Copyright and original work rules for sellers

You can sell a file on Esano only if you own it or have the right to sell it. Copied, traced and trademarked artwork is not allowed without permission.

What Esano requires from sellers

Esano's seller terms say you own, or have the rights to sell, every file you list. They also say there is no copied, traced or trademarked artwork without permission.

The Retailer Terms and Conditions go a step further. You promise that every product you offer is either:

• owned by you, with the right to sell it, or
• covered by the right intellectual property licenses, so you can sell it without further approval from any third party.

You agree to this when you open a shop. You also agree to follow DMCA takedown notices and other removal requests from Esano. See Open an Esano shop for the full sign-up steps.

You keep ownership of your products, product images, descriptions and marks. You give Esano a limited, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use your images, descriptions and marks to distribute and promote your products while you sell on Esano. See Esano seller terms in plain language.

Files that are usually safe to sell

• Designs, illustrations, cut files, templates and patterns you made yourself.
• Work you created for a client, but only if your agreement with the client lets you resell it.
• Assets you bought with a license that explicitly allows you to sell the files you make from them, without asking the creator first.

Always read the license that came with any asset you didn't make. A license for your own projects is not the same as permission to resell. Many licenses allow you to use an asset inside a product, but not to sell the asset itself.

Files that are not safe to sell

• Artwork you copied from someone else, even with small changes.
• Artwork you traced over, such as a photo or another artist's design.
• Logos, brand names, slogans and characters that someone else owns, unless you have permission. See Can you sell fan art or licensed characters?
• Another shop's files, resold or repackaged under your name.

What copyright covers

Copyright generally protects original creative work, such as drawings, patterns, photos, text and embroidery designs. Trademarks protect names, logos and other marks that identify a brand. Esano's terms prohibit infringing either one, as well as patents, trade secrets and other rights.

What happens if you list something you don't have rights to

Esano's terms let it remove content that infringes someone's rights, and suspend or end access for violations. If someone reports your listing, see What happens when a listing is reported. Sellers who infringe repeatedly can lose their accounts. See What happens to repeat infringers.

You are also responsible for the claim. Under the Retailer Terms, you agree to indemnify Esano, meaning you cover Esano's costs and losses from claims that your products infringe a third party's rights. See Liability, law and disputes in Esano's terms.

Related rules

Copyright is one part of Esano's content standards. Read What's not allowed on Esano for everything else that is and isn't allowed.