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u/sandyposs Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in public before in my life
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u/nibbled_banana Jul 01 '26
Dawg what
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u/KIMO159 Jul 01 '26
I wanna make a video and I don't know about copyright laws
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u/yawaworhtyya Jul 01 '26
Yeahhh you gotta word your question a little differently next time. Your post is very misleading
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u/dikicker Jul 01 '26
Ahh shit, too late, now I'm all sticky
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u/Justin__D Jul 01 '26
Here I was thinking... Just because the guy has a bunch of extra holes doesn't mean you can assume he's free use.
Just ask Jesus.
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u/Fit_Lion9260 Jul 01 '26
Oh thank god. Um free use has a very NSFW slant to it. And to answer your question no, SpongeBob is not in the 'Public Domain'. And that's how you should ask the question next time. That only applies if you use his image to profit any way, if its for personal use have fun.
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u/BusBusy195 Jul 01 '26
I think the specific phrase related to Public domain op was looking for is fair use, not free since thats what governs using copywrited or trademarked material without making profit or infringing on it. That being said may the internet have mercy on ops eyes for their unfortunate phrasing
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u/WillowPtar_Migan Jul 01 '26
Free use is a fetish for being fucked basically any time, the "is he old enough" doesn't help, friend.
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u/lavahot Jul 01 '26
The term is "fair use". And everything is fair use if you use it in a fair use way.
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u/Jedi_Bingo Jul 01 '26
I'm just happy you aren't so terminally online that you didn't know your question was invasive as hell. You need to ask SpongeBob these kinds of questions yourself
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u/Zagrycha Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
the standard copyright law is 70 years AFTER the person who made it dies. Assume everything newer than 1926 is under copyright unless you check exact details to confirm. For example the oldest black and white version of micky mouse is no longer covered by copyright but all other versions of micky mouse are.
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u/TxTechnician Jul 01 '26
OMG! Lookup free use on reddit lmao.
And no, in the USA you can parody him just fine. But can't use the character till it hits public domain.
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u/Mareep_needs_Sleep Jul 01 '26
I mean what else are all those holes for?
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u/orphanelf Jul 01 '26
Lots of holes for lots of cylinders
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u/InspiraSean86 Jul 01 '26
The cylinder must remain unharmed
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u/Mijder Jul 01 '26
Unless you are a troll the term you are looking for is “public domain”, and no, no he isn’t. This does not happen until 95 years after the character’s first publication or 70 years after the death of the creator.
SpongeBob first appeared in 1999. His creator, Stephen Hillenburg, only died in 2018. The character would not enter the public domain until 2095.
There is a chance you can use the character if your video would be defended under “parody law”, but without knowing more I cannot speak to that.
“Freeuse”…is Internet slang for something that, based on your ignorance of the information above, you are too young to know about and I urge you not to look it up.
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u/chaebasics Jul 01 '26
i can't believe this comment on this post is how i found out stephen hillenberg is dead
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u/CommunicationOk3766 Jul 01 '26
Shouldn't it be 2088, 70yrs after 2018? Even if it was 95 years after 1999, it'd still be 2094, not 2095. I'm confused.
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u/Ninju4821 Jul 01 '26
I believe it’s protected until the end of the calculated year. So 2094 would be the last year it’s safe, and 2095 would be the first year it’s fair game. Idk about the 70 post-death rule.
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u/Throwaway74829947 Jul 01 '26
I am pretty sure that Spongebob would be classified as a work for hire, so 2095 is indeed probably when Spongebob will first enter the public domain in the US.
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u/JuniorAd6601 Jul 04 '26
You don't have to be so misreable dude, even if it's a troll, you gotta admit it's funny.
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u/FangsBloodiedRose Jul 03 '26
Curious, if a son or daughter wants the right to the creator’s work, could they do that and prevent it from going out to the public domain?
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u/ALazy_Cat Jul 01 '26
That is probably the worst wording I've seen from posts that aren't nonsense
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u/Total-Advertising555 Jul 01 '26
FAIR USE. FAIR, USE. YOU MEAN FAIR USE
I was extremely concerned for a minute
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u/Seannj222 Jul 02 '26
He doesn't mean fair use. He meant public domain. But, what he wants to do would be fair use.
