Databases and Creative Commons FAQ | Science Commons

Databases and Creative Commons FAQ | Science Commons
83 captures
20 Apr 2006 - 30 Jun 2025
Mar
APR
May
20
2005
2006
2007
success
fail
About this capture
COLLECTED BY
Organization:
Alexa Crawls
Starting in 1996,
Alexa Internet
has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the
Wayback Machine
after an embargo period.
Collection:
Alexa Crawl EI
Crawl EI from Alexa Internet. This data is currently not publicly accessible.
TIMESTAMPS
The Wayback Machine - http://web.archive.org/web/20060420192424/http://sciencecommons.org:80/data/dbfaq
About
Project: Publishing
Project: Licensing
Project: Data
Resources
Contact
Databases and Creative Commons FAQ
Please note that Creative Commons does not provide legal advice, so while this FAQ is designed to be helpful in raising awareness about the use of our licenses, it is by nature not a complete discussion of all issues nor a substitute for legal advice.
Questions for Database Providers:
Can a Creative Commons license be applied to a
database?
What kinds of things can be licensed under a
Creative Commons license?
So, a Creative Commons license can be applied to a
database?
Which database components are likely to be
protected by copyright?
What about the software that runs the database?
How will people know that they can use the factual
information in a database?
If I apply a Creative Commons license to my
database, does this mean people can replicate the database?
How does a database provider make sure it has the
necessary authority to apply a Creative Commons license to a database?
What legal issues do Creative Commons licenses
not cover?
I understand everything above and want to apply a
Creative Commons license to my database. How do I go about doing that?
Questions for Database Users:
I am a database user, does this mean I can just use
& copy anything from a Creative Commons-licensed database?
Which parts can I use under the Creative Commons
license?
Facts are (generally) free (as in freedom)
Be aware that Creative Commons licenses do not
license all types of legal rights
Consider that database rights may apply
Think before copying large amounts of data
Questions for Database Providers:
Can a Creative
Commons license be applied to a database?
In short, yes—a Creative Commons license can probably be applied to a
database, or at least, to some aspects of a database.
Databases usually are comprised of at least four elements: (1) a set of
field names identifying the data; (2) a structure (or model), which
includes the organization of fields and relations among them; (3) data
sheets; and (4) data. All of the Creative Commons licenses can be
applied to these elements to the extent that copyright applies to them
(and the Dutch and Belgium licenses can also be applied to the data,
for reasons
discussed in greater detail below
Copyright applies to minimally creative works expressed in a fixed
form.  In most databases, items (2) and (3) - the structure and
the data sheet - will reflect sufficient creativity for copyright to
apply.  A Creative Commons license applied to these elements will
permit copying of these elements under the conditions of the license
selected.  Field names, such as “Address” for the name of the
field for street address information, are less likely to be protected
by copyright because they often do not reflect creativity.
In the United States, data will be protected by copyright only if they
express creativity.  Some databases will satisfy this condition,
such as a database containing poetry or a wiki containing prose.
Many databases, however, contain factual information that may have
taken a great deal of effort to gather, such as the results of a series
of complicated and creative experiments.  Nonetheless, that
information is not protected by copyright and cannot be licensed under
the terms of a Creative Commons license.
Note - for databases subject to the laws of members of the European
Union and certain other countries, the law supplies a special right for
databases.  Except in the Netherlands and Belgium Creative Commons
Licenses, Creative Commons licenses do not apply to this right (for
more detail,
see below
).
There are three things to keep in mind when considering whether to
apply a Creative Commons license to a database: (1) that the necessary
rights or permissions have been obtained to make a database and any
copyrightable elements available under a Creative Commons license; (2)
that only those parts of the database that the database provider wants
to make available under a Creative Commons license are so licensed; and
(3) if not all aspects of the database are protected by copyright,
there should be a clear statement to this effect to indicate to users
which aspects are subject to the license and which are not.
This FAQ explains each of these issues in a little more detail for
database providers (and users). Please read all of this FAQ before
deciding whether to apply a Creative Commons license to your database
so that you understand how to make your database available using a
Creative Commons license in a way that matches your preferences. Please
also note that there may be other legal rights and obligations that
arise in relation to a database that are beyond the scope of this FAQ.
