Copyright Notice

Last updated: April 2026

This notice covers two distinct things — the Heratio software and the archival records held within it. Different rules apply to each.

1. The Heratio software

The Heratio platform is published by The Archive and Heritage Group (Pty) Ltd and licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License, version 3 or later (AGPL-3.0-or-later).

You are free to use, study, modify and redistribute the software under those terms. Network use of a modified version requires that the modified source be made available to its users.

2. Archival records and digital objects

Copyright in individual records — descriptive content, images, audio, video, 3D scans, finding aids, transcriptions, annotations and supporting metadata — is not transferred to The Archive and Heritage Group simply because a record is hosted in Heratio. Copyright continues to vest in the original creator, donor, depositor, rights holder, or their successors and assigns, except where:

• the work is in the public domain in the relevant jurisdiction;
• a deed of donation, deposit agreement or transfer of copyright has explicitly assigned rights to the operating institution; or
• the work was created by staff of the operating institution in the course of their duties (work-for-hire).

The presence of a record in the catalogue is therefore not authorisation to reproduce it.

Per-record rights

Each record page surfaces the rights status that applies to that record. Look for:

• A rights statement (e.g. "In Copyright", "No Known Copyright", "CC BY 4.0") drawn from RightsStatements.org or Creative Commons.
• A reproduction conditions field (ISAD-G area 3.4) with the institution's specific terms.
• An ODRL policy that machine-encodes what is permitted (view, download, print, redistribute, AI training, derivative works).
• For records flagged under our ICIP / Indigenous-data overlay, additional community-imposed terms — including TK/BC Labels and OCAP® principles — that take precedence over default reuse rights.

If a record carries no explicit statement, the conservative default is all rights reserved: contact the institution before reusing.

3. Permitted use without authorisation

Subject to applicable law in your jurisdiction, the following uses generally do not require permission:

• Personal research, study and private viewing in the catalogue.
• Brief quotation for criticism, review, news reporting or scholarship, with attribution (fair dealing / fair use).
• Linking to a record's public URL.
• Use of metadata (titles, dates, creators, identifiers) under CC0 — Heratio releases descriptive metadata into the public domain to support discovery and federation.

Use beyond these limits — commercial use, mass download, redistribution, derivative works, AI / ML training corpora — requires written authorisation from the rights holder. Where the institution is not the rights holder, it can typically only grant access permission, not reuse rights.

4. AI / machine-learning training

The Archive and Heritage Group (Pty) Ltd does not consent to its catalogue records, descriptions, transcriptions, digital objects or metadata being used as training data for generative AI / large language models / image-generation models without an express written agreement.

This applies to operators of crawlers, scrapers, dataset compilers and model trainers. The site publishes appropriate signals (robots.txt, noai / noimageai meta tags, ODRL policies) to make this position machine-readable.

If you operate or train a model and your data inputs include Heratio-hosted material, contact us to regularise.

5. Reproduction requests

For uses requiring authorisation, file a Reproduction Request at /research/reproductions. The system tracks the request, captures the intended use, applies the relevant ODRL policy, generates a quote where applicable, and issues a digital licence on completion.

Common licences issued:

• Personal-use licence — small fee, watermarked file.
• Editorial licence — print/online editorial use, single edition.
• Commercial licence — quoted on application.
• Indigenous-community licence — issued in consultation with the relevant community per ICIP / OCAP.
• CC BY 4.0 — for works the institution holds copyright in and chooses to release openly.

6. Citation

When citing a record, please include all of:

Creator (where known). Title of record. Reference code. Heratio, [URL]. Accessed [date].

Each record page surfaces a "Cite this record" block with the formatted citation already filled in (Chicago, MLA, APA, BibTeX).

7. Takedown — copyright complaints

If you believe material in Heratio has been published without authorisation from the copyright holder, send a written notice to the address below identifying:

1. The work alleged to be infringing (record URL).
2. Your relationship to the copyright holder, with evidence of ownership.
3. A statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorised.
4. Your contact details and signature.

We acknowledge complaints within five working days. Material is taken offline pending review where the complaint is prima facie substantiated. False or malicious complaints may incur liability.

8. Cultural sensitivity

In addition to copyright, some material is restricted on cultural grounds — for example, secret/sacred Indigenous knowledge, ceremonial material, or material covered by a community consent regime. Restrictions of this kind sit alongside (and often outlast) copyright protection. Where a TK/BC Label or community restriction is recorded against a record, honour the community's terms even if the work is otherwise out of copyright.

See Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) and the OCAP® overlay in the help centre.

9. International scope

Heratio is deployed in multiple jurisdictions. Where local statute (e.g. South Africa's Copyright Act 98 of 1978, the United Kingdom's CDPA 1988, the United States' 17 USC, the European Union's InfoSoc and DSM directives, Australia's Copyright Act 1968, Canada's Copyright Act, etc.) imposes stricter or different requirements than this notice, the local statute prevails for material located in or accessed from that jurisdiction.

10. Contact

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This notice is for general guidance and is not a substitute for legal advice. If your intended use raises a substantive question, consult a copyright lawyer in the relevant jurisdiction.