Content Licensing Policy

01Purpose and Scope

SkyscrapersInfo is an independent international media and research platform dedicated to skyscrapers, tall buildings, skyline photography, architectural developments, building data and associated visual research. The Operator may, at its discretion, make selected original or properly licensed content available for commercial licensing, subject to ownership verification, asset availability, intended use and the conclusion of an individual written agreement.

There is an important distinction between four separate situations, each governed by different rules:

• Viewing publicly accessible website content — ordinary browsing by individuals and organisations, including for professional research, does not by itself require a separate content licence. Reproduction, distribution and other restricted uses remain subject to applicable rights, permissions and legal exceptions.
• Lawful uses under copyright exceptions or existing open licences — for example quotation, criticism, review, news reporting or any use authorised by an independent Creative Commons or similar licence already granted by the actual rights holder.
• Obtaining separate commercial permission from the Operator — a defined permission granted under an individually negotiated written agreement.
• Acquiring ownership of intellectual property — a copyright assignment, which is a distinct legal transaction and is not provided through this page.

This page provides general information only. No commercial licence, representation or binding contractual rights are created merely by accessing, reading or contacting the Operator in connection with this page.

A separately negotiated licence from SKYSCRAPERS INFO LIMITED is required only where the proposed use requires permission from the Operator and the Operator actually owns or controls the relevant rights. Access to and ordinary browsing of the publicly accessible website, whether by individuals or organisations and including for professional research, do not in themselves require a separate content licence from the Operator. Reproduction, redistribution and other restricted uses remain subject to applicable copyright law, valid licences, permissions and statutory exceptions.

Uses that do not require permission from the Operator include, among others, those lawfully permitted by applicable copyright exceptions, public-domain status, Creative Commons or other licences granted by the actual rights holder, and independent permission obtained directly from another rights holder. Where permission is required from a third party, that permission must be sought from the third party itself.

The Operator cannot impose additional licensing conditions on third-party content that it does not control. The webpage itself grants no new commercial licence and creates no contractual rights.

02Categories of Potentially Licensable Content

The Operator may consider licensing requests in respect of the following categories, but only where the Operator can establish sufficient rights to authorise the proposed use:

Photography

Original photographs of skyscrapers, skylines, architectural details, construction progress and cityscapes, where the necessary rights have been validly acquired by the Operator.

Video

Original architectural footage, skyline videos, time-lapse recordings and suitable documentary media, where onward licensing rights have been secured.

360° and immersive media

Panoramic photographs, spherical video, immersive architectural footage and related original media where the Operator controls the necessary rights.

Editorial content

Original articles, editorial writing, descriptions, interviews and commissioned editorial material where rights have been validly acquired from contributors and other rights holders.

Research and visualisations

Original charts, graphics, comparative visualisations, illustrations and creative presentations of architectural research produced or properly licensed by the Operator.

Maps and diagrams

Original cartographic illustrations and visual diagrams created or licensed with sufficient onward licensing rights.

Special projects

Bespoke media and content packages created under separately agreed production or commercial contracts.

03Materials Excluded from Operator Licensing

The Operator cannot automatically licence third-party materials merely because they appear on the website. Examples of materials that ordinarily remain outside the Operator's licensing authority include, without limitation:

• Third-party stock photography.
• Photographs and images whose licensing rights have not been independently confirmed.
• Hosted files whose commercial sublicensing rights are not established.
• Developer-owned architectural renderings.
• Photographs and videos belonging to independent creators.
• Third-party diagrams, maps and illustrations.
• External databases and proprietary data compilations.
• Third-party trademarks and logos.
• Images used under Creative Commons licences or other permissions that do not authorise sublicensing by the Operator.
• Embedded media hosted by independent platforms.

A general website licence cannot override the original third-party licence. Works released under Creative Commons or comparable open licences remain subject to their original licence conditions, and the Operator does not claim the authority to control or withdraw rights independently granted by the real licensor.

04Copyright Ownership and Chain of Title

An asset may be licensed only if the Operator holds, or has been validly authorised to grant, the rights necessary for the proposed use. The Operator's authority to licence a particular work may arise from one or more of the following:

1. Original creation by the Operator where legally applicable.
2. A valid copyright assignment from the rights holder.
3. An appropriate employee-work ownership arrangement under applicable law.
4. A specific licence authorising the Operator to grant the intended onward rights.
5. Another valid legal basis establishing the necessary rights.

