Getty Images ties trending topics to its photos in 'The Feed'

The technology behind The Feed, for which Getty says it has a patent pending, retrieves trending data from Twitter and searches Getty's image database for relevant images, which then appear on a dedicated website and in topical timelines on Facebook (Sports and Entertainment, for example).

On Twitter, the account @FeedMeGetty sends out hourly Tweets of "the biggest thing happening in the world right now." In addition, users can Tweet a keyword to the Twitter account and it will reply with a related image.  

The images fed out through social media contain a watermark, but link to the Getty site for purchase.

The primary motive for creating the tool, built in cooperation with R/GA London, was to highlight the company's photos and enable real-time engagement without laborious manual labour.

“The Feed is an exciting new innovation for us," said Yvonne Chien, senior vice-president of marketing. "It simplifies and automates the process of posting highly relevant and engaging content on social media. Working with the team at R/GA, we have been able to conceive and get this to market in a few months.”  

The company added that the technology may find use among its clients. "At the moment the application is not available for customisation and use by others externally, however this is something we are currently exploring," a spokesperson said.