Reeves Library Research Guides: Reeves Library for Faculty: Creative Commons

Creative Commons Content

Creative Commons Licenses

The Creative Commons copyright licenses give everyone the ability to grant permissions to their creative work. However, they also give you a guideline on how you can use the work of others! Below is a visual breakdown of what each iteration of the CC License means, and how it changes what you can do with the materials.

To learn more about each license, you can check out the official CC breakdown here.

Creative Commons Graphic that breaks down the types and uses of each license.

Creative Commons Frequently Asked Questions

What is Creative Commons?
- Creative Commons is a global nonprofit organization that enables sharing and reuse of creativity and knowledge through the provision of free legal tools.
What are Creative Commons licenses?
- Creative Commons licenses provide an easy way to manage the copyright terms that attach automatically to all creative material under copyright. Our licenses allow that material to be shared and reused under terms that are flexible and legally sound. Creative Commons offers a core suite of six copyright licenses. Because there is no single “Creative Commons license,” it is important to identify which of the six licenses you are applying to your material, which of the six licenses has been applied to material that you intend to use, and in both cases the specific version.
Is Creative Commons against copyright?
- Absolutely not. CC has responded to claims to the contrary. CC licenses are copyright licenses, and depend on the existence of copyright to work. CC licenses are legal tools that creators and other rights holders can use to offer certain usage rights to the public while reserving other rights.
What does 'Some Rights Reserved" mean?
- Copyright grants to creators a bundle of exclusive rights over their creative works, which generally include, at a minimum, the right to reproduce, distribute, display, and make adaptations. The phrase “All Rights Reserved” is often used by owners to indicate that they reserve all of the rights granted to them under the law. When copyright expires, the work enters the public domain, and the rights holder can no longer stop others from engaging in those activities under copyright, with the exception of moral rights reserved to creators in some jurisdictions.
Are Creative Commons licenses enforceable in a court of law?
- Creative Commons licenses are drafted to be enforceable around the world, and have been enforced in court in various jurisdictions. To CC’s knowledge, the licenses have never been held unenforceable or invalid.
How does OER fit into a Creative Commons license?
- You can check out the Creative Commons report, Power of Open to find more information on OER and Creative Commons. Below is a helpful chart to give you a visual of which CC License is most beneficial to creating OER.
  Image: Slide 26 of Updated Keynote Slides (November, 2014) by Cable Green. Licensed under CC BY 4.0

What things should I think about before applying a Creative Commons License on my work?

The Creative Commons website offers great tips on what to do once you have decided to apply a license to your work. Below is an excerpt of their recommendations from their website! You can view their full recommendations here.

Do you own the material you want to license? If not, are you otherwise authorized to license it under the specific CC license you are interested in using? You should not apply a license to material that you do not own or that you are not authorized to license.
Are you aware that CC licenses are not revocable? You are free to stop offering material under a CC license at any time, but this will not affect the rights associated with any copies of your work already in circulation. (Any particular licensee may lose his or her rights after violating the license, but this does not affect continual use of the work by other licensees.)
Always read the terms and conditions of the specific license you plan to apply. Additionally, there are several terms that may differ in the earlier versions of the license, both unported and ported. If you choose to use a pre-4.0 version or any ported version, clauses such as choice of law may affect your desired choice of license.

How should I decide which license to choose?

If you are unsure which license best suits your needs, there are plenty of resources to help rights holders choose the right CC license. CC Australia has developed a flow chart that may be useful in helping you settle on the right license for your work. You can also read case studies of others who are using CC licenses. The CC community can also respond to questions and may have already addressed issues you raise. The CC community email discussion lists and discussion archives may be useful resources.