What kinds of
things can be licensed under a Creative Commons license?
Creative Commons licenses only apply to materials that are protected by
copyright. This means that they can be applied to protect things like
articles, text, websites, blogs and other publications; music, artwork
video and other audio and visual materials; and also more “utilitarian”
items such as software, tables and compilations.
As a general rule, copyright is said to protect “expressive, creative
works” that are fixed in a tangible medium. The requirement that a work
be expressive and/or creative to attract copyright protection means
that it has to be the product of someone’s effort and ingenuity. Mere
facts and ideas are not protectable. This has particular importance for
databases because databases often contain compilations of factual
information.
So, a Creative
Commons license can be applied to a database?
Yes, a Creative Commons license can be applied to the structure or
model of a database provided that is protected by copyright. The extent
to which a database is protected by copyright law will vary depending
on the jurisdiction in which the database is located. In general,
however, the entire database as well as some elements of the database
are likely to be copyrighted; some elements may not be protected by
copyright.
Essentially, those parts of the database that consist of expressive,
creative effort will be protected by copyright. For example, subject to
some exceptions, the database model is likely to be protected by
copyright. The extent to which the database model is
copyright-protected will depend on the jurisdiction. In the US, for
example, the “white pages” telephone directories are not protected by
copyright because they contain names and address in unoriginal,
alphabetical ordering. By contrast, a directory of Chinese businesses
is protected by copyright because of the effort, selection and
arrangement that went into creating the directory. In Australia,
however, even “white pages” telephone directories are protected because
the courts there consider the effort and “sweat of the brow” in
compiling data, even if it is ordered unoriginally, to be sufficient to
warrant copyright protection.
Which
database components are likely to be protected by copyright?
In general, there are likely to be four main components of a database:
(i) The database model: this is a specification describing how a
database is structured and organized.  Parts of the database
model, or schema, include database tables and table indexes. In
general, as discussed above, it is likely that the overall structure
and organization of the database is protected by copyright. There may
be exceptions to this depending on the jurisdiction in which the
database is located. In the United States, for example, unoriginal and
obvious orderings of factual information have been held to not be
protected by copyright.
(ii) The data entry & output sheet: these contain questions and the
answers to these questions are stored in a database.  For example,
a web page asking a scientist to enter a gene's name, its pathway
information, and its ontology would constitute a data entry sheet. In
general, the format and layout of these sheets will be protected by
copyright. This protection may not extend to the information (the data)
contained within these sheets, however, as discussed below.
(iii) Field names: field names described data sets, for example
“Address” for the name of the field for street address information.
These are less likely to be protected by copyright because they often
do not reflect creativity.
(iv) The data: - whether the data itself is copyrightable, depends on
what it is. To the extent it consists of factual information, it will
not be copyrightable. For example, the contents of NCBI's Entrez Gene
database include gene names, descriptions, pathways, protein products,
and other facts. However, to the extent the data is creative and
expressive works, such as papers or photographs, then the database
content itself is likely to be protected by copyright. Even if
copyright protection extends to a paper or photograph contained in a
database, that copyright will not extend to the information and ideas
expressed in these materials.
Database providers need to think carefully about which elements of the
database they want people to be able to use and reuse and ensure that
they only make available these elements available under the Creative
Commons license.
What about the software that runs the
database?
In general, the software that runs the database will be protected by
copyright but that copyright will be owned and controlled by the third
party software provider who creates that software and licenses it to a
database provider to use. Thus, a database provider needs to be clear
that it is applying the Creative Commons license only to the database
elements, not the software.
Creative Commons licenses are designed to apply to content such as
documentation, articles, music, videos and the like. For software, we
recommend that it is licensed under the
CC-GNU-GPL
license
. Obviously, this license cannot be applied to software that
is obtained from a third party under their own license conditions.
How will
people know that they can use the factual information in a database?
We recommend that database providers make it clear that only some
elements of their database are protected by copyright (and subject to a
Creative Commons license) and some elements are free to be used &
reused outside of the license.
