CapCut’s updated Terms of Service (TOS) as of June 12, 2025, has people talking (complaining? freaking out?). Some are claiming that the platform is pulling a Shark Tank perpetuity type of deal, essentially saying, “You use our tool? We own your content, forever, and can do whatever we want with it, including selling it.”
But is that what’s happening here, or is everyone overreacting?
Let's break down the content ownership, licenses, and resale rights across CapCut and several other major social media and creative platforms, and try to make sense of what’s really at stake.
CapCut
link to TOS (see link above)
Ownership: You retain ownership of your uploaded content but grant CapCut a broad, irrevocable, royalty‑free, transferable, sublicensable, perpetual, worldwide license to use, modify, distribute, and sublicense it—even to other users and third parties.
AI content unclear: Guidelines are ambiguous about rights based on AI-generated content.
Contrast: Strongest license to user content, enabling CapCut significant flexibility, including licensing to others.
Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Threads)
link to TOS (note: while each Meta platform does also have its own specific TOS, this is the umbrella Meta TOS)
Ownership: You retain ownership. Meta confirms user content remains yours, with a non-exclusive license limited to operating & improving the service.
Usage license: Broad license used mainly for service functions; Meta doesn’t claim ownership and says it cannot sell your content, although they do includes rights for AI training as per recent updates.
AI training: Explicitly includes content used for AI.
Deletion clause: Licenses generally end upon deletion.
X (formerly Twitter)
Ownership: You own it, as X states ☑️ “You retain ownership of your content”.
License: Grants X a broad, royalty-free license to use, reproduce, modify, distribute, and create derivative works globally, without compensation.
AI training: Recent terms explicitly include AI model training.
Termination: X may suspend/terminate your account at will.
Snapchat
Ownership: You keep your intellectual property rights in your content.
License: Grants Snap a worldwide, royalty‑free, sublicensable, transferable license to host, store, use, distribute, and promote content, and other users get a license for viewing and possibly using it.
Same pattern as Meta/X but with sublicensable rights to others.
Ownership: You retain all rights to your posts and content.
License: Provides LinkedIn with a non-exclusive license to display and use content based on your chosen visibility settings, and to use it in ads with your permission.
AI training: Terms allow LinkedIn (and Microsoft) to use content for AI, but users can opt out.
Use cases: Controlled by user’s visibility settings—less broad than others.
Adobe
Ownership: Adobe explicitly never assumes ownership of your content.
License: To operate services, Adobe has the necessary usage rights, but you always own the IP.
Resale: Creative Cloud demo assets cannot be used in products for resale/distribution. Stock assets are governed by Standard or Extended licenses; standalone file distribution is restricted, and resale is only allowed under Extended license.
AI training: Adobe may use user content for AI training —discussed in the community, but ownership rights are protected.
Canva
Ownership: Users retain ownership of their uploads.
User content license: Non-exclusive license granted to Canva to store and display only.
Content licensing: Free/CC0 content is licensed for permitted uses. Pro content is permitted within a single design and cannot be redistributed as standalone assets. Templates can't be resold as-is; you must customize.
AI: Canva may use user content for AI training if opted in.
Similarities
All platforms let users retain ownership of their content.
Each requires users to grant licenses, ranging from limited rights to service use, all the way to broad, sublicensable rights.
Resale restrictions are present everywhere: no one can fully monetize your raw content, except with specific licensing (Adobe Stock, Canva Pro).
AI usage: Most platforms include usage for AI/ML training, with varying opt-in/out capabilities.
Key Differences
License breadth
CapCut: The broadest. It IS perpetual and even transferable to third parties.
X and Snapchat: Broad and sublicensable, but seemingly limited to service context.
Meta & LinkedIn: Operational scope; Meta's policy is broader than LinkedIn's.
Adobe & Canva: Service-specific. No sublicensable use.
Resale rights
Adobe: allows resale via Extended license.
Canva: allowed only embedded in final projects, not standalone assets/templates.
Others: no resale of service content.
AI clarity
Meta, X, Adobe, Canva explicitly mention AI training; LinkedIn gives an opt-out; CapCut is silent.
Bottom Line
All platforms respect user ownership but differ dramatically in how they can use, share, license, or monetize your content.
CapCut offers the most permissive license, even to third parties, but does NOT include resale of your content. Still, be cautious.
Adobe and Canva are most protective, with clear limits on resale and no sublicensing.
Meta, X, Snapchat follow industry norms: you own it, but they can use it widely, including AI.
LinkedIn offers more user control by tying rights to visibility settings and allowing AI opt-out.