Calling All Copyright Advocates: CC Copyright Platform Now Accepting Funding Proposals

Brigitte Vézina, the Director of Policy and Open Culture, has facilitated the CC Copyright Platform for the past three years since the Platform’s relaunch in 2020. This year, the CC legal team—Kat Walsh and Yuanxiao Xu—is taking over the facilitator role for the Copyright Platform.  The Creative Commons Copyright Platform is a collaborative space for … Read More “Calling All Copyright Advocates: CC Copyright Platform Now Accepting Funding Proposals”

Traditional Knowledge and the Commons: The Open Movement, Listening, and Learning

CC licenses and public domain tools help individuals, organisations, and public institutions better disseminate digital resources and data, breaking down the typical barriers associated with traditional “all rights reserved” copyright. At the same time, CC licenses can’t do everything for everyone. First, the licenses operate in the sphere of copyright and similar rights. They do … Read More “Traditional Knowledge and the Commons: The Open Movement, Listening, and Learning”

It’s now or never: EU copyright must protect access to knowledge and the commons

We’re coming up on a crucial decision on changes to copyright in the European Union that will govern how creativity is accessed and shared for years to come. On 12 September the European Parliament will vote on the draft Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market. If you’re in the EU, go to https://saveyourinternet.eu/ … Read More “It’s now or never: EU copyright must protect access to knowledge and the commons”

Battle For the Net: A Day of Action to Save Net Neutrality

Tell the FCC to protect net neutrality today Creative Commons and dozens of the world’s largest web platforms are joining countless internet users and online communities to take action in support of net neutrality. Net neutrality is the principle that internet service providers should treat all online data the same, and not discriminate or charge … Read More “Battle For the Net: A Day of Action to Save Net Neutrality”

Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad DRM

Today is the annual #DayAgainstDRM, a global campaign to raise awareness about the harms of digital rights management (DRM). DRM consists of access control technologies or restrictive licensing agreements that attempt to restrict the use, modification, and distribution of legally-acquired works. There are serious problems with attaching DRM to creative works: not only does it … Read More “Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad DRM”

Dozens of organizations call on European Parliament to redouble efforts for progressive copyright changes

But one member of the EPP wants to weaponize the worst parts of the copyright plan This week, Creative Commons and over 60 organisations sent an open letter urging European lawmakers to “put the copyright reform back on the right track”. The letter criticizes the Commission’s lackluster proposal for a Directive on Copyright in the Digital … Read More “Dozens of organizations call on European Parliament to redouble efforts for progressive copyright changes”

There’s still time to stop the TPP

TPPA Signing Protest in Auckland, by Prosperosity, CC BY-SA 4.0 Last week, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)—the massive multilateral trade agreement negotiated in secret among government and industry representatives—was signed by officials in New Zealand. When the final text of the TPP was released in November 2015, we wrote about how the agreement is a direct … Read More “There’s still time to stop the TPP”

Colombian student Diego Gomez is going to trial for sharing a research article online

Last year several organizations highlighted the situation of Colombian graduate student Diego Gomez, who had a criminal complaint filed against him for sharing a research article online. Gomez is a student in conservation and wildlife management, and for the most part has poor access to many of the resources and databases that would help him … Read More “Colombian student Diego Gomez is going to trial for sharing a research article online”