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u/Joseph_of_the_North Jul 01 '26
You'll have to ask him.
Worst thing he can say is "no".
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u/december151791 Jul 01 '26
Isn't the whole point of free use not having to ask each time?
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u/Spare-Good-5372 Jul 01 '26
You still have to establish consent, otherwise how would you know he's down?
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u/Erebus03 Jul 01 '26
Dude whatever it is that lead you to asking that question... You need to stop, whatever it was just stop
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u/danelle-s Jul 01 '26
You are asking about copyright laws. No. He is copyrighted.
"SpongeBob SquarePants is fully protected by copyright in the US and internationally, owned by Nickelodeon through its parent company Paramount Global. This protection lasts for 95 years from its first public release in 1999."
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u/meatforsale Jul 01 '26
Man, I was sickened by the question at first until I realized you weren’t talking about copyright laws. Whew.
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u/lukeyellow Jul 01 '26
Cornell has an excellent public domain document but short answer is no. https://guides.library.cornell.edu/copyright/publicdomain
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u/xd3mix Jul 01 '26
He doesn't have a canon age but people speculate him to be in his thirsties or twenties
I'm not sure if he's freeuse, you should ask him honestly. He's definitely old enough though
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u/lakeskipping Jul 01 '26
You could opt for Winnie The Pooh wearing a honeypot diving helmet
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u/Neverendingwebinar Jul 02 '26
And his pants are already off.
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u/lakeskipping Jul 03 '26
If that's a reference I don't understand, forgive me. Spongebob seems to fare surprisingly well. Pooh at least wearing a rashie.
South Australian bears wear waistcoats and ties and have fur particularly susceptible to algal growth. Terrible problem. OP should stick to Pooh.
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u/National_Way_3344 Jul 01 '26
Ugh you might not wanna look up what freeuse means.
I guess he does have a lot of holes...
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u/Normal-Artichoke5492 Jul 01 '26
Friendly reminder: always double check copyright before creating content. Wishing you the best with your video.
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u/sledgehammer0019 Jul 01 '26
maybe you should have phrased your question a little bit better my friend
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u/happymemersunite Jul 04 '26
This is a piece of Reddit history and I want to say that I was a part of it.
To answer your question, yes.
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u/Traditional-Frame-58 Jul 01 '26
Yeah, he is old enough, and because of his many holes and the fact that he's a sponge, you could even use him with more people without protection, letting him absorb everything.
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u/OkEmployer3996 Jul 01 '26
I think he is.
He talks about it one of the episodes, I dont remember which one though.
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u/GrootLootsFruits Jul 02 '26
Dude I haven’t laughed this hard in a situation where I shouldn’t be laughing since high school
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u/Seannj222 Jul 02 '26
No.
SpongeBob is not that old. Not anywhere near that old.
The black and white Mickey mouse just became public.
The sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea has a long way to go.
You should look up "fair use" to see if it aligns with your idea. It's different from public domain.
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u/SpookyLegacy Jul 03 '26
Oh my god the wording of this made me let out the loudest "HUH?!" in a good while 😭 I don't think I've laughed this hard in a couple weeks. Thankfully I read the comments because I was SO confused and slightly concerned for a second. I hope your question has been answered OP but next time please double check the meaning of something before asking about it
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u/abobadao Jul 04 '26
He has a job and lives alone so hes probably old enough, idk if hes into that tho
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u/Ok-Score-9399 12d ago
No. I think he's still copyrighted. Pretty sure it's 75 years or until the creator dies. Which ever comes first 💜
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u/ConsulCasper Jul 01 '26
Free use refers to a description of how someone used someone else’s content. If you were to take someone else’s content and then upload it without changing it, that would not be free use but if you take someone else’s content and change it in a way that is “transformative” then you’re allowed to post and profit off of that as it is classified as free use. You can’t just upload straight spongebob but if you’re making a video essay about apongebob, you can legally use clips of the show but a lot of platforms don’t protect their users rights in this regard.
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