Founder-created and contributor-created content requires particular attention when establishing ownership and licensing authority. A photograph taken personally by a founder, director, freelancer or contractor does not automatically belong to the incorporated company. Individual ownership, company ownership and contractual licensing authority are treated as distinct legal positions.

Commissioning or paying for content does not necessarily establish complete ownership or unrestricted sublicensing rights. The applicable contributor agreement and territorial rights must be reviewed before any licensing transaction is concluded. The Operator must establish and appropriately document sufficient licensing authority before entering into a transaction; the scope of documentary assurances or evidence disclosed to a prospective licensee depends on the transaction, applicable confidentiality obligations and any separate agreement. Licensing contracts, contributor assignments and similar internal documents are not made available for public inspection.

The Operator does not represent that a complete archive-wide rights audit, formal verification programme or documented asset clearance workflow is currently in operation across the entire existing content library. Each transaction is considered on its own facts and on the basis of the rights actually held or controlled in respect of the specific asset concerned.

05Types of Licensing Arrangements

Licensing arrangements considered by the Operator are described below. No type is automatically offered or guaranteed; each is the subject of separate negotiation and written agreement.

Non-exclusive licence

The Operator may continue using the material and, subject to other contractual commitments, may also license it to other parties within the agreed scope.

Sole licence

The licensee receives defined exclusivity against other third-party licensees within the agreed scope, while the Operator may retain the right to use the work internally.

Exclusive licence

Under the Hong Kong Copyright Ordinance (Cap. 528), an exclusive licence has the meaning given to it in section 103: within the specifically licensed rights and scope, a statutory exclusive licence authorises the licensee to the exclusion of all other persons, including the copyright owner granting the licence. The licensor may retain rights outside the agreed exclusive scope. Where an exclusive licence is to be effective under that provision, it requires an instrument in writing signed by or on behalf of the copyright owner. This is distinct from a non-exclusive licence (where the licensor may license others) and from a sole licence (where the licensor grants exclusive protection against other third-party licensees but may retain its own use). Exclusive rights are not offered automatically and remain subject to separate negotiation, enhanced rights verification and a carefully drafted written agreement. An assignment of copyright is a separate transaction, governed by its own statutory requirements as to writing and signature under applicable Hong Kong law.

Custom project licence

Rights are defined for a specific project, campaign, publication or distribution arrangement, on terms tailored to that transaction.

Non-exclusive licensing is the general commercial starting point for separately negotiated agreements. Sole and exclusive licences require explicit confirmation, enhanced rights verification and a carefully drafted written agreement. The Operator's commercial practice is to use written contracts; this practice does not, of itself, alter the statutory formalities applicable to a particular transaction, and nothing on this page should be read as asserting that every non-exclusive permission under all applicable laws is invalid unless a physically signed contract exists. Exclusivity, comprehensive contractual warranties and full copyright assignment are not automatically offered and remain subject to separate negotiation.

06Permitted Uses and Restrictions

Uses that may be negotiated include, where appropriate and subject to clearance:

• Editorial publication.
• Books, newspapers, magazines and digital publishing.
• Documentary films and television.
• Corporate presentations.
• Architectural exhibitions.
• Educational products.
• Commercial marketing and promotional campaigns.
• Real-estate and architectural presentations.
• Licensed digital publications.
• Appropriate social-media distribution.

Editorial, promotional and advertising uses are treated as distinct. A licence for editorial publication does not automatically include endorsement, advertising, merchandising or other promotional use. A separately agreed licence should define which reproduction, distribution, communication, editing and publication activities are actually permitted. No universal, unrestricted usage permission is offered by this page.

07Territory, Media, Term and Exclusivity

Each individual agreement may specify the following parameters, among others:

• Licensed assets and their identifying references.
• Territory or geographic distribution.
• Language.
• Permitted media and platforms.
• Commercial or editorial purpose.
• Start and end dates.
• Number of publications or uses, where relevant.
• Scope of exclusivity.
• Whether adaptations or derivative works are authorised.
• Whether sublicensing or transfer is permitted.
• Archiving and continued availability after licence expiry.
• Any negotiated usage restrictions.

