General
This principle in U.S. copyright law allows libraries to use copyrighted materials under certain conditions without permission, and is considered a cousin—but not a substitute—for Creative Commons licensing.
What is fair use?
This license is the most open of all CC licenses, requiring only attribution and allowing both commercial use and modifications.
What is CC BY?
A school wants to license a handout so it can be adapted non-commercially, and any new versions must use the same license.
What is CC BY-NC-SA?
This license element requires users to credit the original creator when using their work — and it's included in every CC license.
What is Attribution (BY)?
A frequent misunderstanding: this license means you can use a work however you like, including remixing it without giving credit.
What is CC0 (Creative Commons Zero)?
In the early 2000s, this digital movement gained momentum alongside Creative Commons, with libraries and scholars advocating for unrestricted access to knowledge.
What is the Open Access movement?
A creator who wants their work reused freely but not for profit would choose this license.
What is CC BY-NC?
An archivist uploads digitized maps and wants no copyright at all — they want to waive all rights and allow unrestricted reuse.
What is CC0?
This license condition allows others to copy and distribute a work, but not for commercial gain.
What is NonCommercial (NC)?
Some people think “NonCommercial” means this kind of organization can always use the work — but it depends on how the work is used.
What is a nonprofit (or educational) institution?
This philosophical and legal concept, foundational to both copyright and the rationale behind Creative Commons, supports the idea that creators' rights must be balanced with public access and educational use.
What is the public domain?
This license type allows redistribution and use—including for commercial purposes—but no remixing, transforming, or building upon the original work.
What is CC BY-ND?
A librarian creates a lesson plan and wants others to build on it, but only if they license the derivative under the same terms, and allow commercial reuse.
What is CC BY-SA?
This term describes a new, modified version of a Creative Commons work, such as a remix, translation, or mashup.
What is a derivative work (or adaptation)?
Many users think Creative Commons licenses are legally meaningless, but in fact, they are this kind of enforceable document.
What is a copyright license (or legal license)?
Creative Commons was officially launched in this year, just as digital librarians began addressing long-term access and licensing challenges in online collections.
What is 2002?
The “SA” in a Creative Commons license ensures that derivative works are licensed under the same terms. What does "SA" stand for?
What is ShareAlike?
A professor shares a textbook chapter and wants to allow people to reuse and remix it, but not for commercial purposes. Credit must be given.
What is CC BY-NC?
This legal tool from Creative Commons places a work directly into the public domain, giving up all rights.
What is CC0 (Creative Commons Zero)?
Some believe that once you apply a Creative Commons license to a work, you can later change it and force others to use the new license. This is false because CC licenses are always this.
What is irrevocable?
Creative Commons was founded in 2001 as a response to the growing restrictiveness of this U.S. law, which extended copyright terms and limited the flow of materials into the public domain.
What is the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act?
This license prohibits both commercial use and the creation of derivative works, making it the most restrictive of all six core CC licenses.
What is CC BY-NC-ND?
A public library creates a podcast and wants to ensure it’s shared with attribution, not remixed, and not used commercially.
What is CC BY-NC-ND?
This term describes the legal permissions a user receives when using a CC-licensed work according to the license terms.
What are usage rights?
Some people think that Creative Commons licenses don’t hold up in court. However, they’re incorrect because CC licenses are this kind of document under copyright law.
What is a legally binding license (or public copyright license)?