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If it is on the Internet, it is free to use, right?

Not exactly. Just because content is on the Internet does not mean it is free to be used in any situation. All original content, regardless of access, may have copyright protection, even if it is not declared.

When in doubt, treat everything as under copyright, until proven otherwise.

What is Open Access? (OA)
Open Access refers to removing barriers such as "paywalls". Open Access initiatives seek to make research articles and other works easy to find and read, for free. It does not address copyright, but rather the methods of funding and accessing the research or other works.
What are Open Educational Resources (OER)?
Open Educational Resources are works that copyright owners have "opened" by adding a Creative Commons or other License that removes some copyright restrictions. The ideal is to allow others to "retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute" without needing to ask for permission, as long as the work is attributed to the copyright owner, giving credit where it is due.
U.S. GOVERNMENT WORKS (fairuse.stanford.edu)
"In the U.S., any work created by a federal government employee or officer is in the public domain, provided that the work was created in that person's official capacity."...
"Keep in mind that this rule applies only to works created by federal employees and not to works created by state or local government employees. However, state and local laws and court decisions are in the public domain."

Free (with conditions) Music OR Sound Effects

Try these first: Free use with attribution:

Free with Other Conditions:

BBC Sound Effects (sound-effects.bbcrewind.co.uk) - Free for noncommercial use
BenSound (bensound.com) - Free video background You can adapt the music for your project by editing the length or changing the sound. However you can not make a song, a re-mix or produce your own music with our music.
Fesliyan Studios Royalty Free Music & Free Sound Effects for Noncommercial projects
PacDV (pacdv.com) - no re-use You may use the sound effects and audio clips on this web site free of charge in your video, film, audio and multimedia productions but do not re-sell or re-license the sounds to anyone else, post on a web site for download, or link directly to individual sound files.
YouTube Audio Library (Only for use on YouTube, no third party use) About using the music: - You MUST include the full credits in your video description - You can NOT claim the music as your own - You can NOT sell the music anywhere - You can NOT remix the music without the author's consent - You can NOT use the music without giving any credits in the video description - You can NOT remove or add parts from/to the credits
more...less...
- You can NOT use third-party software to download the video/track, always use our download links
- You MUST contact the artist if you wish to use the music on any kind of project outside of YouTube ⚠️ Important:

- If you don't follow these policies, you can get a copyright claim/strike.
- If you need more information about using music, please get in touch with the artist.
YouTube Audio Royalty-Free Library (with Sign in to YouTube Studio)

Several sites offer music published under Creative Commons’ flexible copyright licenses.

Can I use any song with a CC license on it?

"Almost — you need to make sure that what you want to do with the music is OK under the terms of the particular Creative Commons license it’s under.

CC-licensed music isn’t free for all uses, only some — so make sure to check out the terms (you can find these by clicking on each song’s license icon)."

"Under CC licenses, synching the music to images amounts to transforming the music, so you can’t legally use a song under a CC No Derivative Works license in your video. Also, make sure to properly credit the musician and the track, as well as express the CC license the track is under."

ccMixter
Free Music Archive
Magnatune
Fugue Music
CASH Music
Opsound
Internet Archive’s Netlabels Collection

Music Discovery Tools (Browsers) : Check what conditions apply to content you use.

Browsers only find music or sounds; they cannot grant or deny permission for use.

What do I need to do to legally use content?

It depends on what you want use, and what you want to do
Always check what copyright and royalty conditions apply to the tunes you want to use.
When in doubt, link-to-URL-only

A piece of music or sound is protected under copyright as soon as it is captured in tangible format.

That copyrighted content can be used by the creator or licensed to others for their use.

Royalties are paid to the license owner each time the content is used.

If something is royalty free, there may still be a one-time fee for use, or subscription fee for use.

"Royalty-Free" DOES NOT MEAN "Copyright Free"

*ARTICLE: 13 Fantastic Places to Find Background Music for Your Video Content
"Royalty free music gives users the right to use copyrighted music without having to pay “royalties” for recurring use of the content.
In other words, royalty free music allows the buyer to pay the music license only once and use the music for as long as he or she wants.
Royalty free often gets mistaken for “free” music, which is not the case in many situations. The author or artist who has composed the music decides what kind of license it will have, and therefore, the costs associated."

A piece of music or sound is protected under copyright as soon as it is captured in tangible format.

That copyrighted content can be used by the creator or licensed to others for their use.

Royalties are paid to the license owner each time the content is used.

If something is "royalty free", there may still be a one-time fee or subscription fee for use.

Using music outside the classroom

If you want to use music for event on an FVTC Campus - Contact Student Life
Student Life, Events, Services
Otherwise, you would probably need to plan to pay for ad-free music like any other business, as the safest, and cheapest long-term solution. Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer and this is for informational purposes only. A small claims court for copyright infringement has been created, and it is expected that some nuisance suits will be used to test the system.
Best Music Streaming Services (consumerreports.org)
Need help? Ask a Librarian! Phone 920-735-5653 & Chat OR email us at library@fvtc.edu
Center for Instructional Excellence (CIE) 920-735-4816 online@fvtc.edu Appleton Main Campus (G118)