is it legal to use clip art commercially?

[nycthinker]

Version: 2004 Operating System: Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) Processor: Power PC I want to use some clip art images for my book cover. I will be selling the book online (limited distribution). Is it legal to use these images? Does anyone know where, in writing, I can find the clause that states the copyright usage?

 

[John McGhie]

No. Most Microsoft clipart is licensed from the originator, and the licence
does not cover commercial use.

However, clip art is in vector graphic (editable...) format. If you make a
material change to the picture, it is no longer covered by the agreement.

The exact licence terms are in the End User Licence Agreement, which is on
your Office CD.

To get it:

END-USER LICENSE AGREEMENT FOR MICROSOFT SOFTWARE
To view or print the Microsoft End-User License Agreement (EULA), do the
following:
1. Quit all programs.
2. Insert the CD-ROM into your CD drive.
3. On the desktop, double-click the Microsoft Office 2004 Microsoft Office
2004 icon icon.
4. When the setup window appears, double-click the Office Setup Assistant
Office Setup Assistant icon.
5. On the Welcome screen of the Setup Assistant dialog box, click Next.
6. On the License Agreement screen, do one of the following:
€ To save a copy of the EULA on your hard disk, click Save.
€ To print a hard copy of the EULA, click Prin7. Click Quit to exit the
Setup Assistant.


Cheers

Version: 2004 Operating System: Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) Processor: Power PC I
want to use some clip art images for my book cover. I will be selling the
book online (limited distribution). Is it legal to use these images? Does
anyone know where, in writing, I can find the clause that states the copyright
usage?

This email is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless you intend to pay!

 

[Phillip Jones, C.E.T.]

And often you can get free license free, icons, pictures, by hunting on
internet.

 

[nycthinker]

How about the clip art from Microsoft Office Online? If I'm reading the user agreement correctly, it seems that in my case (using the clip art for a book cover) would be okay. True?

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/tou.aspx#MaterialsthatMicrosoftLicensesToYou

 

[John McGhie]

I am not a lawyer, and so I cannot give a legal opinion.

If you were to use artwork from the Microsoft Office Online site as part of
the cover for your book, that would appear to be allowed under that
agreement.

However you really should run that past your lawyer, who needs to read the
entire agreement, because you will note towards the bottom that Microsoft
retains the copyright over everything and reserves all rights under that
copyright. It's quite a minefield, and is subject to varying interpretation
based upon the jurisdiction into which you enter the contract.

And that agreement applies ONLY to the artwork made available to you as part
of the Microsoft Online Service. It does NOT apply to "clipart" on your
computer, and it does NOT apply to the clipart offered by Microsoft Partner
Companies that use the Microsoft Office Online website as a shop window in
which to display their wares for sale by themselves.

I think most authors would simply "change" the artwork sufficiently to turn
it into a "new work". That would ordinarily void the copyright.

Other people would "Assume it is OK" and go ahead, relying on the rule that
by the time they have sold enough to be worth suing, they will have made
enough money to pay the penalty. Of course, you could not use that strategy
if you are not self-publishing: a commercial publisher will expect you to
obtain a release for anything you use.

Sorry: You need a lawyer, not an MVP, to answer this one

Cheers

How about the clip art from Microsoft Office Online? If I'm reading the user
agreement correctly, it seems that in my case (using the clip art for a book
cover) would be okay. True?

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/tou.aspx#MaterialsthatMicrosoftLicensesToYou

This email is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless you intend to pay!

 

[nycthinker]

I think I'll try calling the MS legal department.
Thank you all for the answers. You have been very helpful!

 

[Jim Gordon Mac MVP]

I think I'll try calling the MS legal department.
Thank you all for the answers. You have been very helpful!

I'm not a lawyer, either, but my understanding from both reading the
EULA and listening to Microsoft spokespersons is that you are allowed to
use any Microsoft supplied clip art as long as you are not charging for
the clip art. For example, you can't create sell Microsoft's clips as a
package or in any other way. But, you can use the clips freely within
your published works in such a way as one would normally use clip-art to
embellish your documents or web pages.

That said, my reading is that using Microsoft clip-art on a book cover
is not one of the conditions cited in the EULA as among the allowable
uses. Sure, you can hire a lawyer to check with Microsoft. Or, you could
hire an artist to create a new, original work expressly for the purpose
of your book cover, which is what I would do.

-Jim