Copyright and Creative Commons Licences

Copyright always plays a role in open access publishing. In some cases you transfer your full copyright when you agree to the contract presented to you by your publisher and from that moment on the publisher determines what you and others may do with the publication. When submitting your publication on the digital platform of the publisher you agree almost automatically with the copyright conditions of the publisher. 

Creative Commons (CC) licences aim to make creative works more freely available than is possible through traditional copyright (Carroll, 2013). The idea is that works such as academic publications can be copied and distributed more easily or that others can elaborate on them. This can be hugely beneficial to knowledge. Creative Commons offers various free licences that copyright holders can use to regulate and control the use and distribution of their work (“Creative Commons Licences,” 2018). You can attach a CC licence to your individual publications.