A Creative Commons (CC) license is often used in the course of OA publishing to increase access to and usability of published works. There are several kinds of CC licenses that can be applied that will restrict different kinds of reuse. Several funders require that all works be published under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 or equivalent.
Learn More about Creative Commons Licensing options here!
For more information about copyright and traditional publishing see our guide here.
CC BY: This license allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, so long as attribution is given to the creator. The license allows for commercial use.
CC BY-SA: This license allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, so long as attribution is given to the creator. The license allows for commercial use. If you remix, adapt or build upon the material, you must license the modified material under identical terms.
CC BY-NC: This license allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for non-commercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.
CC BY-NC-SA: This license allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for non-commercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator. If you remix, adapt or build upon the material, you must license the modified material under identical terms.
CC BY-ND: This license allows reusers to copy and distribute the material in any medium or format in unadapted form only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator. The license allows for commercial use.
CC0 (aka CC Zero) is a public dedication tool, which allows creators to give up their copyright and put their works into the worldwide public domain. CC0 allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, with no conditions.
All images and definitions from Creative Commons.
