Fair Use and Your Submissions (original) (raw)

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As a community of creative individuals, DeviantArt considers copyright protection and copyright infringement to be a serious matter. Our Copyright Policy appears as a link at the bottom of most pages on DeviantArt and can be accessed directly at this link http://about.deviantart.com/policy/copyright/

It's important for all submissions in your DeviantArt gallery to abide by our posted copyright policy, but at the same time, copyright allows for creative individuals to draw inspiration from other existing works through the concept of “fair use.”

What is fair use?

Fair use is the idea built into the copyright laws that in some cases, even if the copyright associated with a certain work belongs exclusively to the artist, other people should be able to refer to it and in some situations use it as long as the second use is “fair.” What behavior is fair is very different depending on the person making that evaluation and as a result fair use is complicated, can be difficult to analyze under the law and generally requires the help of expert advice from a lawyer. We recommend you talk to your own lawyer if you want to know more about fair use as it applies to the work you are doing. If it turns out that it isn't fair use, you may be liable for very serious money damages.

How does fair use apply to me?

When making use of content created by other people, bear in mind that different authors will have different opinions about whether or not this is okay to do without their permission. Copying, tracing, editing, re-imagining and other various forms of appropriation are controversial topics within the creative community of DeviantArt, and while these can be accepted practices to perfect one’s technique and can be used for all manner of reference when building an original image, you should always try to remember not everyone is okay with it.

You should always contact the author before you make use of their work in any fashion, even when you might think that your use is small of inconsequential.

Fan art and fan fiction can be amazing ways to participate with your favorite character, novel, film, television series, comic or even music artists and their songs. While fan created works are welcome at DeviantArt and have a place within our community, bear in mind that pretty much everything that fan art references is a copyrighted work and as a result can be considered copyright infringement and sometimes even a violation of trademark law or an actor’s rights of publicity if they are well represented in the fan art.

As with other works, sometimes fan created works can fall under fair use when the circumstances are right, and the copyright and trademark owners of the properties can have wide ranging policies in regards to fan created works, with some embracing these creations and welcoming them and others meeting them with hostility and intolerance.

Even when it appears that an owner permits fan art and tolerates it well, keep in mind that the owner may choose to only permit certain kinds of fan art and prohibit others or the owner change their mind and their policies going forward. Some owners may allow a range of fan art which falls within certain limits and disallow types of fan art which is considered to be damaging to a property, character or brand and very few owners will tolerate fan art which is being sold commercially.

Always respect the copyright owner and remember that unlicensed fan art exists only because the owner allows it. If they prohibit or restrict fan art, respect their wishes. If they ask you to take it down, be respectful as well.

Further reading

For those who might want to learn more, take a look at this in-depth, educational article on the various aspects of copyright and related issues such as fan art, obtaining permission, moral rights, and resolving disputes.

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