Creative Commons License

What is Creative Commons? Straight from the horse’s mouth: A video from creativecommons.orgvideo

But first… REMEMBER: Fair Use permits only portions of certain works to be used Public Domain includes materials that can be used by anyone because the copyright once held over them (if any) no longer apply

In other words… Creative Commons is a nonprofit corporation that was created to allow a domain in which people could share and build upon works created by others. The licenses are free. The creators of the works are allowing for sharing, alterations and distribution of their works with certain provisions.

The nitty gritty There are four main areas that a work can be registered under a Creative Commons License (click on link to read about each)Creative Commons License Attribution Share-alike No derivative Non-commercial Works can also be registered under a combination of the licenses mentioned above.

For Example You may translate a work into another language and distribute it, as long as you acknowledge the original creator and work. (If you decide you want to translate a book of poems published under a creative commons license, you may do so as long as the original work is cited.) You may redistribute an entire work protected by the creative commons license provided that you have not made any alterations to it. (A musician uploads his new CD onto the internet under creative commons in hopes of attracting new listeners)

Examples continued… A photography teacher uses images protected by creative commons to show his students how to use editing software. He credits the original works and doesn’t use the images for commercial purposes.

8 Your turn! Is this ok? Click on your answer to see if you are right. A high school jazz band teacher records his ensemble under the Attribution No Derivatives license and distributes it at a music educator’s conference. Another teacher attending the conference purchases a CD and makes copies for his students to listen to, making sure to credit the original performers. YES, he can do this YES NO, he cannot do this NO 8

9 YES, he can do this You are correct! Under the attribution no derivatives license, redistribution is allowed, as long as the work is unchanged and in whole and credited to the original author. Continue to next question 9

10 NO, he cannot do this Try again! 10

11 What about this one? An advertising teacher has his distance education students locate photographs online that could be used for their upcoming projects. One site in particular that he likes to use has its photos registered under the attribution non-commercial license. He tells his students that the class will vote on which photo they like best and use it to promote a local business through their local television station. Can he do this? YES, this is ok YES NO, he cannot do this NO 11

12 YES, this is ok Try again!

13 NO, he cannot do this You are correct! Under the attribution non-commercial license, users are only allowed to build upon existing works as long as they are only used non- commercially. Since the teacher was going to use the photos for commercial reasons, he would be violating the terms of the agreement.