License Agreement Details
During the publication process, authors of accepted manuscripts will be required to accept our publication terms, typically through our website. These terms grant QOLAC permission to publish their articles under open access, releasing them under a Creative Commons license that enables others to view and reuse the content.
Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0)
The CC BY license allows for unrestricted dissemination and re-use of the article content, in alignment with open access principles. Authors grant users the right to freely access and reuse their work, with the sole condition of providing proper attribution. This licensing approach fosters the transfer and growth of scientific knowledge. The Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA) strongly recommends the use of CC BY for the open access publication. Notably, major research funders globally, including entities like the Wellcome Trust, the European Commission's Funding programmes, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Australian Governments recommend or mandate CC BY for the open access publication of supported research.
Creative Commons 1.0 Public Domain Dedication Waiver (CC0)
Employing the Creative Commons 1.0 Public Domain Dedication waiver (CC0 or CC zero) by default for data within articles aligns with the objective of maximizing knowledge benefit and promoting the broadest possible re-use. Notably, in certain jurisdictions, copyright doesn’t extend to data. CC0 effectively waives potential copyrights and the attribution requirement for data, not its presentation. In instances where research data tables or figures are reproduced, CC BY and attribution requirements apply.
As the use of big data techniques, like data mining, gains prominence, CC0 becomes a suitable licensing tool. In such cases, attributing data is often technically challenging due to the substantial volume, making CC0 the preferred choice for research outputs from innovative techniques.
Distinguishing between legal requirements and community norms is essential. While scientific community norms emphasize attribution through citation, it is not a legal mandate. Researchers are expected to refer to sources in various forms, usually through citation, across research reuse cases (including data and code). CC0 covers instances beyond long-established community norms, allowing further use without citation loss. For additional insights, we recommend consulting our Open Data page.
The license summaries provided below are sourced from the Creative Commons website:
CC BY 4.0 Summary:
You are free to:
Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
Attribution — You must give appropriate credit , provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made . You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
Note: Further details on terms set in italics are available on the Creative Commons web page.
CC0 1.0 Summary:
No Copyright
The person who associated a work with this deed has dedicated the work to the public domain by waiving all of his or her rights to the work worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.
You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. See Other Information below.
Other Information
In no way are the patent or trademark rights of any person affected by CC0, nor are the rights that other persons may have in the work or in how the work is used, such as publicity or privacy rights.
Unless expressly stated otherwise, the person who associated a work with this deed makes no warranties about the work, and disclaims liability for all uses of the work, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.
When using or citing the work, you should not imply endorsement by the author or the affirmer.
Note: Further details on terms available on the Creative Commons web page.
Last update: February 20, 2024