Research Guides: Open Access 2: Creative Commons Licenses

Creative Commons Licenses

A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted "work". It gives people a standardized way to grant the public permission to use their creative works under copyright law.

The Four Conditions:			The Six CC License Combinations:
Icons	Abbr	Meanings	License Types	License Icons	Level of Openness	Attribution Required	Copy & Distribute	Change License	Modify & Adapt	Commercial Use
	BY	Credit must be given to the creator	CC BY
	NC	Only non-commercial uses of the work are permitted	CC BY-SA
	ND	No derivatives or adaptations of the work are permitted	CC BY-ND
	SA	Adaptions must be shared under the same terms	CC BY-NC
			CC BY-NC-SA
			CC BY-NC-ND

In addition to the above six CC licenses, there is a CC0 license that enables creators and owners of copyright- or database-protected content to waive those interests in their works and thereby place them as completely as possible in the public domain, so that others may freely build upon, enhance and reuse the works for any purposes without restriction under copyright or database law.

Publish OA with Creative Licenses

When publishing with Open Access, you are recommended to add a Creative Commons (CC) license to protect your copyright and to increase the accessibility and usability of your published works.

Note: If you are publishing your work in Gold OA to fulfill funders' OA requirement, beware of funder's requirement on OA and choose the appropriate CC license when publishing; a restrictive OA license might not be deemed compliant with funders' OA requirements.
Different license enables others to use your material in different ways; the CC License Chooser can help you determine which license is right for you in a few easy steps.