There are 4 basics to know about Creative Commons licenses:
1. Every Creative Commons license ensures that the creator of the work receives credit.
2. All Creative Commons licenses work around the world.
3. Creative Commons licenses last as long as the copyright lasts on the work.
4. The owner of the copyright retains that copyright while allowing others to copy and share the work in its original form for non-commercial purposes.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Copyright is automatic when ideas are put into a tangible form. Using Creative Commons Licenses allows you to share some of your creativity. Here are just a few examples of times when Creative Commons Licenses could be used.
You are more creative than you think! Creative Commons Licensing makes it easy for you to share your work with others.
The Design of the Creative Commons Licenses © 2021 by Naulayne Enders is licensed under CC BY 4.0
Creative Commons licenses function within copyright law. In copyright law all rights of a work are reserved. Using a Creative Commons license allows for some rights to be reserved but grants the public the right to use a work under specific standardized conditions.
Creative Commons licenses are legally enforceable but they are also designed to be understood by non-lawyers. This is the reason each license is based on a 3 layer design.
Layer 1 - Legal Code
This layer uses and defines the legal terminology that is necessary to make a Creative Commons License enforceable in a court of law.
Layer 2 - Commons Deeds
This layer is the information that is commonly seen and linked to a Creative Commons License. It is easy to understand by anyone and summarizes the legal code. It is not legally enforceable.
Layer 2 - Machine Readable Version of the License
This is the software that is used to provide standardized descriptions of licenses that can be read by web sites, web services, and other types of technology in order to identify works that have been licensed with Creative Commons Licenses.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
There are four elements that combine in different ways to create the six Creative Commons Licenses. They indicate how a work can be used.
This icon means Attribution. This symbol is a part of all Creative Commons Licenses and is often abbreviated or referred to as CC-BY. This element allows people to use the work for any purpose, even commercially or in a modified form, as long as they give attribution to the creator.
This icon means Non-Commercial. This symbol is part of three of the six Creative Commons Licenses and is often abbreviated as NC. This element limits the reuse of the work to non-commercial purposes. "Non-commercial" is defined in the legal code as "not primarily intended for or directed towards commercial advantage or monetary compensation." It is important to realize that 'Non-Commercial' refers to the use not to the type of user. For-profit organizations can use NC licensed material for non-commercial purposes.
This icon means No Derivatives. This symbol is part of two of the six Creative Commons Licenses and is abbreviated as ND. This element prohibits users from sharing adaptations of the licensed work. With this element, anyone may still create an adaptation, they just cannot share the work with others in the adapted form.
This icon means Share-Alike. This symbol is part of two of the six Creative Commons Licenses and is abbreviated as SA. This element requires that if you share your adaptation of a work, then you must use the same or a compatible license.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
This is the first of the six Creative Commons licenses. This license allows people to use a work for any purpose as long as they give attribution to the creator of the work. The work can be used commercially with this license. It can also be a modified form of the original work.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
This Creative Commons License indicates that the use of the work requires Attribution and must be made available under the same or a compatible license in order to fulfill the Shared Alike requirement. It allows people to use the work for any purpose, including commercial or in a modified form, as long as the creator receives attribution and it is licensed under the same or a compatible license. This is Creative Commons' version of a copyleft license. This type of license is also required for any work uploaded to Wikipedia.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
This Creative Commons License indicates that the use of the work requires Attribution and may be used for Non-Commercial purposes only. Non-commercial is defined legally as "not primarily intended for or directed towards commercial advantage or monetary compensation." It is important to remember when selecting this license that Non-commercial depends on the use, not the user. Also, creators or licensors that designate their work with an NC license are always free to monetize their works. Licensees or users of a NC work are always free to contact a licensor to ask permission to use the work for commercial purposes. Non-commercial licenses do not qualify as open licenses.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
This Creative Commons License indicates that the use of the work requires Attribution and may be used for Non-Commercial purposes only and if any adaptations are made and shared with others then the adapted work must be made available under the same or a compatible license. Non-commercial is defined legally as "not primarily intended for or directed towards commercial advantage or monetary compensation." It is important to remember when selecting this license that Non-commercial depends on the use, not the user. Also, creators or licensors that designate their work with an NC license are always free to monetize their works. Licensees or users of a NC work are always free to contact a licensor to ask permission to use the work for commercial purposes. Non-commercial licenses do not qualify as open licenses.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
This Creative Commons License indicates that the use of the work requires Attribution and prohibits the re-user from sharing adaptations of the licensed work. Anyone may create adaptations as long as they do not share the work with others in the adapted form.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
This Creative Commons License indicates that the use of the work requires Attribution and prohibits the re-user from sharing adaptations of the licensed work. Anyone may create adaptations as long as they do not share the work with others in the adapted form. This allows the work to be used for non-commercial purposes only. It is the most restrictive of the Creative Commons Licenses.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
There are two marks used in Creative Commons to designate public domain materials. These are considered tools and are indicators of works that are not limited by copyright.
