21 Exceptions and Limitations to Copyright with CC Licensed Works
Exceptions and Limitations |
Creative Commons licenses are appropriate for creators who want to provide people with one or more of the permissions governed by copyright law. For example, if you want to give others permissions to freely copy and redistribute your work, you can use a Creative Commons license to grant them that permission. Likewise, if you want to give others permission to freely transform, alter, or otherwise create derivative works based on your work, you can use a Creative Commons license to grant them that permission.
However, you don’t need to use a Creative Commons license to give someone permission to read your article or watch your video, because reading and watching aren’t activities that copyright generally regulates.
A basic limitation of the licenses in controlling what people do with the work:
- Licenses “operate” or apply only when the work is within the scope of copyright law (or other related law) and the restrictions of copyright law apply to the intended use of the work
A warning that there may be other rights at play with the work that restrict how it is used:
- Certain other rights, such as patents, trademarks, privacy and publicity rights, are not covered by the licenses and must be managed separately.
Here are two more important scenarios in which a user does not need a copyright license and does not need to follow the terms of the CC license:
- Fair Use– When you are using a work under fair use, fair dealing, or some other applicable limitation and exception to copyright. By design, CC licenses do not reduce, limit, or restrict any rights under exceptions and limitations to copyright, such as fair use, fair dealing, or provisions for people with disabilities as the ones contemplated in the Marrakesh Treaty. If your use of CC-licensed material would otherwise be allowed because of an applicable exception or limitation, you do not need to rely on the CC license or comply with its terms and conditions. This is a fundamental principle of CC licensing.
- Public Domain– CC licenses should not be applied to works in the worldwide public domain. All CC licenses are clear that they do not have the effect of placing restrictions on material that would otherwise be unrestricted, and you cannot remove a work from the public domain by applying a CC license to it. If you want to dedicate your own work to the public domain before the expiration of applicable copyright or similar rights, use CC’s legally robust public domain dedication. If a work is already in the worldwide public domain, you should mark it with CC’s Public Domain Mark.
Important to Know:
Do Creative Commons licenses affect exceptions and limitations to copyright, such as fair dealing and fair use?
No. By design, CC licenses do not reduce, limit, or restrict any rights under exceptions and limitations to copyright, such as Fair Use or Fair Dealing. If your use of CC-licensed material would otherwise be allowed because of an applicable exception or limitation, you do not need to rely on the CC license or comply with its terms and conditions.
How can I lose my rights under a Creative Commons license? If that happens, how do I get them back?
All of the CC licenses terminate if you fail to follow the license conditions. If this happens, you no longer have a license to use the material.In the 4.0 licenses, your rights under the license are automatically reinstated if you correct this failure within 30 days of discovering the violation (either on your own or because the licensor or someone else has told you). Under the 3.0 and earlier licenses, there is no automatic reinstatement.If you have lost your rights under a CC license and are not entitled to automatic reinstatement, you may regain your rights under the license if the licensor expressly grants you permission. You cannot simply re-download the material to get a new license. Note that you may still be liable for damages for copyright infringement for the period where you were not in compliance with the license.
“Anatomy of a CC License/ Sub Unit 3 by Creative Commons CC BY 4.0
