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Copyright for web pages refers to the legal protection given to the creators of original works, which includes text, images, videos, and other content published on the internet. This protection grants the creator exclusive rights to use, distribute, and modify their work. In essence, if you create a webpage or any piece of digital content, you automatically hold the copyright to it, provided it meets the criteria of originality. This means that others cannot reproduce, share, or use your work without your permission, unless their use falls under the constraints of “fair use,” which allows for limited use without permission under specific circumstances.
However, navigating copyright on the web can be complex, especially to encourage collaboration and sharing of creative works. This is where Creative Commons (CC) comes into play. Creative Commons is a nonprofit organization that provides a flexible range of protections and freedoms for authors, artists, and educators. It enables creators to grant certain usage rights to the public while retaining others, essentially bridging the gap between full copyright and the public domain. To facilitate this, Creative Commons offers several copyright licenses, each allowing creators to specify how their work can be used by others.
It is essential for web creators and users alike to understand these licenses, as they define what actions can legally be taken with various digital content. Understanding general copyright law is also critical. For example, many online users mistakenly believe that "fair use" means they can copy and share an entire work in the name of "commentary," when fair use is actually restricted use. Properly attributing works and respecting the licenses not only maintains legal compliance but also supports a thriving creative community.
Creative Commons License
This website uses the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license.
Here's what it means:
CC: Creative Commons, a non-profit organization that provides legal tools for sharing and reusing creative works.
BY: Attribution - You must give credit to the original creator.
NC: Non-Commercial - You can't use the work for commercial purposes.
ND: No Derivatives - You can't modify or create new works based on the original.
4.0: The version of the Creative Commons license.
In short, this license lets people share and copy your work, but they can't use it for commercial purposes or change it in any way.
Note: This article was written with the help of Vzy AI, Gemini, and Perplexity AI.
References
Hawkins, S. (2011, November 23). Copyright fair use and how it works for online images. Social Media Examiner.
https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/copyright-fair-use-and-how-it-works-for-online-images/
U.S. Copyright Office. (n.d.). Fair use.
https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/
Creative Commons. (n.d.). About CC licenses.
https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/cclicenses/
Thomas Jefferson University. (n.d.). Copyright and fair use overview. LibGuides.
https://jefflibraries.libguides.com/copyright