Press Releases
2008 June
Creative Commons Launches Global Case Studies Project
Jon Phillips, June 23rd, 2008
Brisbane, Australia & San Francisco, USA — 2008 June 24
Today Creative Commons (CC), in association with Creative Commons Australia, officially announced the release of the Case Studies Project, which is a large-scale community effort to encourage all to explore and add noteworthy global CC stories. Creative Commons provides free tools to allow copyright-holders to clearly show rights associated with creative works, and now this project shows how notable adopters like author Cory Doctorow, web video-sharing company Blip.tv, and open film project “A Swarm of Angels” have successfully used CC licenses. And, to underline the collaborative global nature of this project, this launch coincides with Creative Commons Australia’s Conference “Building an Australasian Commons” today in Brisbane, where this project is also being announced along with the publication of a publicly available booklet with some of the best global case studies.
This wiki project aims to examine the motivations and outcomes of CC license adoption in a variety of different situations and highlights the work being done by the creators and content aggregators in the CC community. Anyone can explore the global CC landscape by browsing with a variety of filters including the license-types used, the media created, and whether the project curates or creates material. Some examples include the Google Summer of Code program, the Big Buck Bunny 2nd Open Source 3D animation led by the Blender Foundation, and Sony’s EyeVio video sharing social network service.
Beyond easily viewing the compilation, the Case Studies Project encourages users to edit the wiki and add innovative and noteworthy CC projects happening in jurisdictions worldwide. To lower the barriers for participation, the Case Studies Project provides contributors with an easy form to enter data into the wiki and examples of other featured initiatives. Instructions are available on the Case Studies site at: http://creativecommons.org/projects/casestudies.
The “Some Rights Reserved” model of Creative Commons licensing has had a significant impact world-wide, with millions of creators opting to share their content with their peers. Since its inception in 2002, the Creative Commons initiative has shown rapid growth, with more than 90 million works licensed as of December 2007. Numerous communities have also emerged, inspired by and founded on the CC licensing scheme, and the recognition, collaboration, and commercialization opportunities it provides. “It is important for both long-standing members of the community and new adopters alike to gain a sense of the motivations and experiences of others using Creative Commons licenses,” stated Creative Commons CEO, Joi Ito. “The Case Studies project provides all with a platform to explore how important adopters like Google, Nine Inch Nails, and Sony successfully use Creative Commons while also allowing anyone to add their own Creative Commons success story. Case studies are important to show that the idea of businesses using CC isn’t just a cute idea, but a fact in their success story.”
Since this is a community-based open project, the roadmap for participation is available on the project website, and communication is encouraged on the cc-community mailing list. The next milestones for contributing to this project are the Communia/CC Europe meetings June 30-July 1 in Belgium, FSCONS on October 25-26 in Gothenburg, Sweden, and iSummit on July 29-August 1 in Sapporo, Japan. Each of these events will have presentations about the progress of this project along with community contributions presented publicly.
The initiative will also find its way into the print medium regularly. Working with the user-generated Case Studies material, CC Australia is releasing “Building an Australasian Commons Booklet,” the first of a number of planned printed publications based on the project. The book is a first attempt to chronicle the tales of the Australasian commons. Featuring over 60 case studies, it maps the current state of play surrounding free culture in the region. From private individuals to large corporations, the studies clearly show the mechanisms and motivations to share and experiment without the restrictions of the pre-digital era. Across the domains of democratic change, filmmaking, music, visual arts, libraries, museums, government, education and research, the book will explore how Australasian creators working with CC licensing are making their mark. This follows past projects in the same vein, such as their report “Asia and the Commons Case Studies,” a review of CC-based initiatives in the region.
Links
CC Case Studies Project
http://creativecommons.org/projects/casestudies
Building an Australasian Commons Conference in Brisbane, Australia
http://creativecommons.org.au/australasiancommons
Case Studies Roadmap
http://creativecommons.org/projects/casestudies_roadmap
Creative Commons Community Mailing List (cc-community)
http://creativecommons.org/contact
About Creative Commons
Creative Commons is a not-for-profit organization, founded in 2001, that promotes the creative re-use of intellectual and artistic works, whether owned or in the public domain. Through its free copyright licenses, Creative Commons offers authors, artists, scientists, and educators the choice of a flexible range of protections and freedoms that build upon the “all rights reserved” concept of traditional copyright to enable a voluntary “some rights reserved” approach. Creative Commons was built with and is sustained by the generous support of organizations including the Center for the Public Domain, Omidyar Network, The Rockefeller Foundation, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, as well as members of the public. For more information about Creative Commons, visit http://creativecommons.org.
About Creative Commons Australia
Creative Commons Australia (CCau) is the Australian derivative project of the Creative Commons project in the United States of America. Currently, they are engaged in porting the Creative Commons licenses into Australian domestic law and fostering a creative community premised on remixable creativity. Hosted at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, CCau is devoted to the promotion of Creative Commons in Australia. Australia is one of 43 countries world wide who have taken up the Creative Commons project. For more information about Creative Commons Australia, visit: http://creativecommons.org.au
Contact
Jon Phillips
Community + Business Development Manager
Creative Commons
jon@creativecommons.org
Press Kit
http://creativecommons.org/presskit
No Comments »Experts in Norway adapt CC licenses to national law / Eksperter i Norge tilpasser CC-lisenser til nasjonal lovgivning
Michelle Thorne, June 5th, 2008
[Text in English and Norwegian]
Oslo, Norway and Berlin, Germany — June 6, 2008
The Creative Commons Norway team has successfully ported the Creative Commons licensing suite to Norwegian law. The localized licenses will be unveiled today at a press conference at Oslo University College.
