Content Creation Tips:  Choosing a License Type

Congratulations if you have decided to create a PocketLearn title.  Whether you are creating it for your personal use or to share with others, PocketLearn content creation tools enable you to provide license information that becomes part of the title.  In the world of software, this information is also known as a license agreement or an End User License Agreement (EULA).  Before we discuss licensing agreements, let's quickly examine the concept of intellectual property.

Intellectual Property

Basically, any PocketLearn title that you create (this also applies to any written materials, software, or other types of creative expressions) is your intellectual property.  It is something of value that belongs to you.  As its owner, it is your right to have some say as to how others are allowed to use it.  One way to protect this right is called a copyright.  Typically, works such as PocketLearn titles can be protected by copyright, which, in the United States for example,  you can obtain from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.  A copyright grants you the right to control your creation, particularly in regards to who can use, distribute, copy, and sell it.  And the the law will be on your side if someone attempts to do any of those things without your authorization.  PocketLearn content creation tools allow you (but don't require you) to provide a copyright statement for titles you create.  We advise you to investigate the copyright and other types of protection afforded by the government of the country in which you reside.  We don't give legal advice at PocketLearn, but you can research these things for yourself or consult someone in the legal profession.  In the United States, you can learn more by visiting the Patent and Trademark office web site:  www.uspto.gov. 

The License Agreement

A license agreement allows you to define "up front" exactly how a potential user of your title may utilize it.  It can impose conditions and/or restrictions on its use.  If there is a breach of the license agreement, it may result in termination of the license, and potentially the right for you to sue.  When you create a PocketLearn title, you define two key license-related pieces of information that become part of the title and are viewable by anyone who opens the title using a PocketLearn Viewer. The first piece of information is a general license type.  This is a generic licensing category that gives the end user a quick indication of what to expect.  Content creators must choose from one of the available generic license types.

The License Type

Below is a list and accompanying descriptions of the available license types:

• free - Individuals are free to use this fully functional title without having to pay a fee to its creator.
   
• demo - This is a limited title which demonstrates the capabilities of its commercial counterpart. Creators of these titles usually limit the number of sections, cards, test, etc. and are designed to entice the end user to purchase the commercial title.  Typically, the commercial counterpart is also found in the PocketLearn web site repository, but commercial titles cannot be downloaded until they are purchased.
   
• donation - Individuals are free to use this fully functional title, and a donation to its creator is appreciated, but not required.
   
• convdemo (convertible demo) - This is a demo title that can be "converted" to a commercial title when a special "unlock key" is entered.  This "unlock key" is typically provided to the end user upon purchase of the title.
   
• commercial - This is a fully functional commercial title.  Typically, the end user has previously downloaded and evaluated the "demo" version of the title.  This type of license does not use the "honor system" because commercial titles are not usually made available until they're paid for.  On the PocketLearn site, commercial titles are not downloadable until they are purchased.
   
• trial - This is a fully functional title, but end users who want to continue using it after a specified amount of time must pay the creator a fee.  This license type utilizes the "honor system", as there is no mechanism to entice or force the end user to pay.
   
• other - This license type is used for titles that do not fit into any other pre-defined category.  All license details will be found in the title's license description.

The license type is also used in the title submittal process (to the PocketLearn repository) to catch errors and to determine how we otherwise manage the title after it is submitted.  For example, trying to submit a "demo" or "free" title and at the same time setting a price, is considered an error.  Also, if a publisher is submitting a "commercial" title, we know that we can't allow it to be subsequently downloaded unless a license is first purchased.  The finer details of the license are found in the license description (see below).

The License Description

Once the generic license type is selected, the second piece of license-related information is the optional license description.  Any important license details should be specified here.  Title creators, for example, may want to limit the number of simultaneous devices that can view the title, or how many copies can be kept.  They may want to include some statement releasing them from liability, should there be errors in the content.  Creators of "trial" titles are encouraged to specify the time period that the end user is allowed to evaluate the title before they must pay a fee.  This information is completely under the control of the creator.  We suggest that you examine already-written software license agreements to give you some ideas about what type of information should be included.  Note that the license description is optional.  If you do not provide it, you impose no restrictions on the use of your title, but be sure you are ready to assume that risk.