General Conditions
- In general, OVC's content—text, video, and audio—is not copyrighted.
- You may use OVC text, audio, or video for educational or informational purposes, including textbooks, public exhibits, and web pages.
- Some materials may contain a copyright notice. It is your responsibility to identify the copyright owner and to obtain permission before making use of this material.
- OVC materials may not be used to state or imply the endorsement by OVC or by any OVC employee of a commercial product, service, or activity, or used in any other manner that might mislead the public.
- Please acknowledge OVC as the source of used material. Our preference for the credit line for OVC-produced materials and vendor/grantee-produced materials published by OVC is provided below:
OVC-produced materials:
The [insert the name of your organization] gratefully acknowledges the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime, for allowing us to reproduce, [in part/in whole], [insert title]. This [article/publication/video/audio presentation] was prepared by the Office for Victims of Crime.
Vendor/Grantee-produced materials published by OVC:
The [insert the name of your organization] gratefully acknowledges the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime, for allowing us to reproduce, [in part/in whole], [insert title]. This [article/publication/video/audio presentation] was prepared by [name of contract/grantee] through [contract/grant number], awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this [article/publication/video/audio presentation] are those of the [author(s) or speaker(s)] and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Photography
Many photographs and images on the OVC website are not in the public domain and may not be reproduced and distributed without further permission from the source of the image/photograph.
Audio Recordings
Audio recordings are not protected by copyright unless noted. An audio recording may be downloaded, excerpted, or reproduced and distributed without further permission from OVC. However, use of a portion or segment of an audiotape, such as talent, narration, or music, may infringe a right of privacy or publicity and permission should be obtained from the source.
Video Recordings
Videotape, video files, and motion picture recordings produced by OVC are public domain materials and may be reproduced in their entirety (as one continuous video or segmented into clips) and freely distributed with this acknowledgement of OVC as the source:
The [insert the name of your organization] gratefully acknowledges the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime, for allowing us to reproduce, [in part/in whole], [insert title]. This video was prepared by [name of contract/grantee] through [contract/grant number], awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this video are those of the speaker(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Use of excerpts from a video, in the form of sound bites, still photographs, B-roll footage, and/or music may be restricted if the excerpt contains material licensed by OVC for use in the video as a whole. Copyrighted music or footage which is incorporated in an OVC production may not be used for any other purpose unless permission is obtained from the copyright owner.
While in most instances using non-copyrighted segments is permitted, use for commercial purposes of a portion or segment containing talent or a recognizable person may infringe a right of privacy or publicity, and permission should be obtained from the talent or recognizable person. These guidelines also apply to any live webcast.
Official OVC Seal and Logos
The OVC logo is the exclusive property of OVC and may not be used or reproduced without written permission. Permission to use or reproduce official insignia of OVC is granted on a case-by-case basis and involves the consideration of many relevant factors, including: the cost or benefit to the agency of granting the request, the unintended appearance of endorsement or authentication by OVC, the potential for misuse, the reputability of the use, and the extent of control by OVC over the ultimate use and distribution of any product(s) or publication(s) bearing official insignia of OVC. If permission is granted, OVC must approve the placement of the logo, seal, and tagline.
Under no circumstances shall you reproduce and release a product that duplicates the official Department of Justice header or the Oxford rule.
See OVC’s Publishing Guidelines for guidance on use of OVC’s logo on grantee-produced products that are published by OVC.
Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center
This policy also includes training and promotional materials produced under the Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center (OVC TTAC) contract. References to the OVC website, OVC logo, etc., are inclusive of OVC TTAC.
Contact
If further information or assistance is needed, you may contact Emily Bauernfeind, OVC Communications Specialist, at [email protected].