The mark above has no legal effect. It serves only as a label to inform the public. Its use indicates that the work's copyright has expired and the work can be used freely by anyone.
The mark above is referred to as CC Zero (CC0). It is the Creative Commons option for creators who want to entirely disclaim their copy rights. It still uses the 3 layer design of the legal code, commons deeds, and the machine readable version of the license. CC0 can be useful in some countries that do not allow creators to dedicate their work to the public domain. It is a copyright tool but also covers a few additional rights beyond those covered by the CC licenses such as non-competition laws, for example.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Creative Commons Licenses work within copyright. Copyright can impact certain aspects of Creative Commons licensing, particularly when it comes to Non-Commercial and No Derivative Licenses. Look at these additional tabs for other information to consider when selecting these licenses.
Things to remember about Non-Commercial licenses:
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Frequently Asked Questions - Creative Commons. https://creativecommons.org/faq/#can-i-combine-material-under-different-creative-commons-licenses-in-my-work. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
No Derivative Licenses prohibit re-users from sharing adaptations of the licensed work. The concern then becomes what determines an adaptation. This chart gives you some examples of adaptations and non-adaptations.
ADAPTATION ? | YES | NO |
---|---|---|
Converting a licensed work from a digital format to a physical copy | X | |
Fixing minor problems with spelling or punctuation | X | |
Syncing a musical work with a moving image | X | |
Reproducing and putting individual works together into a collection | X | |
Including an original photo in connection with text such as in a blog post, Power Point, or article | X |
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Creative Commons licenses are built on copyright law. Their goal is to make more works available for use not to limit works or their uses that copyright law does not restrict. "This is a core Creative Commons value." As a result, there are times when Creative Commons licenses should not be applied.
3.2 License Scope | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-2-license-scope/. Accessed 7 Nov. 2021.
Creative Commons licenses rely on copyright to tell you when they should be applied.
3.2 License Scope | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-2-license-scope/. Accessed 7 Nov. 2021.
Examples of when to not apply a Creative Commons License:
3.2 License Scope | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-2-license-scope/. Accessed 7 Nov. 2021.
Creative Commons list the following questions on their FAQ site that help you in determining when to apply a license.
Frequently Asked Questions - Creative Commons. https://creativecommons.org/faq/#what-things-should-i-think-about-before-i-apply-a-creative-commons-license. Accessed 7 Nov. 2021.
3.1 License Design and Terminology | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-1-license-design-and-terminology/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
3.2 License Scope | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-2-license-scope/. Accessed 7 Nov. 2021.
3.3 License Types | Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM. https://certificates.creativecommons.org/cccertedu/chapter/3-3-license-types/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Downloads.” Creative Commons, https://creativecommons.org/about/downloads/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Frequently Asked Questions - Creative Commons. https://creativecommons.org/faq/#can-i-combine-material-under-different-creative-commons-licenses-in-my-work. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Frequently Asked Questions - Creative Commons. https://creativecommons.org/faq/#what-things-should-i-think-about-before-i-apply-a-creative-commons-license. Accessed 7 Nov. 2021.