Reading time: 2 minutes, 37 seconds
Video time: 9 minutes, 50 seconds
Whether you’re a coach, speaker or a trainer, an artist or an author, a blogger or a thought leader, or just someone who uses, produces and shares content for whatever reason, you have probably pondered the question of copyright. I certainly have.
Maybe you have asked yourself questions like these:
- How can I protect my intellectual property (ideas, designs, texts, training materials etc.) from being copied, sold or even spread around (the Internet) for free?
- How can I communicate and share or even build upon the ideas and work of others that I admire without infringing upon their copyright?
- What and how much of my creations and thinking do I want to offer for free and which of these things do I want or need to monetize on? Once I decide, how can copyrighting help?
Today I discovered some information that might help you to better understand the power and possibilities as well as the limitations and restrictions of the copyright. 
You’ll find that information over at Creative Commons, “a nonprofit corporation dedicated to making it easier for people to share and build upon the work of others, consistent with the rules of copyright.”
The people behind Creative Commons have come up with the double “c”, which is all about “Some rights reserved” instead of the single “c” and its “All rights reserved” nature. But Creative Commons is not only a really cool copyrighting concept, it is also a very helpful free service for solo entrepreneurs and small companies who can’t or don’t want to afford having licensing agreements drawn up by legal professionals.
Besides learning more about copyrighting, watching their videos really got me thinking- ONCE AGAIN – about the value of creative mashups for the greater good. Maybe it will get you rethinking your copyrighting strategy too.
So without further ado, here is an introduction to Creative Commons. Afterward, I will be sending you over to David Meerman Scott’s “Web Ink Now” blog to read a great article about how using the principles behind the Creative Commons can bring tremendous benefits to your company / your message / your work.
Introducing Creative Commons
Video Nr. 1: Creative Commons – Get Creative
Video Nr. 2: What is Creative Commons? Wanna Work Together RG Remix
Publishing with Creative Commons
If you should choose to publish with Creative Commons, you will be able to chose from one of six licenses based on four sets of license conditions.
Click on the image below to see the original sized graphic.
Learn More about Creative Commons on the Official Website:
http://creativecommons.org/
Web Ink Now: Creative Commons and Facilitating Mashups to Spread Your Ideas
“When you allow mashups, you never know what interesting things will emerge. There are thousands of mashups created from my work. I found some fun ones this morning for the first time as I was thinking about this article. Consider just a few:…”
Read the Rest of this Blog Article by David Meerman Scott on “Web Ink Now”:
http://bit.ly/aEgqD9
I hope you enjoyed this information and I am wishing you happy creating, licensing and sharing. May your ideas spread, flourish and become more than they once were.
Until we meet again,
Shailia
