Press release 2009-05-29: STIM first in Sweden with Creative Commons licence

STIM, the Swedish Performing Rights Society, is the first rights organisation in Sweden to offers its members the opportunity to sign a so-called Creative Commons licence (CC) for a trial two-year period. The licence enables creators to release individual works for non-commercial use.

"STIM is a listening, modern and solution-oriented organisation," says Ingrid Herrström, head of STIM's member services. "We've come to realise that there's a demand for CC licences amongst some of our members. We do what our members want us to do, and so we've reviewed our agreements and decided that we can try it out to see how it works. STIM doesn't want to get in the way of our members if they work in certain ways."

This CC licence allows a STIM member to choose which songs are to be freely usable by a charity gala or in a non-commercial blog, for example.

However, there is much that a creative musician should bear in mind when using this licence model. A CC licence is permanent and cannot be cancelled. STIM can therefore not resume its monitoring activities in non-commercial contexts, as defined by the CC.

"If a creative work covered by a CC licence goes on to become a hit, it can be difficult to obtain royalties from its use and reproduction in commercial contexts as well," says Ms Herrström. "It will also be difficult to define non-commercial use and, in each case, distinguish it from commercial use."

For further information, please contact:

Ingrid Herrström, head of Member Services, tel: +46 (0)8-783 88 88

Susanne Bodin, head of Communications, tel: +46 (0)8-783 88 18

Download press release (pdf):

2009-05-29_stim_first_with_cc_licenses.pdf