diff --git a/license-examples.md b/license-examples.md index 73a218c8..57304361 100644 --- a/license-examples.md +++ b/license-examples.md @@ -5,21 +5,36 @@ permalink: /license-examples/ filename: license-examples.md --- -This section offers usable examples of open licenses for potential use by agencies. +This section offers usable examples of open licenses and public domain dedications for potential use by agencies. ## Generally -Data and content created by government employees within the scope of their employment are not subject to domestic copyright protection under 17 U.S.C. § 105. When purchasing data or content from third-party vendors, however care must be taken to ensure the information is not hindered by a restrictive, non-open license. In general, such licenses should comply with [the open knowledge definition](http://opendefinition.org/okd/) of an open license. Several examples of common open licenses are listed below: +The open data memorandum, [M-13-13](/policy-memo/), states that federal government data must be open. The "[reusable](/principles/)" principle states that data is open if, at a minimum, it is available under an [open license](/licenses/). -## Content Licenses -* [Creative Commons BY, BY-SA, or CC0](http://creativecommons.org/choose/) -* [GNU Free Documentation License](http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl-1.3.en.html) +Data and content created by government employees within the scope of their employment are not subject to domestic copyright protection according to 17 U.S.C. § 105. These works cannot be openly licensed because they are already in the public domain, at least domestically. International copyright may still apply. + +When acquiring data or content from third-parties, however, care must be taken to ensure use of the work by the public is possible and not restricted by a non-open copyright license. While an [open license](/licenses/), as defined by [M-13-13](/policy-memo/), is now a minimum requirement, agencies should strongly consider making this data "license-free," i.e. in the public domain, along with the works created by the agency itself. + +A worldwide public domain dedication such as [CC0](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) is recommended by a coalition of non-governmental organizations in this [guidance on making government data license-free](http://theunitedstates.io/licensing/), which includes best practices language, real world government examples, and rationale. + +When using a license instead, in general such licenses should comply with [the Open Knowledge definition](http://opendefinition.org/okd/) of an open license. + +Several examples of common public domain dedications and open licenses are listed below: + +## Public Domain Dedications -## Data Licenses +Public domain dedications are suitable for both content and data: + +* [Creative Commons CC0 Public Domain Dedication](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) * [Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and Licence (PDDL)](http://opendefinition.org/licenses/odc-pddl) + +## Open Licenses for Content +* [Creative Commons BY, BY-SA](http://creativecommons.org/choose/) +* [GNU Free Documentation License](http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl-1.3.en.html) + +## Open Licenses for Data * [Open Data Commons Attribution License](http://opendatacommons.org/licenses/by/) * [Open Data Commons Open Database License (ODbL)](http://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/) -* [Creative Commons CC0 Public Domain Dedication](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) ## More Information *[Extended list of conformant licenses](http://opendefinition.org/licenses/)*