As you know, Creative Commons and Science Commons work to promote
freely available content and information. Our preference is that people
do not overstate their copyright or other legal rights. Consequently,
we adopt the position that “facts are free” and people should be
educated so that they are aware of this. Database providers may want to
think about including a statement where you include your Creative
Commons “Some Rights Reserved” button that acknowledges that the
database is only under a Creative Commons license “to the extent that
copyright protects the database” and then give some examples of the
elements in the database that are likely to be factual and excluded
from the scope of copyright and the Creative Commons license.
If I apply a
Creative Commons license to my database, does this mean people can
replicate the database?
Yes, if a Creative Commons licenses is applied to an entire database or
most of a database, then the Creative Commons licenses will give people
the right to copy and distribute the entire database and/or the
database elements to the Creative Commons license has been applied.
However, if the database is hosted in Europe (or a jurisdiction with a
similar law), a different type of right—a sui generis (i.e.
copyright-like) database right—may give the database provider an
additional layer of protection against someone copying the entire
database or database elements that are under a Creative Commons
license.
To briefly explain, the database right applies to databases that have
been created with considerable investment and protects against
unauthorized extraction and re-utilization of the data. In general, it
is an infringement of this database right to appropriate and distribute
to the public the whole or part of the contents of the database without
the database owner’s permission.
With two exceptions, a Creative Commons license will not impact the
existence of this database right. This means that, because the Creative
Commons licenses apply only to copyright protected works (and not sui
generis protected works), a database owner will still be able to
enforce their database right even if the copyright-protected elements
of the database have been licensed under a Creative Commons license.
The two exceptions are the
Creative
Commons Netherlands
and the
Creative Commons Belgium
licenses, which include the database right in the license and, thus,
these licenses will enable people to appropriate and distribute
database contents to the public.
How does a
database provider make sure it has the necessary authority to apply a
Creative Commons license to a database?
Creative Commons licenses can be applied to a copyright-protected work
by either the original creator of that work or by a person who has the
express permission from the original creator (the licensor of the work).
In the case of a database and its many different elements, database
providers need to think about how they obtained each element because
this will assist in identifying whether they have the necessary rights
and permissions. Essentially, the database elements can only be made
available under a Creative Commons license: (1) if the database
provider is the owner of the copyright in those elements; or (2), where
the database providers does not own the copyright but it has the
express and explicit permission (a license) from the owner of copyright
to do this.
The original creator of a work will generally be the first owner of
copyright in that work. A person can also become the copyright owner by
an express written agreement, signed by a creator or copyright owner,
transferring ownership of the copyright. In some circumstances, an
employer becomes the first owner of copyright in anything created by
their employees. In the US, there is an additional category of works in
respect of which ownership of copyright will be transferred from the
creator to another party—works made for hire. To qualify as a work for
hire, the work must come within one of nine categories of works, be
specially commissioned and be the subject of a written and signed
agreement that the work is a work for hire. For more information about
works for hire under United States law, check out this
information circular
from the United States Copyright Office
Before database providers make a database or database elements
available under a Creative Commons license they need to make sure they
own the rights or have the necessary licenses. This process is known as
“rights clearance.”
Often databases are generated by a network of individuals contributing
and editing data. Many contributors often do this without any legal
agreements in place.  If contributed data are sufficiently
creative for copyright to apply, then each contributor likely owns the
copyright to his or her submission.  To offer these data under a
Creative Commons license, each contributor must agree to do so.
If, however, the contributions are factual, then rights need to be
cleared only if the law that applies to the database protects such
information. Database providers can include a condition in the “Terms
of Submission” (or something similar) that expressly provides that any
person who submits information agrees to make their submission
available under a Creative Commons license and any other terms set out
in the “Terms of Use” or other legal notices section.
What legal
issues do Creative Commons licenses not cover?
Creative Commons licenses only apply to copyrightable works. There may
be many other legal issues that arise in relation to copyrighted
materials that Creative Commons licenses do not cover and that database
providers need to consider. For example, Creative Commons licenses do
not affect patent rights. Although copyright does not protect factual
information, patent law does protect ideas, inventions, processes and
methods. Database owners should think about the extent to which they
need to make their database users aware of the fact that patent rights
may restrict the use that can be made of the factual information
contained in a database.
