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Creative Commons Licencing

Creative Commons (CC) licences offer a way to share your work freely while retaining control. By using these licences, you can grow your audience and create new avenues for earning money. Creative Commons licences allow others to use your work, but you set the rules.

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Generative AI image showing a crowd of people gathered around artwork which has been licensed under Creative Commons. TikBox.io provides online licensing and provenance labelling.

What Are Creative Commons Licences, and How Do They Work?

Creative Commons licences are legal tools that let you share your work with the public while keeping key rights intact. You decide how others can use, modify, or share your work. The range of CC licences varies from very open to more restrictive, depending on your goals.

Licensing your work under a Creative Commons licence allows you to control how it’s used, while still making it accessible to others. This approach helps boost your visibility and ensures your work is shared according to your intentions.

How to Use TikBox for Creative Commons Licensing

Choose the Right Licence

In the TikBox templates panel use the drop down menu to select your preferred Creative Commons licence. Decide whether you want to allow modifications, restrict commercial use or keep full control.

Upload Your Content

Upload your photos, videos, or other digital files to TikBox. The platform will embed the copyright and licensing information directly into your file’s metadata, ensuring that your work is properly credited when shared.

Download and Share

After you complete your review of the licence, press the “Create & Download” button and TikBox generates a .pdf version of the licence for your records. Your content is now ready for sharing, complete with embedded copyright information.

Working with Creative Commons

How Creative Commons Licences Boost Visibility

Licensing your work under Creative Commons increases its visibility by making it accessible to a broader audience. CC-licensed work becomes part of a global content pool that others can share, remix, or incorporate into their projects—all while adhering to the conditions you’ve set. Educational institutions, open-source projects, and artistic communities frequently use CC-licensed material. This exposure allows your work to reach new audiences and platforms you may not have considered. Sharing under a Creative Commons licence can boost audience engagement and significantly expand your reach.

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Monetising Creative Commons-Licensed Work

Even though Creative Commons licences enable free sharing, they don’t prevent you from earning money. By offering some of your work for free, you increase the chances of attracting paid opportunities. Once people see and engage with your work, it can lead to: Commissioned Work: Clients may discover your CC-licensed work and hire you for paid projects. Partnerships: Organisations or businesses may approach you for exclusive deals after finding your work. Sponsorships: The increased visibility gained from sharing your work freely could lead to sponsorships or paid collaborations. Creative Commons licences help you grow your audience and attract revenue-generating opportunities through increased exposure.

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Fun image of a fabricated cash cow made to look like a piggy bank, with notes hanging out of it. Creatives commons used via TikBox.io for promoting portfolio, to commercialise creative assets.
Diagram showing the six difference Creative Commons Licencing options available on TikBox.io

Choosing the Right Creative Commons Licence

Creative Commons offers a range of licences, from very open to more restrictive, depending on how much control you want over your work. Here’s a breakdown of the main options: CC0: Releases your work into the public domain, allowing anyone to use it without restrictions. CC BY: Allows others to use and modify your work, as long as they give you credit. This licence offers the most visibility. CC BY-SA: Allows users to modify your work, but they must share their new version under the same licence. CC BY-ND: Others can share your work, but they cannot modify it. CC BY-NC: Permits others to use your work non-commercially, provided they credit you. CC BY-NC-SA: Non-commercial use only, and any modifications must be shared under the same licence. CC BY-NC-ND: The most restrictive licence, allowing others to share your work without modification and only for non-commercial purposes. Choosing the right licence depends on the level of control you wish to maintain.

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Using Creative Commons video tutorial

Whether you're a team or a solo act, TikBox helps you safeguard your content and get paid for what you create.

Simply tick a few boxes to set your preferences and we’ll do the rest.

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FAQ’s

Yes. Creative Commons licences increase your exposure, which can result in paid work, partnerships, or sponsorships.

 

No. Most CC licences allow you to retain significant control over your work. Only the CC0 licence places your work entirely in the public domain.

 

The CC BY licence offers the most visibility, allowing others to share and modify your work while ensuring you receive credit.

 

Yes, you can apply a different licence to future distributions of your work. However, users who accessed previous versions keep the rights granted under the original licence. Any change in licensing should be carefully considered and clearly communicated to users of your work.

 

Platforms such as YouTube, SoundCloud, Flickr, SlideShare and Wikimedia Commons offer large global audiences and frequently host Creative Commons-licensed content, maximising your work’s reach.



TESTIMONIALS

Why users love TikBox

I think the biggest gain here is having an automated end-to-end process, where we know we are using generative AI ethically and content and creatives are labelled in the correct way, without us having to spend time, effort or thought on this process. We deeply appreciate the ease of use and how a very complex process can just run quietly in the background. 

The TikBox platform offer a good alternative to the current route of licensing through a stock image library, especially if you want control of the client transactions. It also allows for direct transactions and licensing with a client without involving a stock library.

David
David Austerberry
Orsi
Orsolya Ann Toth

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