Standard worldwide or perpetual rights are not assumed. Future media uses are not automatically covered without express agreement.

08Attribution, Moral Rights and Integrity

Attribution requirements may apply depending on the rights holder, the licence granted and applicable law. Moral rights can exist independently from ownership of economic copyright, and a commercial licence does not automatically transfer moral rights.

Any proposed waiver, consent or treatment affecting moral rights must comply with applicable law and, where necessary, be addressed in an appropriate written agreement.

Ordinary technical formatting is distinguished from material editing, manipulation or misleading alteration of a work. Attribution alone does not legitimise reuse without permission. An author does not automatically lose attribution rights because their work has been licensed commercially.

09Photography, Architecture and Third-Party Clearances

A photograph of a building may raise rights and permissions distinct from the copyright in the photograph itself. Depending on location, subject, intended use and applicable law, relevant considerations may include:

• Rights in the underlying photographs or footage.
• Third-party trademarks or logos.
• Architectural designs and applicable exceptions.
• Identifiable people and privacy-related requirements.
• Property access conditions.
• Private premises or observation-deck rules.
• Commercial filming restrictions.
• Drone and aviation permits.
• Security-sensitive locations.
• Music, performances or other incorporated third-party works.
• Advertising and endorsement implications.

Owning copyright in a photograph does not necessarily establish all clearances needed for a particular advertisement or commercial use, and the appearance of a building does not create a universal right to use its image commercially in every country.

Individual agreements identify any express clearances actually provided by the Operator and any clearances remaining the licensee's responsibility. Model releases, property releases and similar documents are not represented as existing unless they have been verified.

10Video, 360° and Immersive Content

Beyond ordinary licensing parameters, panoramic and audiovisual works may be subject to additional technical and legal considerations. Possible agreements may define, among other matters:

• Resolution and file format.
• Permitted delivery and exhibition platforms.
• Interactive or non-interactive presentation.
• 360° projection and immersive viewing.
• Cropping and reframing.
• Stills extracted from video.
• Re-encoding and technical adaptations.
• Distribution via streaming services.
• Incorporation into applications or virtual experiences.
• Storage, sharing and access rights.

Any representation about available resolutions, original files, technical compatibility or delivery formats reflects only verified assets. VR, AR, raw footage, drone footage and other specific technical deliverables are not promised unless confirmed.

11Research, Data, Rankings and Databases

A clear distinction is maintained between facts and protected expression. Building names, architectural heights, dates, addresses, geographic coordinates and similar factual information are not automatically owned by the Operator as copyright-protected property.

Original text, illustrations, visualisation design and creative selection or arrangement may receive copyright protection where applicable. Third-party proprietary databases may impose contractual or copyright-related limitations independent of individual facts.

A data-related agreement may cover licensed original compilations, reports, visualisations or access to a properly controlled dataset. Independent data organisations such as the Council on Vertical Urbanism (CVU, formerly the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat — CTBUH), The Skyscraper Center or similar providers are not represented as affiliated licensing partners unless verified. The Operator does not claim exclusive ownership of universal building statistics and does not seek to prohibit activity that applicable law or a valid third-party licence permits.

12AI-Generated and AI-Assisted Materials

The Operator may use AI tools in creating or editing certain content. AI involvement does not automatically establish exclusive copyright ownership, originality, or the right to sublicense an output. Rights depend on the particular material, the creation process, applicable contracts, platform terms and the jurisdiction in question.

The following distinctions are observed:

• Original human-created work assisted by AI.
• AI-generated illustrations or renderings.
• Third-party media merely selected or curated with AI assistance.
• Stock photographs obtained through an automated website builder or platform.

Any material proposed for commercial licensing must first undergo appropriate verification of the rights necessary for the intended transaction. Synthetic architectural imagery must not be presented as authenticated photography without an appropriate factual basis and clear disclosure where necessary. Commercial licensing of any such material is subject to prior verification and documentation of the rights necessary for the proposed transaction; the Operator does not represent that the full existing image archive has already passed such a process.

