Licence for Copernicus DEM instance COP-DEM-GLO-30-F Global 30m Full, Free & Open
Licence for the use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-301
Preamble
Copernicus is the European Union programme to observe and monitor the Earth. Copernicus is leveraging the strong
experience of key European organisations to provide Earth observation data and value added information for environmental as
well as civil security applications. For the space component, Copernicus relies on the expertise of ESA to deliver and operate,
together with EUMETSAT, the space infrastructure, in particular the different Sentinel satellite missions dedicated to
Copernicus. For the service component, Copernicus relies on the expertise in data analysis and modelling of ECMWF, JRC, the
EEA, Mercator Océan, Frontex, EMSA, and the SatCen. The in situ component is shared between the different actors of the
service component with the leading role of the EEA. The European Commission is responsible for the overall coordination of
Copernicus.
Copernicus data and information policy, regulated under European law2, ensures access on a full, open and free-of-charge
basis as a rule with rare exceptions when needed to protect the security interest of the Union and its Member States as well as
third party IPRs.
Copernicus aims at cross-consistency in the use of Digital Elevation Models (DEM) at different resolutions for Copernicus data
and information as well as geo-referenced data and information used and generated in the context of the European Union
public tasks. The purpose is to ensure the use of a stable reference DEM in the broader Copernicus data ecosystem to facilitate
data comparison and fusion.
This licence concerns the use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 and for the reason stated above it is important to make
available this Copernicus WorldDEM-30 to as many users as possible, Copernicus is therefore making it available on a free
basis for the general public under the terms and conditions of this Licence. The higher resolution, Copernicus WorldDEM-10 is
subject of a separate licence and distribution to the general public of these higher resolution DEMs is expressly excluded from
this Licence.
Article 1. Acceptance
The user must accept the terms and conditions of this licence to benefit from the rights of use granted in this licence.
Article 2. Definitions
The ‘licence’ means the present document defining the terms and conditions for the use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 by
the general public;
‘DEM’ (digital elevation model): is a general term for a grid-based digital representation for a topographic surface, composed
of elevations on the Earth;
‘Copernicus WorldDEM-30’ means the WorldDEM product derived from the TanDEM-X Mission data produced by Airbus
Defence and Space GmbH in a “Copernicus DEM” version consisting of a Digital Surface Model providing a horizontal
sampling of 30m with a worldwide/global coverage of all Earth landmasses provided by the Licensor to the User;
‘Licensor’ means the entity offering these terms and conditions for the use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 in the framework
of the European Union Copernicus Programme;
‘Provider’ means the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 provider, i.e. Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Germany;
‘User’ shall mean the natural or legal person accepting this licence in order to obtain User rights to the Copernicus WorldDEM30 from Licensor;
‘Subsequent User’ any user who did not receive the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 from the Licensor;
‘General Public’ shall mean any natural or legal person;
‘Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)’ shall mean the rights resulting from the creation, use and exploitation of mental or
creative labour as defined through international Treaties and Conventions on Intellectual Property.

1 Copernicus is a trade mark owned by the European Union, WorldDEM is a trade mark owned by Airbus Defence and Space GmbH.
2 (Copernicus) Regulation (EU) No 377/2014 and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1159/2013.

Article 3. Scope
This licence governs the use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 when made available to the users by the Licensor. They do not
confer to the users a right to request the availability of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30.
The rights granted under this Licence are worldwide and without limitation in time.
Article 4. Right of Use
The Licensor grants to the User the following non-exclusive rights of use regarding the Copernicus WorldDEM-30:
(a)

reproduction;

(b)

distribution;

(c)

communication to the General Public;

(d)

adaptation, modification and combination with other data and information.

Article 5. Financial Conditions
The use rights granted under this licence are free of charge to the User.
Article 6. User Obligations
(a)

When communicating to the General Public or distributing the Copernicus WorldDEM-30, the User shall inform the
General Public of the source by using the following notice:
© DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS
by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved.

(b)

Where the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 data have been adapted or modified, the User shall provide the following
notice:
"produced using Copernicus WorldDEM-30 © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH
2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved”.

(c)

Users exercising the right of distribution or communication to the General Public of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30,
modified or not, must ensure that the Subsequent Users understand that neither the Licensor nor any other legal
entities in charge of the Copernicus programme or the delivery of Copernicus data and information under the
Copernicus programme may be held liable with regard to any aspect of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30. The
following sentence or its translation in any language shall be added by such Users in a licence or any legal warning
or notice covering their distribution or communication to the General Public of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30: "The
organisations in charge of the Copernicus programme by law or by delegation do not incur any liability for any use
of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30".

(d)

User shall make sure not to convey the impression to the General Public that the user's activities are officially
endorsed by the Provider, the Licensor or any other legal entities in charge of the Copernicus programme or the
delivery of Copernicus data and information under the Copernicus programme.

(e)

Where the user grants to any Subsequent User the rights to distribute or communicate to the General Public the
Copernicus WorldDEM-30, modified or not, he shall ensure that its Subsequent Users are bound by the above
obligations.

Article 7. Warranty and Liability
The Copernicus WorldDEM-30 is made available to the Users 'as is'. The User uses it under its own responsibility. Neither the
Licensor nor any other legal entities in charge of the Copernicus programme or the delivery of Copernicus data and
information under the Copernicus programme nor the Provider may be held liable for any type of damages resulting from the
use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30. The User will protect the Licensor and these legal entities and the Provider against any
liability claim resulting from its use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30.
Article 8. Technical specifications
The technical specifications of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 is documented by the Provider and the Licensor indicates to the
Users how these technical specifications are made available to them.

Article 9. IPRs and Related Rights
The Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) and related rights attached to the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 does not belong to
Copernicus, the Licensor was granted the right to sublicense the use of the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 by the Provider. The
Provider has not relinquished the IPR and related rights it or its licensors holds on the Copernicus WorldDEM™-30 and the
User is not receiving any IPR titles on the Copernicus WorldDEM-30 through this Licence.
This Licence does not confer any right to the use of the Provider’s trademarks or logos unless explicitly authorized by the
Provider. The use of the trade mark WorldDEM is authorised when used in the context of these terms and conditions and
referring to Copernicus WorldDEM-30.
The use of the Copernicus trademark is authorised under the terms and conditions set out in the trademark licence available
on the copernicus.eu website.
Neither the Licensor nor the Provider will claim any IPRs recognised under International treaties or under the European
Union law as obtained by the User through his own work while exercising the use rights granted in this licence.
Article 9. Termination
If the User breaches any of the obligations arising from this Licence, the Licensor may terminate it with the immediate result of
the User losing all the rights granted under this Licence.