So.. asking for a friend ;-)

We probably all know, that some music is available as free-to-use with attribution, for non-commercial purposes, but not free for commercial use. I'm pretty sure that this means, among other things, that I can't resell the music.

“NonCommercial means not primarily intended for or directed towards commercial advantage or monetary compensation.”

I have read this:

https://wiki.creativecommons.org/wiki/NonCommercial_interpretation​

but if I understand it correctly it seems to state that what constitutes commercial use is purposefully somewhat vague and fuzzy. Quoting:

“The inclusion of “primarily” in the definition recognizes that no activity is completely disconnected from commercial activity; it is only the primary purpose of the reuse that needs to be considered.”

I'm in doubt about what this means applied to video game trailers, and devlogs published on streaming sites such as Odysee, YouTube, etc.

For example, does it mean:

(1) I can't use such music for trailers, which advertise the game. (I'm almost certain this is the case. But only 99% sure.)

(2) I can't use such music for a devlog video on a streaming platform. The devlog doesn't directly advertise the game, but at the end of the development project there will eventually be a commercial product. So one could argue that all the devlogs connected to this product actually did have effects on the commercial outcome of the product. Therefore every devlog must be considered as commercial purpose.

Thanks for any thoughts on this.

It means whatever the original owner intended it to mean. “Commercial” is a vague and ill-defined term. Only a court could decide whether your specific use counted or not. If in doubt, get music that you have full usage rights for.

I would interpret it like this:

• You can't use it in commercial games (obviously).
• You can't use it in promotional material for commercial game, including trailers and devlogs (which should also be obvious, so why are you asking?).
• You can't use it on revenue-producing websites. That includes youtube videos even when they are not monetized, because youtube itself is a revenue-producing website.
• You can't use it at all when acting as an agent of any for-profit company. If the same company produces both a commercial and a non-commercial game, you can't use the music in either one.
• You can't use it for fundraising activities by a non-profit organization if the funds are used by the organization directly.

However:

• Privately listening to the music while developing a commercial game should be OK, so long as it's truly private. Don't store the music on company hardware and use headphones if coworkers are nearby.
• Using the music in private freeware projects is probably OK, even if you are also employed by a for-profit game development company.
• Using it for a non-fundraising activities by a non-profit organization is probably OK.
• Using it for fundraising for a charitable cause is probably OK so long as the fundraising is neither done by a for-profit company nor by a organization that directly benefits from the fundraising.
• You can use it on websites that are neither run by a for-profit company nor revenue-producing, even though web hosting itself is obviously a commercial activity.

This is ethical advice, not legal advice.

a light breeze said:
(which should also be obvious, so why are you asking?).

It wasn't so obvious to me, (and still isn't).

Thanks for your interpretation on this, btw, it's always good to get different perspectives.

For me, it all hinges on what constitutes “primarily commercial”. Even devlogs are a vague concept. Some are tutorials targeted at other developers. Example: "Can a tutorial video (which shows or teaches the creative process, or aspects of work, or even strategies to cope with work-life-balance) by a developer who happens to work on a commercial game project, and who publishes this educational content on a YT channel, which also contains promotional material in seperate videos, be considered primarily commercial?"

This could be yes, or no depending on who you ask, depending on the content of the video, etc...

a light breeze said:
You can't use it on revenue-producing websites

Some of these sites state you can use music under their non-commercial license even on YT (even for monetized video), for (among others) educational, tutorial purposes. It can be hard to guess the intent or categorize the commercial effect of media content with a tutorial or devlog. Are they primarily teaching? Are they primarily promoting?

I think the way to handle this is..

Kylotan said:
If in doubt, get music that you have full usage rights for.

And if you can, ask the original artist, before using their work. They can always decline, or ignore your question, both of which unambiguously say “no”.

For me, it all hinges on what constitutes “primarily commercial”. Even devlogs are a vague concept. Some are tutorials targeted at other developers. Example: "Can a tutorial video (which shows or teaches the creative process, or aspects of work, or even strategies to cope with work-life-balance) by a developer who happens to work on a commercial game project, and who publishes this educational content on a YT channel, which also contains promotional material in seperate videos, be considered primarily commercial?"

For me, the deciding factor is if its primarily a personal channel (where you share what you're working on because it's part of your life) or a commercial channel (where anything you post can be assumed to be an attempt to attract attention to the business, even if it's genuinely helpful). If it's under a business name, then it's automatically commercial. If it's under a personal name or personal alias, then it can be either one.

Some of these sites state you can use music under their non-commercial license even on YT (even for monetized video), for (among others) educational, tutorial purposes. It can be hard to guess the intent or categorize the commercial effect of media content with a tutorial or devlog. Are they primarily teaching? Are they primarily promoting?

On second thought, youtube's role in hosting videos is the same as the role of a web host, so non-monetized youtube videos that don't promote a commercial game or a for-profit company are probably OK. Monetized tutorials, on the other hand, are definitely unambiguously commercial activity. There are people who earn their living or even become wealthy from monetized tutorials. If you have explicit permission from the creator to use a piece of music in a monetized tutorial, treat this as an exception to the non-commercial clause, not an interpretation of it.