-Made with Creative Commons
-
-Paul Stacey and Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+% Made with Creative Commons
+% Paul Stacey;Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+# Colophon {-}
Made With Creative Commons
by Paul Stacey & Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
Content editing by Grace Yaginuma
-Illustrations by Bryan Mathers, bryanmathers.com
+Illustrations by Bryan Mathers, [](http://bryanmathers.com)
-Downloadable e-book available at madewith.cc
+Downloadable e-book available at [](http://madewith.cc)
Publisher:
Denmark
-www.cadb.dk
+[](http://www.cadb.dk)
-hey@cadb.dk
+hey\@cadb.dk
Printer:
provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. If you
remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your
contributions under the same license as the original. License details:
-creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
+[](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
Made With Creative Commons is published with the kind support of
Creative Commons and backers of our crowdfunding-campaign on the
Kickstarter.com platform.
-“I don’t know a whole lot about nonfiction journalism. . .
+# Dedication {-}
+"I don't know a whole lot about nonfiction journalism. . .
The way that I think about these things, and in terms of what I can do
is. . . essays like this are occasions to watch somebody reasonably
bright but also reasonably average pay far closer attention and think at
far more length about all sorts of different stuff than most of us have
-a chance to in our daily lives.”
+a chance to in our daily lives."
- David Foster Wallace
-## Foreword
+# Foreword
Three years ago, just after I was hired as CEO of Creative Commons, I
-met with Cory Doctorow in the hotel bar of Toronto’s Gladstone Hotel. As
-one of CC’s most well-known proponents—one who has also had a successful
-career as a writer who shares his work using CC—I told him I thought CC
-had a role in defining and advancing open business models. He kindly
-disagreed, and called the pursuit of viable business models through CC
-“a red herring.”
-
-He was, in a way, completely correct—those who make things with Creative
-Commons have ulterior motives, as Paul Stacey explains in this book:
-“Regardless of legal status, they all have a social mission. Their
+met with Cory Doctorow in the hotel bar of Toronto's Gladstone Hotel. As
+one of CC's most well-known proponents---one who has also had a
+successful career as a writer who shares his work using CC---I told him
+I thought CC had a role in defining and advancing open business models.
+He kindly disagreed, and called the pursuit of viable business models
+through CC "a red herring."
+
+He was, in a way, completely correct---those who make things with
+Creative Commons have ulterior motives, as Paul Stacey explains in this
+book: "Regardless of legal status, they all have a social mission. Their
primary reason for being is to make the world a better place, not to
-profit. Money is a means to a social end, not the end itself.”
+profit. Money is a means to a social end, not the end itself."
In the case study about Cory Doctorow, Sarah Hinchliff Pearson cites
-Cory’s words from his book Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free:
-“Entering the arts because you want to get rich is like buying lottery
+Cory's words from his book Information Doesn't Want to Be Free:
+"Entering the arts because you want to get rich is like buying lottery
tickets because you want to get rich. It might work, but it almost
-certainly won’t. Though, of course, someone always wins the lottery.”
+certainly won't. Though, of course, someone always wins the lottery."
-Today, copyright is like a lottery ticket—everyone has one, and almost
-nobody wins. What they don’t tell you is that if you choose to share
+Today, copyright is like a lottery ticket---everyone has one, and almost
+nobody wins. What they don't tell you is that if you choose to share
your work, the returns can be significant and long-lasting. This book is
filled with stories of those who take much greater risks than the two
dollars we pay for a lottery ticket, and instead reap the rewards that
come from pursuing their passions and living their values.
-So it’s not about the money. Also: it is. Finding the means to continue
+So it's not about the money. Also: it is. Finding the means to continue
to create and share often requires some amount of income. Max Temkin of
-Cards Against Humanity says it best in their case study: “We don’t make
-jokes and games to make money—we make money so we can make more jokes
-and games.”
+Cards Against Humanity says it best in their case study: "We don't make
+jokes and games to make money---we make money so we can make more jokes
+and games."
