OFFICIAL TRANSLATIONS OF CC LEGAL TOOLS
The latest versions of all the CC licenses (and other tools) may be translated into official versions in other languages. Creative Commons has a formal process (see the Legal Code Translation Policy, licensed CC BY 4.0 and available at https://wiki.creativecommons.org/wiki/Legal_Code_Translation_Policy) by which this is done in order to ensure that the translations are as close to the original as possible. Creative Commons’ goal is to get the licenses into as many languages as possible, so that everyone can read and understand the terms in their native language. The official translations are noted at the bottom of the legal code on all of the licenses and are equivalents of one another.
Many people ask about the relationship between the official translations and the English originals. All official translations are linguistic translations only, unlike ported versions (which are described in the text box below). The official translations are legal equivalents of one another, which means they have the same legal meaning and effect in each language. This is similar to how standards bodies such as the World Wide Web Consortium translate a single standard into many different languages, and how the United Nations publishes treaties.
RESOLVING DISPUTES
Since the publication of Version 1.0 of the licenses in 2002, Creative Commons is aware of a relatively small number of disputes between licensors and reusers over its licenses, including the NonCommercial term and attribution. There may be several explanations for this state of harmony. As observed by Creative Commons in its “Defining ‘Noncommercial’” report (licensed CC BY 3.0 and
Distinguishing ported versions of the pre-4.0 versions of the CC licenses.
Prior to the publication of Version 4.0 in November 2013, Creative Commons gave permission to the CC Global Network to “port” the Creative Commons licenses. Porting involved linguistic translation and adjustments so that the licenses reflected local terminology and drafting protocols, and it accounted for other local differences, such as the existence of moral rights and collecting societies.
One of the primary reasons for versioning the licenses from 3.0 to 4.0 was to eliminate the need for porting, an unnecessarily complex process that could be eliminated if Creative Commons took proper care to ensure that the new licenses were internationalized. Starting with Version 4.0, the most recent version of the CC license suite, Creative Commons no longer “ports” the licenses. The ported licenses of previous versions may still be used and remain legally valid and enforceable; however, Creative Commons discourages their use and recommends Version 4.0 as the latest and most up-to-date thinking of CC and its global network.
