Public domain
From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change
Public domain is a phrase that describes something that belongs to all people in general: the public. It can mean that it is "public property". Public domain is only used to describe things such as photographs, drawings, written articles, books or plays, or similar things.
Another way to use the phrase is this: If a person has published something in a book or newspaper (and so it is no longer private), we say it is in the public domain. But in this usage it may still not belong to the public, it may be copyrighted.
A work can enter the public domain in many ways. Once the copyright expires, a work enters the public domain, but it may still be needed to note who created the work. Some works are in the public domain upon creation because they cannot be copyrighted based on various copyright laws. Examples include governmental works in some countries.
Even if some works are in the public domain due to not being copyrighted, there may be still non-copyright usage restrictions. For examples, even though the design of some national currencies may be ineligible for copyright, copying them for fraud is widely a very serious crime.
