San Francisco, CA and Los Angeles, CA – 10/31/06 – Today, Creative Commons announced that it will be the first non-profit organization to raise money through online video sharing. Revver, the first marketplace for viral videos, will host, track and monetize Creative Commons’ videos as they are viewed across the Internet during the organization’s 2006 fundraising campaign, which began in October and lasts until December 31, 2006. In support of Creative Commons, Revver will donate its share of the advertising revenue generated to the organization.

Beginning today, Creative Commons will use Revver to monetize several of its popular online videos as part of its second annual fundraising campaign. Generally, once Revver matches a video with an ad, it tracks the video as it is viewed across the Internet and shares the advertising revenue generated with the creator and the syndicator who distributes the video. However, throughout Creative Commons’2006 fundraising campaign, Revver will donate its share of the revenue to the organization. Revver currently uses Creative Commons’ free licenses to allow its users to share videos across the Internet while retaining their rights as copyright holders.

“With Creative Commons’ licenses, we’ve created an unbeatable scenario for video creators. Revver allows them to use the Internet as a platform, not just for distribution but for remuneration too, all while ensuring they retain ownership of their work,” said Steven Starr, Founder and CEO of Revver, Inc. “Supporting Creative Commons is really a pleasure since we both care deeply about the same creative community.”

Last year, Creative Commons raised more than $250,000 during its first campaign. This year, the viral videos, which illustrate the organization’s history and mission and explain how to use its licenses, will complement existing fundraising efforts, including direct donations to Creative Commons, purchases at the organization’s online store, and posting of the “Support CC 2006” button on third party websites.

“This is a cool hack of the advertising model: Our supporters can support us by getting others to watch our videos,” said Lawrence Lessig, CEO and Chairman of Creative Commons. “Using CC’s licenses and Revver’s platform, people can help us raise money by freely and legally sharing creative work. We’re proud to be the first organization to collaborate with Revver in this way.”

The Creative Commons videos are also available without any advertising. However, because Revver can track videos as they are shared across the Internet, the organization is encouraging its supporters to support its fundraising efforts by spreading the “Revverized” versions. Creative Commons will further encourage sharing by uploading the videos to multiple websites, including: the Creative Commons website, its myspace page and Revver.

About Revver

Revver is the first online service that truly leverages the viral power of the Internet to create a marketplace for online videos. Revver matches individual videos with advertising, encourages video sharing and then uses its proprietary technology to track videos as they are viewed across the Internet. By rewarding users with a percentage of the advertising revenue generated, Revver creates a virtual marketplace for online video. Revver’s contextual advertising capabilities also connect advertisers to specific demographics with a unique collaborative learning algorithm, which maximizes ad performance.

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. Creative Commons licences provide a flexible range of protections and freedoms for authors, artists, and educators that build upon the “all rights reserved” concept of traditional copyright to offer a voluntary “some rights reserved” approach. It is sustained by the generous support of various organizations including the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Omidyar Network, the Hewlett Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation as well as members of the public. For general information, visit https://creativecommons.org

Contact

Betsy Damus
Edelman for Revver
Betsy.damus@edelman.com
323-202-1068

Melissa Reeder
Development Coordinator, Creative Commons
melissa@creativecommons.org
415-946-3068

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