Title says everything.
Just to show a little love.
Do I need to pay for any commercial licensing?
What is a game skin? Do you mean as a player?
I think the answer is, “No”, you may not. Like any logo for any company it must be used appropriately.
It depends on what you would like to do with the logo. If you want to include a “Made with Corona” logo on a credits screen, that’s fine. Of course, you can simply show our splash screen to accomplish the same thing. You have to follow our brand standards here:
https://coronalabs.com/presskit.pdf
Other uses would likely not be approved. For example, if you want to use a bouncing Corona logo as your hero or you want to use it as coins as a pickup item, or some other game element, then no you may not. Any use that someone could interpret as an app/game that Corona Labs made would be unacceptable. Another example, you cannot use it as your app icon.
Rob
Ah ok I see.
I was gonna use it as player customization but I get it.
You seem to be struggling with understanding what art you can and can’t use. You should put effort into researching these concepts and talking with experts before you make decisions, but to get you a starting point, here are some things to consider.
Generally speaking, any artwork you find on the Internet, unless expressly stated otherwise, is copyrighted and not licensable for use. That’s the default at least here in the United States. Most of the world has similar intellectual property protections and are generally the same. You can always ask the copyright holder if they are willing to license their works to you. It never hurts to ask.
You need to research licensing and understand what it means. Some artists will make their work “Public Domain”, in which case you are free to use it. Other artists may make their artwork available under the “Creative Commons” license framework, which generally provides the art free of charge, but has other requirements like providing credit, links to the website where they sell their art, etc. They may make their artwork free of charge to non-commercial projects but charge for commercial usage. Others will sell you artwork and may have different fees for commercial vs. non-commercial projects. But all of this should be expressly stated where you found the art. If you don’t find information about licensing, then the assumption you should make is that you cannot use it, period. Of course, there is “fair use” but I don’t believe you are an educator or a member of the media, so your usage would likely not be considered “fair use”.
Commercial vs. non-commercial: Unless your app is 100% free (no selling the app for a fee in the app stores, no in-app purchases, no advertising) then your app is Commercial. Even if you’re building a portfolio site for the purpose of selling your services, then you’re advertising yourself which makes it commercial. This is important when looking for licensable artwork. If you’re going to make a penny from it ever, it’s commercial.
This includes music and sound effects too. It’s all considered artwork.
Again, we can’t provide specific legal advice. Your best bet is to spend time researching this topic and talking to lawyers who specialize in intellectual property. Many artists spell out their usage which helps make it easier on you to understand what you can and cannot use.
Rob
@Rob Thank you for the post! It was very informative and really opened my eyes in this subject matter.
What is a game skin? Do you mean as a player?
I think the answer is, “No”, you may not. Like any logo for any company it must be used appropriately.
It depends on what you would like to do with the logo. If you want to include a “Made with Corona” logo on a credits screen, that’s fine. Of course, you can simply show our splash screen to accomplish the same thing. You have to follow our brand standards here:
https://coronalabs.com/presskit.pdf
Other uses would likely not be approved. For example, if you want to use a bouncing Corona logo as your hero or you want to use it as coins as a pickup item, or some other game element, then no you may not. Any use that someone could interpret as an app/game that Corona Labs made would be unacceptable. Another example, you cannot use it as your app icon.
Rob
Ah ok I see.
I was gonna use it as player customization but I get it.
You seem to be struggling with understanding what art you can and can’t use. You should put effort into researching these concepts and talking with experts before you make decisions, but to get you a starting point, here are some things to consider.
Generally speaking, any artwork you find on the Internet, unless expressly stated otherwise, is copyrighted and not licensable for use. That’s the default at least here in the United States. Most of the world has similar intellectual property protections and are generally the same. You can always ask the copyright holder if they are willing to license their works to you. It never hurts to ask.
You need to research licensing and understand what it means. Some artists will make their work “Public Domain”, in which case you are free to use it. Other artists may make their artwork available under the “Creative Commons” license framework, which generally provides the art free of charge, but has other requirements like providing credit, links to the website where they sell their art, etc. They may make their artwork free of charge to non-commercial projects but charge for commercial usage. Others will sell you artwork and may have different fees for commercial vs. non-commercial projects. But all of this should be expressly stated where you found the art. If you don’t find information about licensing, then the assumption you should make is that you cannot use it, period. Of course, there is “fair use” but I don’t believe you are an educator or a member of the media, so your usage would likely not be considered “fair use”.
Commercial vs. non-commercial: Unless your app is 100% free (no selling the app for a fee in the app stores, no in-app purchases, no advertising) then your app is Commercial. Even if you’re building a portfolio site for the purpose of selling your services, then you’re advertising yourself which makes it commercial. This is important when looking for licensable artwork. If you’re going to make a penny from it ever, it’s commercial.
This includes music and sound effects too. It’s all considered artwork.
Again, we can’t provide specific legal advice. Your best bet is to spend time researching this topic and talking to lawyers who specialize in intellectual property. Many artists spell out their usage which helps make it easier on you to understand what you can and cannot use.
Rob
@Rob Thank you for the post! It was very informative and really opened my eyes in this subject matter.