Creative Commons

Creative Commons (CC) is a United States-based nonprofit 501(c)3 organization that provides open content copyright licenses, public domain tools, and resources on copyright and information literacy in the digital age. Our free, easy-to-use copyright licenses provide a simple, standardized way for all creators, authors, and producers of knowledge assets and cultural works to give the public permission to share and use their works on conditions of their choice. CC licenses work in tandem with copyright, allowing creators to easily and legally change copyright terms from the default of “all rights reserved” to “some rights reserved” to best suit their needs.

In addition to the ongoing development and improvement of legal and technical tools for sharing, CC runs programs to put these tools into use in the world, and to mainstream open access, broad sharing, and reuse of creative works and knowledge assets. CC’s programmatic work encompasses outreach, trainings, partnerships, and much more, targeted to achieve measurable impact in improving affordable access to and enhancing reuse of content by anyone, anywhere, towards a more informed, culturally enriched, and productive society. All of CC’s work is amplified by a diverse and global network of volunteer affiliate groups.