13AI Training, Machine Learning and Automated Extraction

A negotiated content licence does not, by default, authorise additional copying or use of the licensed material for:

• Training or fine-tuning generative AI models.
• Building commercial machine-learning datasets.
• Redistributing licensed content as a stock-media collection.
• Creating competing commercial image libraries.
• Supplying assets to third-party model-training providers.
• Other materially different uses outside the agreed scope.

Such uses require separate permission to the extent permission is legally required. Applicable statutory exceptions and rights already granted by independent licensors are preserved. The Operator does not assert that every form of web indexing, text-and-data mining or automated analysis is unlawful in every jurisdiction. Website-wide crawler access controls, robots directives and AI indexing policy are treated as separate technical and legal questions and are not created by this page.

14Requesting a Licence

To help scope a licensing request, a prospective commercial customer is invited to provide the following information, where available:

• Name and organisation.
• A reliable business contact.
• Asset URL or other identification.
• Intended use.
• Editorial or advertising context.
• Distribution platforms.
• Territory and language.
• Intended duration.
• Required file specifications.
• Whether editing, sublicensing or exclusivity is requested.
• Target publication date.

The general contact page at /contact is the existing destination for written enquiries. As this page is published in Draft status pending operator approval, no representation is made that /contact currently accepts functional licensing enquiries or that a dedicated licensing channel is in operation. The status of any request channel should be confirmed before relying on it for time-sensitive matters.

15Quotations, Fees, Payment and Delivery

If and when licensing services are offered, fees may depend on the assets involved, the purpose, territory, term, exclusivity, volume and contractual rights requested. No price table, package, discount or automatic approval time is published on this page. No public statement on this page constitutes a binding quotation unless expressly designated as such by the Operator.

Relevant commercial details may be established in a separate written quotation or agreement, which may address:

• Licence fees or royalties.
• Payment currency.
• Applicable taxes.
• Invoicing arrangements.
• Payment deadlines.
• Delivery milestones.
• Approved file formats.
• Additional production or editing charges.
• Conditions of cancellation or termination.
• Refunds where agreed or required by applicable law.

No payment processor, corporate bank detail, accepted cryptocurrency or refund guarantee is represented on this page. Commercial payment provisions belong in the relevant individual contract and remain consistent with applicable law.

16Licensing Agreements, Liability and Termination

A commercial licence is documented in a separate agreement appropriate to the transaction. Relevant terms may address:

• Identity and authority of the parties.
• Identification of the licensed works.
• Exact rights granted.
• Ownership and rights retained.
• Third-party rights and clearance responsibilities.
• Permitted modifications.
• Attribution.
• Confidentiality where appropriate.
• Fees, invoicing and payment.
• Contractual representations and warranties.
• Reasonable liability limitations.
• Indemnities where legally appropriate and expressly negotiated.
• Termination for material breach.
• Remedies for unauthorised use.
• Permitted post-termination archival use where agreed.
• Applicable law and dispute resolution where appropriate.

These provisions are not imposed as if a contract has already been accepted merely by opening this webpage. The Operator does not represent that all assets are free of third-party claims, and does not propose a blanket liability cap, compulsory arbitration provision or unrestricted customer indemnity. Mandatory legal rights are preserved. An individual signed contract may be necessary for certain exclusive arrangements or transfers of copyright under applicable law.

17Unauthorised Use, Complaints and Related Policies

Unauthorised uses of copyright-protected material may infringe relevant rights, subject to applicable laws, exceptions and existing licences. The Operator may seek remedies available under applicable law where it actually owns or controls the relevant rights.

The Operator does not claim rights over unprotected facts, public-domain works or third-party materials. For rights disputes, mistaken ownership claims or takedown requests, please refer to /takedown.

Related policies include:

• /copyright — Copyright information.
• /editorial-policy — Editorial standards.
• /disclaimer — Website information limitations.
• /takedown — Copyright complaints.
• /services — Commercial service information.
• /contact — General contact information.
• /service-terms — separate service conditions, which may be published at a future date where relevant.

Any bespoke licensing agreement governs its own transaction subject to applicable law. This general policy does not override the rights of third parties.