-Creative Commons’ focus is on building a vibrant, usable commons,
+Creative Commons' focus is on building a vibrant, usable commons,
powered by collaboration and gratitude. Enabling communities of
collaboration is at the heart of our strategy. With that in mind,
Creative Commons began this book project. Led by Paul and Sarah, the
Paul dreams of a future where new models of creativity and innovation
overpower the inequality and scarcity that today define the worst parts
of capitalism. He is driven by the power of human connections between
-communities of creators. He takes a longer view than most, and it’s made
+communities of creators. He takes a longer view than most, and it's made
him a better educator, an insightful researcher, and also a skilled
gardener. He has a calm, cool voice that conveys a passion that inspires
his colleagues and community.
-Sarah is the best kind of lawyer—a true advocate who believes in the
+Sarah is the best kind of lawyer---a true advocate who believes in the
good of people, and the power of collective acts to change the world.
-Over the past year I’ve seen Sarah struggle with the heartbreak that
-comes from investing so much into a political campaign that didn’t end
-as she’d hoped. Today, she’s more determined than ever to live with her
+Over the past year I've seen Sarah struggle with the heartbreak that
+comes from investing so much into a political campaign that didn't end
+as she'd hoped. Today, she's more determined than ever to live with her
values right out on her sleeve. I can always count on Sarah to push
-Creative Commons to focus on our impact—to make the main thing the main
-thing. She’s practical, detail-oriented, and clever. There’s no one on
-my team that I enjoy debating more.
+Creative Commons to focus on our impact---to make the main thing the
+main thing. She's practical, detail-oriented, and clever. There's no one
+on my team that I enjoy debating more.
As coauthors, Paul and Sarah complement each other perfectly. They
researched, analyzed, argued, and worked as a team, sometimes together
with passion and curiosity, and a deep respect for what goes into
building the commons and sharing with the world. They remained open to
new ideas, including the possibility that their initial theories would
-need refinement or might be completely wrong. That’s courageous, and it
+need refinement or might be completely wrong. That's courageous, and it
has made for a better book that is insightful, honest, and useful.
From the beginning, CC wanted to develop this project with the
For 31 days in August of 2015, Sarah took point to organize and execute
a Kickstarter campaign to generate the core funding for the book. The
-remainder was provided by CC’s generous donors and supporters. In the
+remainder was provided by CC's generous donors and supporters. In the
end, it became one of the most successful book projects on Kickstarter,
-smashing through two stretch goals and engaging over 1,600 donors—the
+smashing through two stretch goals and engaging over 1,600 donors---the
majority of them new supporters of Creative Commons.
Paul and Sarah worked openly throughout the project, publishing the
and community as a key value, and because the CC licenses have helped so
many to share in the ways that they choose with a global audience.
-Sarah writes, “Endeavors that are Made with Creative Commons thrive when
+Sarah writes, "Endeavors that are Made with Creative Commons thrive when
community is built around what they do. This may mean a community
collaborating together to create something new, or it may simply be a
collection of like-minded people who get to know each other and rally
around common interests or beliefs. To a certain extent, simply being
Made with Creative Commons automatically brings with it some element of
community, by helping connect you to like-minded others who recognize
-and are drawn to the values symbolized by using CC.” Amanda Palmer, the
+and are drawn to the values symbolized by using CC." Amanda Palmer, the
other musician profiled in the book, would surely add this from her case
-study: “There is no more satisfying end goal than having someone tell
-you that what you do is genuinely of value to them.”
+study: "There is no more satisfying end goal than having someone tell
+you that what you do is genuinely of value to them."
This is not a typical business book. For those looking for a recipe or a
roadmap, you might be disappointed. But for those looking to pursue a
social end, to build something great through collaboration, or to join a
-powerful and growing global community, they’re sure to be satisfied.
+powerful and growing global community, they're sure to be satisfied.
Made with Creative Commons offers a world-changing set of clearly
articulated values and principles, some essential tools for exploring
your own business opportunities, and two dozen doses of pure
inspiration.
-In a 1996 Stanford Law Review article “The Zones of Cyberspace”, CC
-founder Lawrence Lessig wrote, “Cyberspace is a place. People live
+In a 1996 Stanford Law Review article "The Zones of Cyberspace", CC
+founder Lawrence Lessig wrote, "Cyberspace is a place. People live
there. They experience all the sorts of things that they experience in
real space, there. For some, they experience more. They experience this
not as isolated individuals, playing some high tech computer game; they
experience it in groups, in communities, among strangers, among people
-they come to know, and sometimes like.”
