Libraries

Open Licences

Where a copyright owner allows you to copy or reuse their work either freely, or to a certain extent without having to ask permission, an 'open licence' will apply.

Your use will be subject to the terms of the particular open licence granted and you should always attribute the source. Check the copyright statement, or website terms of use to see if the copyright holder grants any such use.

In addition to open licence materials, some creators may choose to waive all copyright and allow free and unrestricted use by placing a work in the public domain. Works can also enter the public domain because copyright has expired.

Types of Open Licences

Creative Commons Licences

 

Open Government Licence

 

Open Parliament Licence

 

Open Justice Licence

 
 

Open Software Licences

 
 

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Non-commercial Licence Provisions

Provisions of licences are sometimes limited to non-commercial purposes. This may require you to determine whether the copying or re-use you propose can reasonably be defined as non-commercial. 

The University of Nottingham is a registered charity. However not all activities associated with the University are non-commercial (an obvious example being spin-out companies). 

To determine whether an instance of copying or re-use is legitimate under non-commercial licence provisions, ask yourself whether it is “… not primarily intended for or directed towards commercial advantage or monetary compensation.”

This is the definition of non-commercial where NC is a feature of a Creative Commons licence. Note that the intention that motivates copying matters more than the context of the organisation where copying happens.

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Finding Open Licensed Materials

Here is a selection of websites where you can find open licensed materials, but there are many more available. When a site says it provides 'free' collections, they may only be free for certain uses. A site might also have a mixture of open and protected materials.

Always read the terms of use, or licence restrictions for any resource you decide to copy or reuse.

All Materials Types

 

Open Educational Resources

 

Images

 

Audio

 

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University of Nottingham Libraries

King's Meadow Campus
Lenton Lane
Nottingham, NG7 2NR

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