What is Creative Commons?

In addition to being a nonprofit organization, Creative Commons is a global network, a movement, as well as a set of legal tools — all of which are fueled by people’s willingness to share their creativity and knowledge through open copyright licenses.

In response to an outdated global copyright system, Creative Commons built upon copyright and extended options for creators who want to share their work. Over the course of 21+ years, Creative Commons has greatly expanded its role and value.

This chapter will provide a brief history of Creative Commons, as well as resources to help you get started in licensing your work.

The Story of Creative Commons

The story of Creative Commons begins with copyright, which is an area of law that regulates the way some products of human creativity — such as books, academic research articles, music, and art — are used. Copyright grants a set of exclusive rights to a creator so that the creator has the ability to prevent others from copying and adapting her work for a limited time. In other words, copyright law strictly regulates who is allowed to copy and share with whom.

With the advent of the World Wide Web, the ability to access, share and collaborate on all sorts of creative projects, is ever-increasing. These creations are all governed by copyright law. These copyright restrictions imposed around the world were at odds with new sharing capabilities made possible by the development of digital technologies. This fundamental tension between sharing digital works and global copyright regulations is what Creative Commons helps address.

The story of Creative Commons begins with a piece of copyright legislation in the United States called the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act (CTEA). Enacted in 1998, CTEA, also known as the “Mickey Mouse Protection Act” due to the heavy lobbying of Disney, extended the term of copyright for every work in the United States for an additional 20 years, including those works already copyrighted. This means the copyright term for individuals equaled the life of the creator plus an additional 70 years.

Lawrence Lessig, Stanford Law Professor, viewed this law as unconstitutional. Limited copyright terms and the movement to the public domain is an important component of the copyright system.  This allows others to freely build upon works. Extending copyright protection on existing works does not align with the language written into the U.S. Constitution regarding the purpose of copyright.

Eldred vs Ashcroft

Eric Eldred, a web publisher who made works that moved into the public domain available, was represented by Lessig in a case that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. They challenged the constitutionality of the CTEA in a case known as Eldred v. Ashcroft. While they ultimately lost the case, the pair moved forward with their goal of making creative works more freely available online by creating a nonprofit organization called Creative Commons.

Creative Commons Licenses

In 2002, the Creative Commons licenses were established. These free public licenses are built upon copyright, allowing creators to more flexibly share their works. By placing a Creative Commmons license on their work, the creator can easily describe the terms of using, modifying, and sharing their work. This removes the hassle of others having to ask the creator for permission.

One of the goals of Creative Commons licenses was to establish shared terms that could be used by folks across the world, especially as the internet has provided endless points for cross-cultural conversations and knowledge creation. This video, A Shared Culture, provides insight into the Creative Commons vision:

Creative Commons Today

An entire open movement has been established to promote a culture of sharing and collaboration. Creative Commons licenses help support this open movement. As of Creative Commons’ 20th-anniversary celebration in 2021, it was estimated that over 2.0 billion works have been licensed openly with CC licenses. Today, you can find all types of works with Creative Commons licenses. Here are just a few examples:

• TED Talks
• Open Educational Resources
• Museum Collections
• Photography
• Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles
• Government Websites
• Videos
• and more…

Getting Involved

If you are interested in getting more involved in or working with open movements, the CC Global Network may be of interest to you. Additionally, the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) does incredible advocacy work to support o

As an Open Fredonia incentive awardee, you have already taken your first major step toward supporting the open movement. Ensuring equitable access to course materials in your classroom is a major motivator for many of our awardees. Keep in mind, that the benefits of open educational practices and the openness movement go beyond cost savings. Opportunities for active, collaborative, and flexible learning opportunities are also important considerations.

Please remember, that you are also welcome to reach out to Christina Hilburger, christina.hilburger@fredonia.edu, to schedule an instructional session on Creative Commons licenses with your students or department, or meet one-on-one.

Attribution

This section is an adaptation of What is Creative Commons? (on Creative Commons Certificate for Educators, Academic Librarians and GLAM) by Creative Commons, and is used under a CC BY 4.0 license.