+they come to know, and sometimes like."
-I’m incredibly proud that Creative Commons is able to publish this book
-for the many communities that we have come to know and like. I’m
+I'm incredibly proud that Creative Commons is able to publish this book
+for the many communities that we have come to know and like. I'm
grateful to Paul and Sarah for their creativity and insights, and to the
global communities that have helped us bring it to you. As CC board
-member Johnathan Nightingale often says, “It’s all made of people.”
+member Johnathan Nightingale often says, "It's all made of people."
-That’s the true value of things that are Made with Creative Commons.
+That's the true value of things that are Made with Creative Commons.
*Ryan Merkley*
*CEO, Creative Commons*
-## Introduction
+# Introduction
-This book shows the world how sharing can be good for business—but with
-a twist.
+This book shows the world how sharing can be good for business---but
+with a twist.
We began the project intending to explore how creators, organizations,
and businesses make money to sustain what they do when they share their
fresh ideas and dynamic examples that spark new, innovative models and
help others follow suit by building on what already works. At the onset,
we framed our investigation in familiar business terms. We created a
-blank “open business model canvas,” an interactive online tool that
+blank "open business model canvas," an interactive online tool that
would help people design and analyze their business model.
Through the generous funding of Kickstarter backers, we set about this
project first by identifying and selecting a diverse group of creators,
organizations, and businesses who use Creative Commons in an integral
-way—what we call being Made with Creative Commons. We interviewed them
+way---what we call being Made with Creative Commons. We interviewed them
and wrote up their stories. We analyzed what we heard and dug deep into
the literature.
community around the works being shared, and generating revenue not for
unlimited growth but to sustain the operation.
-They often didn’t like hearing what they do described as an open
+They often didn't like hearing what they do described as an open
business model. Their endeavor was something more than that. Something
different. Something that generates not just economic value but social
and cultural value. Something that involves human connection. Being Made
-with Creative Commons is not “business as usual.”
+with Creative Commons is not "business as usual."
-We had to rethink the way we conceived of this project. And it didn’t
+We had to rethink the way we conceived of this project. And it didn't
happen overnight. From the fall of 2015 through 2016, we documented our
thoughts in blog posts on Medium and with regular updates to our
Kickstarter backers. We shared drafts of case studies and analysis with
each other has been one of the great joys of this work, and, we hope,
something that has made the final product much richer than it ever could
have been if either of us undertook this project alone. We have
-preserved our voices throughout, and you’ll be able to sense our
+preserved our voices throughout, and you'll be able to sense our
different but complementary approaches as you read through our different
sections.
Part one, the overview, begins with a big-picture framework written by
Paul. He provides some historical context for the digital commons,
describing the three ways society has managed resources and shared
-wealth—the commons, the market, and the state. He advocates for thinking
-beyond business and market terms and eloquently makes the case for
-sharing and enlarging the digital commons.
+wealth---the commons, the market, and the state. He advocates for
+thinking beyond business and market terms and eloquently makes the case
+for sharing and enlarging the digital commons.
-The overview continues with Sarah’s chapter, as she considers what it
+The overview continues with Sarah's chapter, as she considers what it
means to be successfully Made with Creative Commons. While making money
is one piece of the pie, there is also a set of public-minded values and
the kind of human connections that make sharing truly meaningful. This
And to end part one, we have a short section that explains the different
Creative Commons licenses. We talk about the misconception that the more
-restrictive licenses—the ones that are closest to the
-all-rights-reserved model of traditional copyright—are the only ways to
-make money.
+restrictive licenses---the ones that are closest to the
+all-rights-reserved model of traditional copyright---are the only ways
+to make money.
