FTP upload fee

[Cory Petkovsek]

This is a one off for you, so talk with your client to come to a reasonable agreement.

If a vendor came back to me with an upload fee of (18.5×50) $925 charge to upload a couple files, depending on my relationship with them I’d either laugh or be pissed off; but certainly wouldn’t pay that.

Your technical issues are not their problem, and frankly not being able to check your email is perceived as a personal problem. It’s a low intensity job. If I were doing it for a client, I’d set it up on one of my older systems so my laptop can be free. If it was giving me problems connecting with other applications (because the upload channel is saturated, it’s can’t send any web page requests), I’d throttle it to 90% so I would have some bandwidth to continue working. There is hardware and software that do this, and your not using them is your choice, not your clients.

Some fee for your setup and management of the task is reasonable, but it’s more like $200 or less.

Cory

—
Cory Petkovsek
Corporate Video

[Vince Becquiot]

Geg,

I guess you are on DSL and the upload is saturating your bandwidth. I would charge the same amount you would for tape transfer, that should take you roughly the same amount of time, but you can’t expect them to pay for the connection troubles.

As for bandwidth usage, I usually bill that as part of a project, but never itemize it. They won’t expect it, especially if they are from the corporate world; to them, bandwidth may seem free and unlimited.

On a side note, I have never been charged for FTP transfers, so while it may be common place in some markets, it’s not in the SF bay area

Vince Becquiot

Kaptis Studios
San Francisco – Bay Area

[Rich Rubasch]

15 gigs? I would have Fedexed a hard drive with a return label in the box and charged them about $50 to do the transfer. Would have taken about 10 minutes to copy to the drive, another 5 to create the labels and maybe 5 more to box it up. If I had done any post for them (like a $2000 post only job) I might not charge anything.

I would not have uploaded the files….not 15 gigs. For the reasons you are discovering.

Rich Rubasch
Tilt Media Inc.
Video Production, Post, Studio Sound Stage
Founder/President/Editor/Designer/Animator
https://www.tiltmedia.com

[Greg Lytle]

Thanks for the input. I was skeptical about charging an hourly rate
for this, and now more so. I will call the client and negotiate a
reasonable fee. I was putting this out there because I hadn’t heard
much about this topic.
FYI, the third party needed files ASAP so physically sending a drive was
not an option.

[Zane Barker]

[greg lytle] ” I can’t send emailor use the laptop while uploading”

There is NO reason that you cannot check email or use the web while uploading.

**Hindsight is always 1080p**

[Kai Cheong]

Hi Greg,

It sounds like a chargeable fee wasn’t discussed with your client before you started on the uploading – I’m not sure how agreeable they’ll be to any fee at this stage [even if it’s lower than or very reasonable for the actual time/effort incurred]. So good luck on negotiating that. 15GB is a lot of data to send through the Internet!

There’s this quote I’ve heard of and believe it applies sometimes: ‘Lack of preparation on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part’. We all want to do our best and help our clients out – but sometimes, there’s an opportunity cost to think about [eg. if you can’t check email and conduct your other business]. Would overnighting through FedEx [though fairly expensive] be quick enough? Or perhaps they were assuming FedEx = Expensive; you sending = Free?

Kai
FCP Editor / Producer with Intuitive Films
https://kai-fcp-editor.blogspot.com
—
Now ‘LIVE’! Check Out The Intuitive Films Blog @ https://intuitive-films.blogspot.com
At Intuitive Films, We Create: TV Commercials, Documentaries, Corporate Videos and Feature Films
Visit us @ https://www.intuitivefilms.com
—
MacBook Pro 2.4GHz | 4GB RAM | FCP 5.1.4 | Mac OS X 10.5.7

8-Core Intel Mac Pro 2.26GHz | 8GB RAM | FCP 6.0.6 | Mac OS X 10.5.6 | 3.0TB CalDigit VR | 2 x 24″ Dell S2409W

[Rich Rubasch]

As you stated it took more than 8 hours to do less than half the upload…and you can run into errors. Sending files on a drive is the most reliable method and they can have the files before 10:00 the next morning.

Rich Rubasch
Tilt Media Inc.
Video Production, Post, Studio Sound Stage
Founder/President/Editor/Designer/Animator
https://www.tiltmedia.com

[David Roth weiss]

I too would most likely have sent a drive via Fedex as Rich mentioned. However, I disagree with most here who are suggesting that there’s no compelling reason to slap a fairly hefty surcharge on your invoice for the service. I’d suggest that anytime a client demands that you expedite a service, especially such a behemoth as this one, you must put a price tag on it that discourages them from thinking their request is routine. Personally, I would most likely charge them half my day rate at a minimum.

David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor/Colorist
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los Angeles
https://www.drwfilms.com

POST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™

A forum host of Creative COW’s Business & Marketing and Apple Final Cut Pro forums. Formerly host of the Apple Final Cut Basics, Indie Film & Documentary, and Film History & Appreciations forums.

[Patrick Ortman]

>> I’d suggest that anytime a client demands that you expedite a service, especially such a behemoth as this one, you must put a price tag on it << Agreed. I'd try to explain why it's a bad idea, first. But if they insist, you deserve to be paid for it. --------------------- http://www.patrickortman.com
Web and Video Design

[Greg Lytle]

appreciate all input. Seems like a situation which should have been clarified upfront with client. I will certainly consult with client before sending invoice.