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Who Owns The Creative Work? Stock Assets, Licensed Content, And Copyright Explained
Who Owns The Creative Work? Stock Assets, Licensed Content, And Copyright Explained

Learn all about creative ownership of designs and stock assets

CJ Robles avatar
Written by CJ Robles
Updated over a week ago

Our delivered designs are customized for you and your brand, and you have ownership of the files the moment we deliver them. The only exception is that if your design uses stock images/photography, the stock assets used will be under a specific use license.

Stock assets provided by Adobe Stock, Envato, Fresh Stock, or other stock image services are licensed to be used in the specific graphic files created by Design Pickle from a customer request.

Can I log in to the stock asset platform and download licensed content myself?

There's no need for that! With Design Pickle, you have direct access to an immense range of stock content from our provider's libraries within the Design Pickle Platform.

You can browse and choose the images you like, and our designers will take care of retrieving them to weave into your designs.

Can my designer download the stock asset and send me the files as is?

No. In line with our licensing agreements, we cannot provide stand-alone files. Images must be integrated into a larger design concept beyond cropping, resizing, or color editing.

Stock images should serve as a piece of our overall design, and not downloaded as a standalone element. This means that the licensed content must be used in a design that is modified or combined with other design elements.

Do I have a license for the stock asset used in the design?

Absolutely, you do! When we create a design for you, we incorporate various stock assets into the final deliverable. As our valued customer, we provide you with a flexible, revocable (meaning it can be withdrawn if necessary), non-exclusive, non-transferable, and free-of-charge license that you can use worldwide.

This means that you can freely use the design—whether for personal or professional purposes—that includes the stock assets included in your design. However, it's important to note that these assets are licensed for a single use within the design we've created for you.

So, you can freely share, display, distribute, or reproduce the design we've crafted for you, but keep in mind that it should always be as part of that complete design or 'Deliverable'. In other words, the stock assets can't be removed from the design and used separately. We do this to respect the terms we have with our stock asset providers.

Is it safe to use designs that include stock assets for merchandise?

Yes, our extended license plan with our stock asset partners allows us to use the assets for commercial purposes, including merchandise intended for sale or distribution.

There's no limit on the number of reproductions or viewers, as long as only the recipient uses or accesses the work as incorporated into the merchandise. You may use the work with merchandise such as mugs, posters, greeting cards, and print-on-demand services.

How about templates? Can I use designs as templates for my business?

You can create template designs and use it for your own business or personal purpose. However, templates can only be edited on your end. For example, you may use a template provided by your designer to change the text on the design and create multiple other variations for your or your business' use, which can be sold as an end product. But if you sold a template for the buyer to edit those templates for resale, then that violates the license agreement.

In short, selling a template that allows buyers to edit and resell would violate the license agreement. The license you acquire from Design Pickle does not extend to your customers to edit or use it as a template and resell it on their own.

Do I need to make a new request if I want to use the same stock asset in a different design or for a different purpose?

Yes, the licenses we provide for stock content are single-use for a particular project. For example, if your deliverable was intended for digital use and then you decide to print it, you are good to go. In situations where you want to use a component of your deliverable, for example, adapting the print layout into a series of social media graphics, you’ll need to submit a new request.

Can I copyright the designs I've received from Design Pickle that use stock assets?

While we always strive to create unique and engaging designs for you, it's important to understand the nature of the stock assets we use. These assets are non-exclusive and could potentially be licensed by others for different designs. This means that the designs we create using these stock assets cannot be copyrighted due to licensing terms.

However, we have a solution for you. If you're keen on copyrighting a design, you can work directly with your designer to ensure no licensed content is used in your design. By doing this, your design can be fully original, paving the way for copyright possibilities. Remember, our custom illustrator teams are at your disposal to help create these bespoke designs.

Can you help if someone copied my design provided by Design Pickle?

We'd be happy to provide any necessary documentation. Just send an email to [email protected].

What should I do if I get a copyright infringement notice for using one of your designs?

Simply send an email to [email protected]. We will provide a copy of the original request, the completed design email, and proof that you have a subscription with a premium stock add-on. This will validate that we're under contract with our stock partners, which has been sufficient to protect our customers' designs and counter claims against them in the past.

What are the other restrictions when using stock assets in my designs?

There are specific restrictions when using designs that incorporate stock assets, which include the following:

  1. 1. The Licensed Content is exclusively for use in the Deliverables we create for you. That means it's not okay to sell, rent, lease, or share this content separately, or in any other way transfer your rights to use it.

  2. It's important to keep the Licensed Content as it is. We don't permit altering, translating, modifying, or creating any derivative works from it.

  3. It's not cool to claim that you're the original creator of any Licensed Content we provide. All the credit should go to the rightful creators.

  4. We believe in positive and respectful use of Licensed Content. It shouldn't be used in a pornographic, defamatory, or unlawful manner.

  5. The Licensed Content isn't for sharing as a standalone file or work. We need to ensure it's not being downloaded, extracted, or redistributed separately.

  6. Using Licensed Content featuring models or properties for sensitive or controversial topics isn't okay. If you're using content featuring people, please make it clear that it's for illustrative purposes only, and that any person depicted is a model.

These rules are here to protect both us and you and the creators of the Licensed Content. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation!

Need further help? Email us through [email protected], or click the chat button on the lower right-hand side of this window to chat with us.

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