Open Clip Art Library

The Open Clip Art Library (acronym OCAL) project aims to create a collection of vector clip art that are free content. The project was started in early 2004, and as of October 2007 it incorporates over 10,000 images from over 500 artists, and offers the entire collection for free download. The images have all been dedicated to the public domain by their contributors. The images are in Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) format, often with thumbnails in Portable Network Graphics (PNG) format.
The project has adopted Creative Commons' ccHost software for managing the clipart collection.
Some Linux-based distributions, including Mandriva, include much of the Open Clip Art Library collection.
Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Clip_Art_Library

Clip art Image Rights 6

The exception for clip art illustrations created after 1923 are those which are specifically donated to the public domain by the artist or publisher. For vector art, the open source community established the Open Clip Art Library in 2004 as a clearinghouse for images which are legitimately donated to the public domain by their copyright owners. By 2006, the library contained over 6,500 images.
Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clip_art

Clip art Image Rights 5

The popularity of the Web has facilitated widespread copying of pirated clip art which is then sold or given away as "free clip art". The reality is that most clip art touted as "free" is actually illegally distributed.[citation needed] Virtually all images published after January 1, 1923 still have copyright protection under the federal laws of most countries. Images published prior to 1923 need to be carefully researched to make sure they are in the public domain.Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clip_art

Clip art Image Rights 4

For example, the large clip art libraries produced by Dover Publications or the University of South Florida's Clipart ETC project are based on public domain images, but because they have been scanned and edited by hand, they are now copyrighted images, subject to very specific usage policies. In order for a clip art image based on a public domain source to be truly in the public domain, you must have the proper rights granted to you by the individual or organization which digitized and edited the original source of the image (for example, an original book).
Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clip_art

Clip art Image Rights 3

The United States District Court ruled in 1999 as part of Bridgeman Art Library v. Corel Corp that exact copies of public domain images were not protected by US copyright law, however the scope of this ruling only applies to photographs currently. It is originality, not skill, experience or effort, which affects copyrightability of derivative images. In fact, the US Supreme Court in Feist v. Rural ruled that the difficulty of labor and expenses must be rejected as considerations in copyrightability. So until the courts rule otherwise, it is generally accepted that the creativity required to reproduce an illustration by hand is intrinsically original, and therefore protected by copyright law.
Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clip_art

Clip art Image Rights 2

Some fine art clip art is still sold on a rights managed basis. However this type of image rights have seen a steep decline in the past 20 years as royalty free licenses have become the preferred model for clip art.
Public domain images continue to be one of the most popular types of clip art because the image rights are free. However, many images are erroneously described as part of the public domain are actually copyrighted, and thus illegal to use without proper permissions. The main cause for this confusion is due to the fact that once a public domain image is redrawn or edited in any way, it becomes a brand new image which is copyrightable by the editor.
Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clip_art

Clip art Image Rights 1

All clip art usage is governed by the terms of individual copyrights and usage rights. The copyright and usage rights of a clip art image are important to understand so that the image is used in a legal, permitted way. The three most common categories of image rights are royalty free, rights managed, and public domain.
Most commercial clip art is sold with a limited royalty free license which allows customers to use the image for most personal, educational and non-profit applications. Some royalty free clip art also includes limited commercial rights (the right to use images in for-profit products). However, royalty free image rights often vary from vendor to vendor.Reference : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clip_art