Folkopedia:Copyrights

The EFDSS takes Copyright very seriously. The folk arts can be particularly tricky when it comes to Rights Management and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Some of the raw material is hundreds of years old but that doesn't automatically mean that it is free of copyright restrictions. If somebody has added, arranged, rewritten or otherwise enhanced what was previously in the public domain, they may have a claim with regard to that material.

Very often, people who do enhance traditional material are not interested in gaining from it and are happy to have their version in the public domain. This is not to be assumed by contributors without either asking the permission of the originator or at the very least crediting the originator. The methods of crediting IPR will be evolved along with the project.

There are no anonymous contributors on Folkopedia. Usernames will be people's real names or and everyone is expected to take direct responsibility for what they have contributed.

If you wish to retain some control over your own contributions to Folkopedia, we suggest that you investigate the Creative Commons Licence. This is gaining in popularity and possibly offers a very powerful way of sharing your work without losing complete control over it. See the Creative Commons web site