clips into Kurator's marketplace, including 20th-century world history material on the Nazi era, the Vietnam War, John F. Kennedy, the Atomic Bomb era, the Apollo space program, postwar Europe, Marilyn Monroe, and the Olympics — alongside a deep contemporary stock library covering nature, lifestyle, science, and global culture.
An expanded contributor network. Framepool brings 700+ contributors to Kurator, including some of the most respected names in international media: ORF (Austrian public broadcaster), AFP, WGBH, WLIW21, NHNZ, Radio Canada/CBC, and the National Film Board of Canada. Framepool is also engaged in scanning and digitizing footage from the U.S. National Archives (NARA), particularly historical newsreel material — work that will continue under Kurator.
European operations. Framepool brings established representation in the United Kingdom, Spain, Japan, and Australia, in addition to its U.S. presence. The acquisition gives Kurator immediate operational reach in European markets, supporting clients across UK, EU, and global production hubs.
Technology and innovation pedigree. Framepool was the first stock footage library to implement visual search for moving images. That technical heritage aligns with Kurator's own AI-assisted asset management roadmap, which uses AI transcripts and visual tagging to make long-form footage searchable down to specific moments, subjects, and people.
Production credentials. Framepool footage has appeared in major productions including Iron Man 3, The Men Who Stare at Goats, and notable advertising work for clients such as Audi. The combined Kurator/Framepool offering brings this production-tested material under a single licensing workflow.
A New Chapter for Framepool
For Framepool customers, the acquisition expands what's possible — adding modern marketplace technology, a clearance and rights-management workflow, and access to Kurator's broader collection footprint while preserving the curatorial integrity and contributor relationships that Stephan Bleek and the Framepool team built over more than a decade and a half.
Existing Framepool clients will continue to work with their familiar representatives during and after the transition. The Framepool library will be migrated to the unified Kurator marketplace platform, with both Framepool's brand and contributor relationships preserved throughout the transition.
"Stephan Bleek and the Framepool team built something irreplaceable — a library that documents the most important moments of the modern era and a network of contributors that trust Framepool with their life's work. We're honored to lead Framepool's next chapter and to bring its archive, its people, and its European presence into the Kurator platform. Like Stephan, film and media are in our DNA." — Statement from Kurator (Nimia at the time of the transaction)
What This Means for Kurator's Customers
For broadcasters, documentary producers, ad agencies, and creative studios working with Kurator, the acquisition delivers several immediate benefits:
- Single-source access to Framepool's historical archive and stock library alongside Kurator's existing collections, including the TEGNA Collection (70+ U.S. local news stations), AFP, the DVArchive Collection, and Film Archives, Inc.
- Expanded clearance services — combining Framepool's research and digitization expertise with Kurator's rights-clearance workflow and indemnification services
- European-hours support through Framepool's UK and Continental presence, supplementing Kurator's existing U.S. operations
- A direct path to NARA newsreel material through Framepool's ongoing scanning and digitization work with the U.S. National Archives
About Framepool
Founded in 2001 by Stephan Bleek, Framepool grew into one of the most respected stock footage and historical archive agencies in the international media industry. The company built its reputation on premium curation, deep historical specialization, technical innovation (including the industry's first visual search for moving images), and white-glove service to documentary, broadcast, advertising, and feature film clients worldwide. Framepool footage has appeared in productions including Iron Man 3 and The Men Who Stare at Goats, and in advertising for global brands.
About Kurator
Kurator is a modern media licensing and rights-management platform built for the editorial and creative media industry. Founded in 2011 under the brand Nimia, the company offers a cloud-based system for buying, selling, and tracking digital licenses for video and photography, combined with white-glove rights-clearance and music supervision services through its sister operations.
Kurator is headquartered in Seattle, Washington, with offices and representation across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe. The platform serves broadcasters, documentarians, archives, ad agencies, and creative studios worldwide, and represents a growing portfolio of premier media collections including AFP, TEGNA, Framepool, DVArchive, Film Archives, and Nimia.
For more information, visit kurator.com.
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