The reason for the choice is obvious: why people should pay for something that is available for free (on either Unsplash or other online resources)?
The answer is: people won’t because “stock photos” are meant to be “burners”, a quick way to illustrate a presentation, a blog post or a column with no actual intrinsic value.
I just need a picture of a man in powersuit doing business. If the image is good enough, why should I pay for something “more”?
True, photography is now an ubiquitous activity and what previously was a niche job, now is practiced by almost everybody on Earth. But that’s not a bad thing, as it raises the stake for photographers compelling them to produce better and better images.
Getty Images business model’s change is a way to get photography and photographer back to their original place: only great photography deserve to be “respected” and “paid”.
The rest, is just for stock services…