Creative Commons is a nonprofit organization that provides free, standardized licenses for creators to grant permission for others to use their creative works under certain conditions. These licenses offer an alternative to traditional "all rights reserved" copyright, allowing creators to retain some of their rights while enabling others to use their work more flexibly.

 

Creative Commons licenses are designed to promote the sharing and distribution of creative content while respecting the rights of creators. These licenses are legally sound and globally recognized, providing a framework that facilitates the open sharing of a wide range of creative works, including text, images, music, videos, and more.

​

There are several types of Creative Commons licenses, each with different conditions that creators can choose from when licensing their work. These licenses allow creators to specify how others can use their work, whether it's for non-commercial purposes, with or without modifications, and more. The key components of Creative Commons licenses are:

• Attribution (BY): Others can use the work as long as they give appropriate credit to the creator.

• ShareAlike (SA): If others remix, transform, or build upon the work, their derivative works must be shared under the same or a compatible license.

• NonCommercial (NC): Others can use the work for non-commercial purposes only.

• NoDerivatives (ND): Others can use the work but cannot create derivative works based on it.

​

Creative Commons licenses are often represented by icons and codes that indicate the permissions and restrictions associated with the work. For example, an image with a CC BY-SA license allows others to use and modify the image as long as they provide proper attribution and share the resulting work under the same license.

​

These licenses have played a significant role in the open education movement, facilitating the creation and sharing of Open Educational Resources (OER) and allowing educators, students, and creators to collaborate and build upon each other's work.

It's important to understand the specific terms of the Creative Commons license associated with a work before using it, as each license may have different requirements and limitations.