Kulturskatter på nätet/en/Do this

From the good policies that we have encountered (for instance the National Heritage Board (Riksantikvarieämbetet) and the Region archive in the Region of Västra Götaland (Regionarkivet)) and our own experiences, we have collected this list of basic advice on how to succeed in publishing material on the internet:

• prioritize digitization of material that can be published on the internet
• publish material without restrictions on reuse when it is in the public domain or has been produced by staff members of the cultural heritage instituion, for instance with the Public Domain Mark. Digitization does not produce new copyright
• clearly state which terms of use the material have. Be generous
• always give the name of the copyright holder, or that the identity is unknown, even for material in the public domain. Also specify if the material have been processed in any way
• assume that photographs are photographic images (which are protected for 50 years after the year of production). Photographic images that have taken before 1969 are free. Be careful about categorizing photographs as photographic works (which are protected for 70 years after the death of the photographer)
• priorize new acquisitions that lack restrictions for use and reuse. Write non-exclusive contracts with external individuals.
• add metadata (among other things photographs, owners, date of creation, place of creation) in the files themselves
• publish material on the internet with permanent adresses
• make the material easily found, for instance on Wikipedia
• make it easy to contact the institution, for anyone who have comments on the publication

Hostelry in Halland by Fritz von Dardel. Click on the image and scroll down for more information about where the image comes from, and for example of how you can add information about the cultural institution, the collection, and more. Also note that if someone makes adjustments or new versions, all versions are saved and can be accessed by anyone.

What can you do?

An overview of what you can and cannot do when publishing material on the internet, see What can we do?.