I understand
everything above and want to apply a Creative Commons license to my
database. How do I go about doing that?
Visit
our “Publish” page
to
select the license that suits your preferences via our license
generator. Remember that before applying a Creative Commons license,
database providers need to make sure that they own the necessary
rights, or have the necessary permissions from the people who do own
the rights, to make the database available under a Creative Commons
license. Also, database providers should remember to think about
exactly which components of their database they want to be used and
reused in accordance with a Creative Commons license and make sure that
this is clearly marked on the database.
Questions for Database Users:
I am a database
user, does this mean I can just use & copy anything from a Creative
Commons-licensed database?
Which parts
can I use under the Creative Commons license?
Under a Creative Commons license a database user can use all of those
parts of a database that the database owner makes available under the
Creative Commons license—consistent with the terms of that license.
Because databases are complex, database users should carefully check
which elements are under the Creative Commons license and which are
not. They should also carefully the terms of the applicable Creative
Commons license to under what uses are permitted and which are not.
This page
provides an overview
of the Creative Commons licenses.
Facts are
(generally) free (as in freedom)
In general, “facts are free” so database users should be able to use
factual information contained in a database without restriction.
Database users should, however, check any “Terms of Use” or other legal
notices that the database provider has applied to the database in case
additional conditions have been placed on the use of the factual data
contained in the database.
Be aware that
Creative Commons licenses do not license all types of legal rights
Database users should be aware, before they freely use the facts or
database elements, of some possible limitations imposed by different
types of laws that may restrict the extent of data that can be used and
that are not licensed by the Creative Commons licenses. Examples of
potential limitations that may be imposed are by: (1) patent law; and,
(2) for databases hosted in the European Union, laws that recognize a
database right (which we explain some more below); (3) laws in
jurisdictions in which copying a large amount of data is considered to
be the equivalent of copying the database itself (which we also explain
some more below).
To find out more information about whether something is protected by a
patent (and you are based in the United States), you should check out
the
United States Patent &
Trademark Office
. It also has
links to
non-United States based patent bodies
and international patent
organizations that may also provide you with useful information to
understand the scope of patent rights.
Consider that
database rights may apply
Users of European databases should also be aware of the fact that the
database may be protected by a sui generis (ie. copyright-like)
database right that is not actually a copyright right and thus, not
licensed under the standard Creative Commons licenses (except the
Belgium & Netherlands Creative Commons licenses).
The database right applies to databases that have been created with
considerable investment and protects against unauthorized extraction
and re-utilization of the data. In general, it is an infringement of
this database right to appropriate and distribute to the public the
whole or part of the contents of the database without the database
owner’s permission.
With two exceptions, a Creative Commons license will not impact the
existence of this database right and thus, database users need to check
out the “Terms of Use” or other legal notices section to see if the
database owner is limiting its database right in any way. The Creative
Commons Netherlands and the Creative Commons Belgium licenses include
the database right in the license and thus, these licenses will enable
you to copy and distribute database contents consistent with the
license terms.
Of course, none of the Creative Commons licenses or database terms will
limit the four exceptions to the database right. The four exceptions
are for use: (1) for private purposes of a non-electronic database; (2)
where there is use for the sole purpose of illustration for teaching or
scientific research, as long as the source is indicated and to the
extent justified by the non-commercial purpose to be achieved; (3)
where there is use for the purposes of public security of for the
purposes of an administrative or judicial procedure; (4) where other
exceptions to copyright (such as fair use or fair dealing) are
involved, without prejudice to points (1), (2) and (3).
Think before
copying large amounts of data
In some jurisdictions, it may be an infringement of the copyright in
database overall, to copy and use large amounts of data, even if it is
unprotected factual information. Consequently, if a database user is
planning to copy large amounts data, whether factual or not, they may
want to think about whether their use is in keeping with the Creative
Commons license and/or if it is not, whether they may otherwise be
infringing on the copyright in the database overall (if that has not
been licensed under a Creative Commons license).
About
Project: Publishing
Project: Licensing
Project: Data
Resources
Contact
Except where otherwise
noted
, this site is
licensed under a
Creative Commons License