Part two of the book is made up of the twenty-four stories of the
creators, businesses, and organizations we interviewed. While both of us
Paul Stacey
-Jonathan Rowe eloquently describes the commons as “the air and oceans,
-the web of species, wilderness and flowing water—all are parts of the
+Jonathan Rowe eloquently describes the commons as "the air and oceans,
+the web of species, wilderness and flowing water---all are parts of the
commons. So are language and knowledge, sidewalks and public squares,
the stories of childhood and the processes of democracy. Some parts of
the commons are gifts of nature, others the product of human endeavor.
Some are new, such as the Internet; others are as ancient as soil and
-calligraphy.”1
+calligraphy."[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-1]
In Made with Creative Commons, we focus on our current era of digital
commons, a commons of human-produced works. This commons cuts across a
organizations, and businesses we profile in our case studies use
Creative Commons to share their resources online over the Internet.
-The commons is not just about shared resources, however. It’s also about
+The commons is not just about shared resources, however. It's also about
the social practices and values that manage them. A resource is a noun,
-but to common—to put the resource into the commons—is a verb.2 The
+but to common---to put the resource into the commons---is a verb.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-2] The
creators, organizations, and businesses we profile are all engaged with
commoning. Their use of Creative Commons involves them in the social
practice of commoning, managing resources in a collective manner with a
-community of users.3 Commoning is guided by a set of values and norms
+community of users.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-3] Commoning is guided by a set of values and norms
that balance the costs and benefits of the enterprise with those of the
community. Special regard is given to equitable access, use, and
sustainability.
Historically, there have been three ways to manage resources and share
wealth: the commons (managed collectively), the state (i.e., the
-government), and the market—with the last two being the dominant forms
-today.4
+government), and the market---with the last two being the dominant forms
+today.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-4]
The organizations and businesses in our case studies are unique in the
way they participate in the commons while still engaging with the market
and/or state. The extent of engagement with market or state varies. Some
operate primarily as a commons with minimal or no reliance on the market
-or state.5 Others are very much a part of the market or state, depending
+or state.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-5] Others are very much a part of the market or state, depending
on them for financial sustainability. All operate as hybrids, blending
the norms of the commons with those of the market or state.
regarding property, copyright, business, and finance can all be designed
to foster the commons.
-{width="6.5in"
-height="3.5417in"}
+{width="80%"
+}
-It’s helpful to understand how the commons, market, and state manage
+It's helpful to understand how the commons, market, and state manage
resources differently, and not just for those who consider themselves
primarily as a commons. For businesses or governmental organizations who
want to engage in and use the commons, knowing how the commons operates
### The Four Aspects of a Resource
-As part of her Nobel Prize–winning work, Elinor Ostrom developed a
-framework for analyzing how natural resources are managed in a commons.6
+As part of her Nobel Prize--winning work, Elinor Ostrom developed a
+framework for analyzing how natural resources are managed in a commons.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-6]
Her framework considered things like the biophysical characteristics of
-common resources, the community’s actors and the interactions that take
+common resources, the community's actors and the interactions that take
place between them, rules-in-use, and outcomes. That framework has been
simplified and generalized to apply to the commons, the market, and the
state for this chapter.
To compare and contrast the ways in which the commons, market, and state
-work, let’s consider four aspects of resource management: resource
+work, let's consider four aspects of resource management: resource
characteristics, the people involved and the process they use, the norms
and rules they develop to govern use, and finally actual resource use
along with outcomes of that use (see Fig. 2).
-{width="6.5in"
-height="6.5in"}
+{width="80%"
+}
#### Characteristics
Resources have particular characteristics or attributes that affect the
way they can be used. Some resources are natural; others are human
-produced. And—significantly for today’s commons—resources can be
-physical or digital, which affects a resource’s inherent potential.
+produced. And---significantly for today's commons---resources can be
+physical or digital, which affects a resource's inherent potential.
Physical resources exist in limited supply. If I have a physical
resource and give it to you, I no longer have it. When a resource is
Beyond this idea of physical versus digital, the commons, market, and
state conceive of resources differently (see Fig. 3). The market sees
-resources as private goods—commodities for sale—from which value is
+resources as private goods---commodities for sale---from which value is
extracted. The state sees resources as public goods that provide value
to state citizens. The commons sees resources as common goods, providing
a common wealth extending beyond state boundaries, to be passed on in
and sold to consumers on the basis of a cash transaction.