The team responsible for coordinating the porting process and public discussion with local and international legal experts consists of Haakon Flage Bratsberg, Thomas Gramstad, Gisle Hannemyr (Public Project Lead), Tore Hoel, Peter Lenda (Legal Project Lead), and Vebjørn Søndersrød.
“We have taken the initiative to launch the Creative Commons licenses in Norway to promote new forms of production, sharing and distribution of creative works,” explains the team’s Public Project Lead, Gisle Hannemyr. “To achieve this, we have been going through a process of adapting the international license to Norwegian copyright legislation. During this process, we have worked together with community stakeholders and copyright experts to reach a result that both reflects the spirit of Creative Commons and the letter of Norwegian copyright law.”
The launch event will be held as a press conference at Oslo University College on June 6th at 10:00 am. The Creative Commons Norway team will be present and give a brief presentation about Creative Commons and the licenses translated into Norwegian. The team will also be available to answer questions.
Norway is the forty-sixth jurisdiction worldwide to port the Creative Commons licensing suite.
About Oslo University College
Oslo University College is a young, dynamic institution based on strong traditions. It was established in 1994 when the Norwegian college system was restructured and 18 smaller colleges in the Oslo area merged. Oslo University College offers the broadest portfolio of professional studies available in Norway. OUC is a dynamic institution based on strong traditions in professional education and research. With 11,000 students, OUC are the fourth largest educational institution in Norway. For more information about Oslo University College, please visit: http://www.hio.no/content/view/full/4563.
About Creative Commons
Creative Commons is a not-for-profit organization, founded in 2001, that promotes the creative re-use of intellectual and artistic works, whether owned or in the public domain. Through its free copyright licenses, Creative Commons offers authors, artists, scientists, and educators the choice of a flexible range of protections and freedoms that build upon the “all rights reserved” concept of traditional copyright to enable a voluntary “some rights reserved” approach. Creative Commons was built with and is sustained by the generous support of organizations including the Center for the Public Domain, the Omidyar Network, The Rockefeller Foundation, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, as well as members of the public. For more information about Creative Commons, visit http://creativecommons.org.
Contact
Dr. Catharina Maracke
Director
Creative Commons International, Creative Commons
catharina [at] creativecommons [dot] org
Press Kit
http://creativecommons.org/presskit
http://creativecommons.org/international/no/
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Eksperter i Norge tilpasser CC-lisenser til nasjonal lovgivning
Oslo, Norge og Berlin, Tyskland – 6. juni 2008
Arbeidsgruppen i Creative Commons Norge har fullført arbeidet med å oversette og tilpasse Creative Commons-lisensene til norsk. De ferdige lisensene vil bli offentliggjort i dag på en pressekonferanse på Høgskolen i Oslo.
Arbeidsgruppen som har koordinert arbeidet med å tilpasse lisensene, og gjennomført en offentlig diskusjon om innholdet i dem med lokale og internasjonale opphavsrettseksperter, har bestått av Haakon Flage Bratsberg, Thomas Gramstad, Gisle Hannemyr (offentlig prosjektleder), Tore Hoel, Peter Lenda (juridisk prosjektleder), og Vebjørn Søndersrød.
“Vi har ønsker å gjøre Creative Commons-lisensene tilgjengelig i Norge for å fremme nye former for produksjon, deling og distribusjon av kreative verk,” forklarer arbeidsgruppens offentlig prosjektleder, Gisle Hannemyr. “For å oppnå dette, har vi tilpasset de internasjonale lisensene til norsk opphavsrettlovgivning. I løpet av denne prosessen har vi jobbet sammen med interessenter og opphavsrettseksperter for å komme fram til et resultat som reflekterer både Creative Commons’ ånd og åndsverklovens bestemmelser.”
I samband med lanseringen vil det bli holdt en pressekonferanse på Høgskolen i Oslo på 6 juni på 10:00. Arbeidsgruppen i Creative Commons Norge vil være tilstede og gi en kort presentasjon om Creative Commons og de norske lisensene. Arbeidsgruppen vil også være tilgjengelig for å svare på spørsmål.
Norge er den førti-sjette jurisdiksjon i verden som har tilpasset Creative Commons-lisensene til nasjonal lovgiving.
Om Høgskolen i Oslo
Høgskolen i Oslo er en ung, dynamisk institusjon basert på sterke tradisjoner. Den ble etablert i 1994 når norsk det norske høyskole-systemet ble omstrukturert og 18 mindre høyskoler i Oslo-området ble slått sammen. Høgskolen i Oslo har det bredeste tilbud av faglige studier i Norge. HiO er en dynamisk institusjon basert på sterke tradisjoner i faglig utdanning og forskning. Med 11000 studenter, HiO er den fjerde største utdanningsinstitusjon i Norge. For mer informasjon om Høgskolen i Oslo, se: http://www.hio.no/content/view/full/4563.
Om Creative Commons
Creative Commons er en ideell organisasjon, grunnlagt i 2001, med det mål å fremme fremmer kreativ gjen bruk av litterære og kunstneriske arbeider, enten disse er opphavsrettslig beskyttet eller er i det fri. Gjennom sine opphavsretts-lisenser tilbyr Creative Commons forfattere, kunstnere, forskere, og lærere muligheten til å velge mellom beskyttelser og friheter som muliggjør deling gjennom en tilnærming som best kan beskrives med ordene: “noen rettigheter reservert”. Creative Commons mottar støtte fra blant annet: Center for the Public Domain, the Omidyar Network, The Rockefeller Foundation, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, og The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, samt private donasjoner. For mer informasjon om Creative Commons, se: http://creativecommons.org.
Dr. Catharina Maracke
Director
Creative Commons International, Creative Commons
catharina [at] creativecommons [dot] org
Press Kit
http://creativecommons.org/presskit
http://creativecommons.org/international/no/
