The following lesson is a combination of work I created when I taught “Copyright Issues” to my Full Sail University masters student (2008-2014) and my middle school students in Las Vegas (2020-2022). The general format of the lesson is what I used when presenting the material using Full Sail’s online Learning Management platform. Enjoy

:: Pre-Session Videos & Information::

Please make sure to preview the following videos and read through the information listed below before our session together

What Does “Creative Commons” Mean? by Linus Tech Tips/Tech Quickies
Creative Commons Explained by Mayer & Bettle
Creative Commons: A Shared Culture

::Creative Commons Symbols & Definitions::

There are six different license types, listed from most to least permissive here:

Creative Commons: by/attribution

CC BY: ATTRIBUTION: 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.

Creative Commons: by/sa/attribution/share alike

 CC BY-SA: ATTRIBUTION/SHARE-ALIKE: 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.

Creative Commons: by-nc/attribution-non-commercial

 CC BY-NC: ATTRIBUTION/NON-COMMERCIAL: This license allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator. 

Creative Commons: by-nd/attribution-non-derivative

CC BY-ND: ATTRIBUTION/NO DERIVATIVES: 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. 

Creative Commons: by-nc-sa/attribution-non-commercial-share-alike

CC BY-NC-SA: ATTRIBUTION/NON-COMMERCIAL/SHARE-ALIKE: This license allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial 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. 

Creative Commons: by-nc-nd/attribution-non-commercial-non-derivative

 CC BY-NC-ND: ATTRIBUTION/NON-COMMERCIAL/NO DERIVATIVES: This license allows reusers to copy and distribute the material in any medium or format in unadapted form only, for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator. 

The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 

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.

Class Presentation: Introduction

Today we will continue studying Intellectual Property. Our study began with the exploration of Copyright law. Then we took a look at the principle of Fair Use. Today we are looking at the Creative Commons Solution. Anyone interested in Media or having a career in Media needs to have a good working understanding of these subjects. Making a mistake in this area can cost you a lot of money and your career in Media. We will be watch several videos, but please pay careful attention, there will a quiz on this information.

Creative Commons = Copyright at Internet Speeds

Creative Commons: by-nc/attribution-non-commercial

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Creative Commons is a license platform that recognizes that there needs to be an easy to understand way for content creators to communicate their sharing choices that falls between “All Rights Restricted” and “Public Domain.”

::Video Lesson::

Here is another video I made several years ago that discusses the different Creative Commons licenses:

The following TED talk by Lawrence Lessig discusses by alternative ways to protect creators balanced with the needs to repurpose “culture” through new creative works:

::Activity/Assessment::

This is a multiple-step assignment/activity. Please do the following and submit your work in the comments:

  • STEP ONE: SELECT YOUR IMAGE: Pick one image from all of the images that you have shot over the past couple of weeks. If you accidentally deleted your images, go into Canvas and you should be able to view and then resave the images that you submitted for your previous assignments. Also, don’t delete your work. Save everything. You never know when you are going to need it in the near future (you can delete the completely out-of-focus stuff, but everything else should be saved). 
  • STEP TWO: BEFORE LICENSING: Before you apply a CC license or CC0 to your work, there are some important things to consider: 
    • The licenses and CC0 cannot be revoked. This means once you apply a CC license to your material, anyone who receives it may rely on that license for as long as the material is protected by copyright, even if you later stop distributing it.
    • You must own or control copyright in the work. Only the copyright holder or someone with express permission from the copyright holder can apply a CC license or CC0 to a copyrighted work. If you created a work in the scope of your job, you may not be the holder of the copyright. 
  • STEP THREE: CHOOSING A LICENSE: The six licenses and the public domain dedication tool give creators a range of options. The best way to decide which is appropriate for you is to think about why you want to share your work, and how you hope others will use that work. 
  • STEP FOUR: HOW TO APPLY A CC LICENSE OR CC0 TO YOUR WORK: CC-licensing your work is simple. All you have to do is choose the CC license that suits your needs (see step three) and then communicate this choice in a way that will be clear to people who come across your work. As part of this communication, you should include a link to the license you’ve chosen. This can be as simple as a bit of text stating and linking to the license in a copyright notice, like this: 
  • STEP FIVE:
    • In Canvas, please click the START ASSIGNMENT button above and in the text box use the Insert/Image/Unload Image menu to share the image you have licensed (in STEP THREE). Then copy and paste the type of license you chose beneath your image. Click the SUBMIT button and you’re done. 
    • WordPress viewers: feel free to submit your work by commenting on this post.

::Sources::

Click Here to Return to Copyright Issues

Click Here to Return to Joe Bustillos’ Teaching Portfolio

Click Here to Return to Joe Bustillos’ Resume

Creative Commons License

JoeBustillos.com (website) by Joseph Bruce Bustillos is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License