A little more on JumpStory - a post here from May that suggested they get content from Pexels (presumably under some sort of agreement)

https://www.microstockgroup.com/general-big-6/bigger-photo-sites-comparison-some-good-news

And a blog post from one of their founders this week (looks unchanged from the May version) claiming JumpStory is transforming the industry

https://jumpstory.com/blog/transforming-an-industry/

"The world doesn�t need another stock photography platform. That is for sure! Getty, iStock, Shutterstock, Stocksy, Fotolia, Crestock, 123RF, Unsplash, Pixabay, Pexels and I could keep on going. Millions and millions of photos, videos and icons can be downloaded online, and there are just as many license terms and limitations to understand."

They see themselves as the Spotify of the stock industry...

They claim to believe in 100% transparency and published a road map through September 2020

https://jumpstory.com/publicroadmap/

They still don't say where their images come from but do say they don't want new partners in the sourcing process (!) at the moment.

This man kissing a plant photo is from Pixabay, and this Pexels image is the man with a wheelchair from the first "People" search on this JumpStory page:

https://jumpstory.com/search-and-style/

So two of the platforms they dismiss in their copy are their sources of images?

The telescope up top is from Freepik.

I also found one of the images (open diary with Summer written & a drawn umbrella) further down their search page (in the Samples section) was from a free site I'd never heard of, Pxfuel.

Pull on that thread some more. In the "diary" search on Pxfuel that included the summer umbrella drawing above I saw a flatlay picture of objects on a desk and searched that - it came from stocksnap.io!! There's some sort of freebie image sharing farmer's market? I guess the ad revenue means there'll be a long stream of these look-alike free sites. I wonder how ads and Shutterstock referrals cover the hosting bills though...

Screen capture in case they change the JumpStory page:

I hadn't heard of Design Pickle before this afternoon, but it's another of the Canva clones that offers a subscription design service with stock images/illustrations & video on the side. It's more high end than Canva as you get access to a designer, not just templates

newbielink:https://designpickle.com/about/ [nonactive]

They're not cheap - $395 to $995 a month (billed monthly), but with their former partner Getty Images, newbielink:https://www.selling-stock.com/Article/getty-helps-designers-take-advantage-of-photo [nonactive]

A recent blog post says Design Pickle has their own vector & template option, FreshStock - unlimited downloads for $49/month - and has now partnered with Adobe Stock for their "premium" image add on

newbielink:https://designpickle.com/product-update-freshstock-adobe-and-more/ [nonactive]

The stock add-on is $25/month and includes a Danish company, JumpStory, and Adobe Stock

I have no idea what contributors will receive when Adobe Stock licenses via Design Pickle, but I hope the current minimum royalty of 38� (top tier) stays as is...

I did a search here for Design Pickle and didn't find anything, but if anyone else knows more about them, it might be good to track them here.

I've been concerned about the proliferation of the subscription design platforms, largely because it seems designed for the platform to pocket most of the money, leaving those who create the content without which there'd be nothing worth subscribing to with very little.

Thanks for the info on Design Pickle, interesting stuff for keeping tabs on this outfit.

Oh gosh... as graphic designer and stock contributor, I get double chills in my spine when I see something like this. I think times for creatives online are quickly getting much worse than ever, without returning back to better times.

I've been concerned about the proliferation of the subscription design platforms, largely because it seems designed for the platform to pocket most of the money, leaving those who create the content without which there'd be nothing worth subscribing to with very little.

You're right and that does seem the trend. Partners getting everything at bottom dollar, we get paid from the leftover bits and scraps.

Well, that Adobe is growing their customer base is a good sign IMO.

As for the so called �unlimited� subs, it is worth reading the fine print. They often have a daily maximum  download limit. So it ends up being a very generous subs package.

I upload to 2020 and on average I get 2 dollars a sale, in some months close to 4 dollars. So it all depends...

I believe in the intelligence of the artists, if a site gives no returns or just 2 cents a download, they do not get interesting content.

Just like the sites that offer stock images for free...anybody has a right to start a business with whatever model they choose. But market forces then decide the success and that is where we come in.


Our content is their oxygen.

Yes could be a good sign, I sure hope so. Now it's wait and see for the actual numbers?