About actionpress

actionpress

actionpress is an internationally active photo and media agency headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, supplying high-quality photojournalism, exclusive imagery and visual brand communication to media outlets, brands and sports organizations. The parent company of the group was founded in Hamburg in 1970, and the action press AG holding is listed on the regulated unofficial market of the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange. Following a change of ownership in 2020 and the acquisition of the ddp media group in 2021, the company repositioned itself as a modern picture agency group with a growing focus on sports branding, serving clients that include international sports federations and top football clubs. Its photographers cover sports, entertainment and news events worldwide.

Overview

actionpress operates at the intersection of editorial photography and commercial visual communication. On the editorial side, its photographers and partner agencies produce news pictures, sports action shots and celebrity and entertainment photography that are licensed to newspapers, magazines, broadcasters and online portals. On the commercial side, the agency has built a "Sports Branding" business unit that creates strategically conceived imagery for sports federations, clubs and brands, using photography as a tool for brand identity and emotional engagement.

The group structure centres on action press AG as the listed holding company, with the operating subsidiaries action press international gmbh and ddp media GmbH, both based in Hamburg. The ddp acquisition brought additional services into the group, including the ddp visual Stories offering and the FoodCentrale picture brand, and extended the group's distribution reach: since 2023, ddp photos have been distributed worldwide through the Reuters Connect platform. The agency describes its proposition as exclusive content and strategic brand communication across sports, entertainment and news.

A prominent recent milestone is the agency's partnership with the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), for which actionpress supplied exclusive Olympic photography at major winter sports events. The collaboration, reported in 2026, anchors the expansion of the sports branding unit, which already counts the New Zealand national rugby union team and its All Blacks side, Manchester City FC and Everton FC among its references.

History

The roots of actionpress go back to 1970, when the parent company was founded in Hamburg, establishing the agency in the city that has long been Germany's capital of magazine and picture-agency publishing. Over the following decades the agency built its reputation in photojournalism, covering news, sports and entertainment for German and international clients.

In August 2020, action press AG underwent a fundamental realignment following a change of ownership. The listed company, traded on the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange's regulated unofficial market, used the transition to restructure its operations and sharpen its strategic focus. A decisive step followed in September 2021 with the acquisition of the ddp media group, a move that significantly broadened the group's portfolio and brought new digital services and distribution channels into the fold.

The complete reorganization of the group was finished in 2022, and both Hamburg-based subsidiaries, action press international gmbh and ddp media GmbH, started 2023 on a successful footing, with the company reporting cost savings of more than 250,000 euros expected from streamlining measures. New revenue streams emerged from paparazzi photography, ready-to-publish content for web portals and apps, and commissioned productions for sports organizations. The ddp visual Stories service went into trial production, and the FoodCentrale picture brand appeared on the Microsoft MSN portals in Germany and the USA under a new revenue model. In 2026 the agency highlighted its exclusive Olympic photography partnership with the FIS as confirmation of its strategic focus on sports branding, announcing plans to add further international federations and leading clubs to its portfolio.

Coverage and Content

The agency's photographic output spans three main fields. Sports photography is the flagship: from Olympic winter sports and football to a wide range of other disciplines, actionpress photographers deliver action images, portraits and behind-the-scenes material, increasingly packaged as strategic brand content for federations and clubs rather than as standalone editorial pictures. Entertainment coverage includes celebrity photography, red carpets and paparazzi-style exclusive shots, a segment that generated significant six-figure revenues in early 2023. News photojournalism covers current events for editorial clients.

Beyond licensing, the group produces commissioned work: sports organizations order tailored photo productions, and web portals and apps buy ready-to-publish content packages. The ddp visual Stories service develops narrative visual formats, while FoodCentrale serves the food and lifestyle segment. Distribution runs through the agency's own platforms and, for ddp material, through Reuters Connect, giving the group's pictures global reach. The archive business, a staple of picture agencies, allows clients to license historical material alongside fresh daily production.

The sports branding unit represents the agency's most deliberate strategic bet. Rather than simply selling individual images, actionpress works with federations and clubs on long-term visual identities: official photography for major events, brand imagery for sponsors and partners, and content designed for the clubs' own media channels. The FIS partnership for exclusive Olympic photography exemplifies this model, placing the agency's photographers at the heart of how a global federation presents its flagship competitions. Management has stated its intention to expand this unit with further international federations and leading clubs, positioning photography as a core component of modern sports brand management.

Organization and Ownership

action press AG is the listed holding company of the group, traded on the regulated unofficial market (Freiverkehr) of the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange. Company data names Moritz Hunzinger as chief executive. The operating business sits with the Hamburg-based subsidiaries action press international gmbh and ddp media GmbH, which together form the core of the picture agency group after the 2021 acquisition and 2022 reorganization.

The group's headquarters are in Hamburg, the city where the parent company was founded in 1970. From there it coordinates its photographers, editors and sales teams serving media and commercial clients in Germany and abroad. The sports branding unit operates as a strategic business line within this structure, targeting international sports federations and leading clubs as long-term partners for visual brand management.

Digital Presence

The agency presents itself online at actionpress.de, where clients can research the offering, view selected work and make contact with the picture desks. Investor relations are handled through a dedicated channel, actionpress-ir.de, which publishes corporate announcements such as the group's business updates. As a business-to-business agency, actionpress does not run a consumer news portal; its digital presence is geared toward image buyers, editorial desks and commercial partners.

Distribution technology is central to the business: the group's pictures flow through professional agency platforms, and the ddp arm's integration into Reuters Connect since 2023 has placed its material on one of the world's leading content marketplaces. Social media channels are used for corporate communication and to showcase selected photographic work, supporting the agency's positioning as a provider of exclusive, high-quality visual content for the international sports and media markets.

For picture buyers, the agency's digital infrastructure is the everyday interface: searchable databases, lightbox and download workflows, and licensing tools that let editorial desks find and clear images under deadline pressure. The group's investor relations site, actionpress-ir.de, publishes corporate announcements for shareholders of the listed holding company, documenting milestones such as the ddp acquisition, the 2022 reorganization and the sports branding expansion. Together, the client-facing platforms and the corporate communications present a group that has moved from a traditional photo agency toward an integrated visual content business.