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cc-licenses - Re: [cc-licenses] multiple licenses of same image

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Subject: Development of Creative Commons licenses

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  • From: Peter Brink <peter.brink AT brinkdata.se>
  • To: Discussion on the Creative Commons license drafts <cc-licenses AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [cc-licenses] multiple licenses of same image
  • Date: Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:00:10 +0100

Peter Brink skrev:
In my book the low and high resolution images are the same work. The
license is obviously worded so that all versions of a work (but not
derivative works created by the licensor) are covered by the license.
All versions or editions of a work are thus covered by the grant in
section 3 (license grant). So - yes - if you offered a low resolution
image under BY-SA, the high resolution image (being the same work) would
also be available under the same terms. That outcome might not be
intended by some (many?) licensor's but it follows from the language of
the license. Btw I seem to recall that this issue (or a very similar
one) has been discussed (to some length) on this list - can't remember
how long ago.


One argument in favour of an alternative interpretation of the license would be that the incorporation of the license deed, full legal code or Uniform Resource Identifier for the license with the work is the only visible indication of the intention of the licensor to offer the work under the terms of the license. In other words, copies (published by the licensor) that lacks any such statements are not offered under the license since there is no clear indication of that such copies are not published under _other_ terms (such as ARR). So if a user would like to take a high resolution copy of an image offered under BY-SA in low resolution to a print shop and there is ARR statement on the high resolution image then the license offered for the low resolution image would not "pollute" the high resolution image.

This argument is based:
a) on the widely used presumption that a copyright holder never yields more rights than he expressly has agreed to. However, such presumptions may not be applicable in all jurisdictions; and
b) on the fact that the license is non-exclusive. The licensor can make copies available under any number of licenses. Then the license must apply only to those copies so designated.

/Peter Brink




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