Just my way of trying to cut down on confusion; a bit about the Public Domain for those new to the concept, along with a reasonably concise Q/A about what can and cannot be done with the clip art. Links are provided below with related information and sites of Public Domain advocacy.

Legal



• What is Public Domain?


• What is a collection? (And why should I care?)


• Are all the images on WPClipart Public Domain?


• So are there any restrictions on the use of the images in the WPClipart collection?


• Can I make my company logo out of the clip art?


• I want to publish, can you give me written legal indemnification against any claim of copyright infringement?

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• Maintainer's Email

What is Public Domain?

Quoting from the US Copyright Office site at:
http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-definitions.html

Where is the public domain?
The public domain is not a place. A work of authorship is in the "public domain" if it is no longer under copyright protection or if it failed to meet the requirements for copyright protection. Works in the public domain may be used freely without the permission of the former copyright owner.

One point I feel I need to clarify is whether or not a user can later claim the image as their own, or make a company logo out of a Public Domain image. I'll cover the first part of that question here in detail:

Once an image is truly public domain, it cannot be taken out of the public domain. For instance, you cannot release something PD, then later claim otherwise. You cannot take a PD image, slap a "C" with a circle around it on the image, then and say it is yours...

If, however, you were to make substantial changes/modifications to a work in the public domain, then that new work IS copyrightable (it is considered a "derivative work".) This is especially pertinant to those seeking to make company logos out of PD materials. (There is a Q/A in the FAQ covering that.) Also the packaging, display, organization and formatting regarding GROUPS of PD images (collections) can be considered a derivative work.

What is a collection? (And why should I care?)

As this relates to WPClipart, the individual images are Public Domain, but the collection is a derivative work. As such it is copyrightable. Hence restrictions can be made concerning the use of the COLLECTION, but not individual images.

Are all the images on WPClipart Public Domain?

Almost all... there are a limited number of images on WPClipart which are used under the umbrella of "fair use." These include any image with a company logo/trademark (ex. company name on a credit card image), or a recognizable product (ex. a specific model of cell phone.)

Fair use items are usually small examples of copyrighted works or images that are meant to be used (but not distorted or misrepresented) when referencing the original work and/or product.

A pertinent example is use by a company that resells a particular model of cell phones and takes credit card orders. Using a couple of the aforementioned "fair use" items on a flier or web page would be perfectly appropriate. The biggest difference between Fair Use and PD images is that you should not try to make a derivative work out of a Fair Use item.

So are there any restrictions on the use of the images in the WPClipart collection?

For individual images the answer is no -- use them for whatever you wish and you don't have to bother asking for permission or attributing or linking back to WPClipart. Use them in your reports or web pages, even use them on materials you sell commercially.

The only restriction I place upon the COLLECTION is that I don't want others to post the collection, or substantial portions of the collection, online as an image repository and therefore compete with my site. I spend real money on a dedicated server, lots of ink and paper, and hundreds of hours of my time finding, researching, editing (my favorite) and organizing the collection both for online viewing and downloading. The packaging for download also includes a viewer/editor I programmed myself which expediates quick edits (filters/rotations) which can quickly and easily be pasted into documents (using the "Copy to Clipboard" function.)

These efforts add up to a big commitment of time and money on my part and I simply cannot afford to make these commitments if I am not able to derive revenue from online advertizing. -- If others "mirror" my site, taking the hits from image searches (and benefiting from the revenue that generates), then I would be nothing but a source of images for these sites and it would do nothing but cost me time and money to continue buiding the WPClipart collection.

Can I make my company logo out of the clip art?

Yes, but pay attention:

As mentioned above, if a work is Public Domain (not here via "Fair Use") then you are free to modify that image to your liking. In doing so you have created a derivative work and can then safely use the new work as a company logo.

To explain in detail:

1. Don't start with a fair-use item


2. If you use a public domain item unmodified, it is still PD. Since anyone else can use a PD item for whatever they wish, it would not make much of a company logo...


3. Putting a clearly visible name/mark onto the image you wish to use should suffice to make that image considered derivative. (So this much is not a big hurdle.) You are also free, of course, to modify the image in any other way you wish and any real modification would also be considered a derivative work.

I want to publish, can you give me written legal indemnification against any claim of copyright infringement?

Using a handful of images in a publication is quite alright with me, but offering written legal indemnification is beyond my ability -- because it is possible that people misrepresent the PD status of images and folks have been known to sue even if they do not have a legitimate claim. And defense against that kind of claim is something I cannot legally afford -- such is human nature as well as the present nature of our legal system.

I research the sources of images the best I can; I edit, organize, post online and challenge anyone and everyone to prove their status to be anything but PD. So personal approval (as I do here online) and "good faith" is the best I can offer you... I believe this is the best anyone can offer regarding PD images.

If you need written indemnification, then purchasing images from someone who claims copyright on the images is legally safer. Be advised however that nothing, presently, seems to constitute an ironclad copyright infringement defense.

Public Domain Definition
from the Linux Information Project

Public Domain: Public ownership of Creative Works
Wikipedia

Copyright Term and the Public Domain in the United States
Copyright expiration chart by Peter B. Hirtle
Published by Cornell University

WHEN U.S. WORKS PASS INTO THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
By Lolly Gasaway
University of North Carolina

How to Determine Whether a Work is in the Public Domain
Dennis S. Karjala
Professor of Law
Arizona State University

Ibiblio
The public's library and digital archive
Home to one of the largest "collections of collections" on the Internet,
...and host to the packages produced by WPClipart since 2005

The Mouse that Ate the Public Domain
By CHRIS SPRIGMAN

http://public.resource.org/
Promotes, displays and links to Public Domain works,
focuses on U.S. Govornment resources. Also works to debunk what it
feels are false copyright claims.

Public Knowledge
Public Knowledge is a Washington DC based public interest group
working to defend your rights in the emerging digital culture.

Electronic Frontier Foundation
EFF is the leading civil liberties group defending your rights in the digital world.

Reconstructing the Public Domain
by Robert A. Baron
"This paper advocates the development of a strong public domain as a remedy to the copyright industry's success in convincing Congress to increase the length and scope of copyright."

Carl Malamud
Distinguished Lecture Series
(Re-)Defining the Public Domain

Open Invention Network
(Related -- Software patent defense)
"...is an intellectual property company that was formed to promote the Linux system by using patents to create a collaborative ecosystem."

Disclaimer: The above material is presented for reference purposes only, and it is not intended as nor does it constitute legal advice. Neither I (author/maintainer of WPClipart) nor any of my content providers shall be liable for any errors or omissions in the content or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. I am not an attorney and make absolutely no claim to have any knowledge about legal matters beyond that of an informed layman. Any questions should be directed to a licensed attorney specializing in copyrights and intellectual property law. Proper legal advice can only be provided by a licensed attorney with reference to the specific facts of a particular situation and to the laws of the relevant jurisdiction.