Over the weekend, news emerged that upset even the most ardent skeptics of open access. Under the headline, “Trump vs Berlin” the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag reported that President Trump offered $1 billion USD to the German biopharmaceutical company CureVac to secure their COVID-19 vaccine “only for the United States.” In response, Jens Spahn, the … Read More “Now Is the Time for Open Access Policies—Here’s Why”
On 14 February 2020, Creative Commons (CC) submitted its comments on the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)’s Issues Paper* as part of WIPO’s consultation process on artificial intelligence (AI) and intellectual property (IP) policy. In this post, we briefly present our main arguments for a cautious approach to regulating AI through copyright or any new … Read More “Why We’re Advocating for a Cautious Approach to Copyright and Artificial Intelligence”
Creative Commons is thrilled to announce that the second Public Domain Day celebration is happening on January 30, 2020 in Washington, D.C. We’re working with our friends at the Internet Archive, the Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property at American University Washington College of Law, Creative Commons USA, the Institute for Intellectual Property & … Read More “Save the Date: Public Domain Day 2020 Is Happening in January in Washington, D.C.”
The UNESCO Open Educational Resources (OER) Recommendation was unanimously adopted on November 25 by 193 UNESCO member states at the 40th UNESCO General Conference. This milestone offers a unique opportunity to advance open education around the world. Why does it matter? This Recommendation is an official UNESCO instrument that gives national governments a specific list … Read More “NGO Network to Support Implementation of the UNESCO OER Recommendation”
It has come to the attention of Creative Commons that there is an increased use of CC licenses by cultural heritage institutions on photographic reproductions and 3D scans of objects such as sculptures, busts, engravings, and inscriptions, among others, that are indisputably in the public domain worldwide. A recent example is the 3000-year-old Nefertiti bust … Read More “Reproductions of Public Domain Works Should Remain in the Public Domain”
As part of the drafting committee, Creative Commons (CC) fully supports the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Educational Resources (OER) on which the member states will vote at the 40th session of the UNESCO General Conference in November. We laud the multitude of national governments and open education experts engaged in the development of this international … Read More “We Support the UNESCO Recommendation on OER”
Today is the International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI). You may be wondering why this day is necessary—particularly in 2019, when the average person is inundated with an estimated 34 gigabytes of information every day, from emails and text messages to Youtube videos and news programs. In fact, it’s easy to take information … Read More “Access to Information Is Not Universal: Here’s Why That Matters”
Earlier this week the Canadian Parliament’s Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology (INDU) released a report with 36 recommendations on the statutory review of Canadian copyright law. The report caps a year-long study, including a public consultation and committee hearings that included a variety of stakeholders. The document makes progressive recommendations that support a … Read More “New Canadian Report Offers Balanced Recommendations for Progressive Copyright Reform”
The global open education community works collectively to create a world in which everyone has universal access to effective open education resources (OER) and meaningful learning opportunities
Today in Strasbourg, the European Parliament voted 348-274 (with 36 abstentions) to approve the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market. It retains Article 13, the harmful provision that will require nearly all for-profit web platforms to get a license for every user upload or otherwise install content filters and censor content, lest they … Read More “A Dark Day for the Web: EU Parliament Approves Damaging Copyright Rules”