In contrast to the state and market, resources in a commons are managed
-more directly by the people involved.7 Creators of human produced
+more directly by the people involved.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-7] Creators of human produced
resources can put them in the commons by personal choice. No permission
from state or market is required. Anyone can participate in the commons
and determine for themselves the extent to which they want to be
-involved—as a contributor, user, or manager. The people involved include
-not only those who create and use resources but those affected by
-outcome of use. Who you are affects your say, actions you can take, and
-extent of decision making. In the commons, the community as a whole
+involved---as a contributor, user, or manager. The people involved
+include not only those who create and use resources but those affected
+by outcome of use. Who you are affects your say, actions you can take,
+and extent of decision making. In the commons, the community as a whole
manages the resources. Resources put into the commons using Creative
Commons require users to give the original creator credit. Knowing the
person behind a resource makes the commons less anonymous and more
personal.
-{width="6.5in"
-height="4.2362in"}
+{width="80%"
+}
#### Norms and rules
defined by the community. They weigh individual costs and benefits
against the costs and benefits to the whole community. Consideration is
given not just to economic efficiency but also to equity and
-sustainability.9
+sustainability.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-9]
#### Goals
-The combination of the aspects we’ve discussed so far—the resource’s
+The combination of the aspects we've discussed so far---the resource's
inherent characteristics, people and processes, and norms and
-rules—shape how resources are used. Use is also influenced by the
+rules---shape how resources are used. Use is also influenced by the
different goals the state, market, and commons have.
In the market, the focus is on maximizing the utility of a resource.
What we pay for the goods we consume is seen as an objective measure of
the utility they provide. The goal then becomes maximizing total
-monetary value in the economy.10 Units consumed translates to sales,
+monetary value in the economy.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-10] Units consumed translates to sales,
revenue, profit, and growth, and these are all ways to measure goals of
the market.
But the more than 1.1 billion resources licensed with Creative Commons
around the world are indications of a grassroots move toward the
commons. The commons is making a resurgence. To understand the
-resilience of the commons and its current renewal, it’s helpful to know
+resilience of the commons and its current renewal, it's helpful to know
something of its history.
For centuries, indigenous people and preindustrialized societies managed
resources, including water, food, firewood, irrigation, fish, wild game,
-and many other things collectively as a commons.11 There was no market,
+and many other things collectively as a commons.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-11] There was no market,
no global economy. The state in the form of rulers influenced the
commons but by no means controlled it. Direct social participation in a
commons was the primary way in which resources were managed and needs
met. (Fig. 4 illustrates the commons in relation to the state and the
market.)
-{width="6.5in"
-height="3.389in"}
+{width="80%"
+}
This is followed by a long history of the state (a monarchy or ruler)
taking over the commons for their own purposes. This is called enclosure
-of the commons.12 In olden days, “commoners” were evicted from the land,
+of the commons.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-12] In olden days, "commoners" were evicted from the land,
fences and hedges erected, laws passed, and security set up to forbid
-access.13 Gradually, resources became the property of the state and the
+access.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-13] Gradually, resources became the property of the state and the
state became the primary means by which resources were managed. (See
Fig. 5).
education. Fig. 6 shows how today the market is the primary means by
which resources are managed.
-{width="6.5in"
-height="3.389in"}
+{width="80%"
+}
However, the world today is going through turbulent times. The benefits
of the market have been offset by unequal distribution and
overexploitation.
-Overexploitation was the topic of Garrett Hardin’s influential essay
-“The Tragedy of the Commons,” published in Science in 1968. Hardin
+Overexploitation was the topic of Garrett Hardin's influential essay
+"The Tragedy of the Commons," published in Science in 1968. Hardin
argues that everyone in a commons seeks to maximize personal gain and
will continue to do so even when the limits of the commons are reached.
The commons is then tragically depleted to the point where it can no
-longer support anyone. Hardin’s essay became widely accepted as an
+longer support anyone. Hardin's essay became widely accepted as an
economic truism and a justification for private property and free
markets.
