Non-commercial use
Non-commercial means something is not primarily intended for, or directed towards, commercial advantage or monetary compensation by an individual or organisation.
Your use of someone else's work should not conflict with the legitimate interests of the creator of an artistic work. This means that the creator should not be prevented from licensing their copyright for a specific purpose, or receive remuneration for use of their work.
Non-commercial Creative Commons licences only restrict what a reuser may do under the licence and not what the licensor (the rights holder) can do. Licensors that make their works available under non-commercial licence are always free to monetise their works. Licensees are always free to contact licensors to ask permission to use the work for commercial purposes.
The concept of fair usage exists within UK copyright law; commonly referred to as fair dealing. It's a framework designed to allow the lawful use or reproduction of work without having to seek permission from the copyright owner(s) or creator(s) or infringing their interest.
It is the user's responsibility to satisfy themselves that an exception applies, such as fair dealing criticism and review, quotation, or reporting a current event.
The non-commercial fair dealing exception is allowed if:
1) The purpose of the use is non-commercial research and/or private study
2) The use of the materials is fair
3) The use is made by researchers or students for their own use only
4) Researchers give credit to the copyright holder
Generally, non-commercial use could be:
Commercial use
Commercial use of an image would be reproducing it in any manner that is primarily intended for or directed toward commercial advantage or monetary compensation.
Commercial activities would be; merchandise production, images used in films and on TV, in publications that are sold, and online or offline advertisements and commercial promotions. Using images on or in anything that is created with the intention of making a profit would be considered commercial use.
You are always free to locate and contact a rights holder to ask permission to use an image for commercial purposes. Please note however that Art UK is unable to share rights holder contact details.
If you have any questions, please email rights@artuk.org. Please note that we cannot offer legal advice.
Please see our copyright guidance page for more information.
Non-commercial use encompasses a wide range of exciting possibilities—including artistic, educational, scholarly, and personal projects that will not be marketed, promoted, or sold. Examples include, but are not limited to, presentations, research, tattoos, sixth-grade science fair projects, tablet backgrounds, free and ad-free apps, GIFs, holiday centerpieces, Halloween costumes, decoupage, inspiration boards, and shower curtains.
Commercial use is any reproduction or purpose that is marketed, promoted, or sold and incorporates a financial transaction. Examples include, but are not limited to, merchandise, books for sale (including textbooks), apps that will be sold or have advertising, periodicals and journals with paid subscriptions, TV programs and commercial films, advertisements, websites that sell images, and cause-related marketing.
To request images and rights for commercial use, please contact reprorights@si.edu.
To request images and rights for the press, please contact pressasia@si.edu.
For full legal details, please see the Smithsonian’s terms of use for digital assets.