When hearing about copyright laws, the words “oh God” quite often appear in one’s thoughts. The ongoing SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) disputes that started back in 2011 have left society with a sour taste in their mouths. Thus, people are arguably conditioned to believe that anything to do with copyright law infringes ones freedom to share online works with the world. This is where creative commons comes into play and removes this negative stereotype.

A creative commons license can help artists let people know that their work can be re-used, this is becoming a more sought after option due to the ever-growing popularity of the Internet. Nowadays, Internet based creations combined with the fashionable concept of “remixing” has lead to people wanting an easier way to show that they only want SOME of this protection as opposed to all of the previous standard laws.

When all of this is taken into consideration, a creative commons license in copyright law allows people to be creative while still respecting the works of others. The Internet is a place where people have the freedom to be creative and share what they have devised, and several people (myself included), believe that the rules and laws we are supposed to follow in our non-digital lives applies to the online world.

Unlike what most people negatively conjure up in their minds when hearing of copyright acts, creative commons proves otherwise. Now people have the ability to download and share content online without being at risk. In the earlier days of LimeWire, the words “download” and “legal” did not really go together. This has now become a thing of the past, and the convenience of online access and logical policies that work in favour of sharing what society wants are responsible for such a successful system.

For a more detailed explanation of what exactly creative commons is, watch this video.