-However, there is one serious flaw with Hardin’s “The Tragedy of the
-Commons”—it’s fiction. Hardin did not actually study how real commons
+However, there is one serious flaw with Hardin's "The Tragedy of the
+Commons"---it's fiction. Hardin did not actually study how real commons
work. Elinor Ostrom won the 2009 Nobel Prize in economics for her work
-studying different commons all around the world. Ostrom’s work shows
+studying different commons all around the world. Ostrom's work shows
that natural resource commons can be successfully managed by local
communities without any regulation by central authorities or without
privatization. Government and privatization are not the only two
resources, there is a regional locality. The people in the region are
the most familiar with the natural resource, have the most direct
relationship and history with it, and are therefore best situated to
-manage it. Ostrom’s approach to the governance of natural resources
+manage it. Ostrom's approach to the governance of natural resources
broke with convention; she recognized the importance of the commons as
an alternative to the market or state for solving problems of collective
-action.14
+action.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-14]
Hardin failed to consider the actual social dynamic of the commons. His
model assumed that people in the commons act autonomously, out of pure
Ostrom found, in reality, managing common resources together forms a
community and encourages discourse. This naturally generates norms and
rules that help people work collectively and ensure a sustainable
-commons. Paradoxically, while Hardin’s essay is called The Tragedy of
+commons. Paradoxically, while Hardin's essay is called The Tragedy of
the Commons it might more accurately be titled The Tragedy of the
Market.
-Hardin’s story is based on the premise of depletable resources.
+Hardin's story is based on the premise of depletable resources.
Economists have focused almost exclusively on scarcity-based markets.
-Very little is known about how abundance works.15 The emergence of
+Very little is known about how abundance works.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-15] The emergence of
information technology and the Internet has led to an explosion in
digital resources and new means of sharing and distribution. Digital
resources can never be depleted. An absence of a theory or model for how
state funded digital works should be that they are freely and openly
available to the public that paid for them.
-{width="6.5in"
-height="3.389in"}
+{width="80%"
+}
### The Digital Revolution
your computing as you wish.
- The freedom to redistribute copies.
- The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to
- others.16
+ others.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-16]
These principles and freedoms constitute a set of norms and rules that
typify a digital commons.
In the late 1990s, to make the sharing of source code and collaboration
more appealing to companies, the open-source-software initiative
converted these principles into licenses and standards for managing
-access to and distribution of software. The benefits of open source—such
-as reliability, scalability, and quality verified by independent peer
-review—became widely recognized and accepted. Customers liked the way
-open source gave them control without being locked into a closed,
-proprietary technology. Free and open-source software also generated a
-network effect where the value of a product or service increases with
-the number of people using it.17 The dramatic growth of the Internet
-itself owes much to the fact that nobody has a proprietary lock on core
-Internet protocols.
+access to and distribution of software. The benefits of open
+source---such as reliability, scalability, and quality verified by
+independent peer review---became widely recognized and accepted.
+Customers liked the way open source gave them control without being
+locked into a closed, proprietary technology. Free and open-source
+software also generated a network effect where the value of a product or
+service increases with the number of people using it.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-17] The dramatic
+growth of the Internet itself owes much to the fact that nobody has a
+proprietary lock on core Internet protocols.
While open-source software functions as a commons, many businesses and
markets did build up around it. Business models based on the licenses
and standards of open-source software evolved alongside organizations
that managed software code on principles of abundance rather than
-scarcity. Eric Raymond’s essay “The Magic Cauldron” does a great job of
+scarcity. Eric Raymond's essay "The Magic Cauldron" does a great job of
analyzing the economics and business models associated with open-source
-software.18 These models can provide examples of sustainable approaches
+software.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-18] These models can provide examples of sustainable approaches
for those Made with Creative Commons.
-It isn’t just about an abundant availability of digital assets but also
+It isn't just about an abundant availability of digital assets but also
about abundance of participation. The growth of personal computing,
information technology, and the Internet made it possible for mass
participation in producing creative works and distributing them. Photos,
for abundance, by default these digital works are governed by copyright
laws. Under copyright, a digital work is the property of the creator,
and by law others are excluded from accessing and using it without the
-creator’s permission.
+creator's permission.
But people like to share. One of the ways we define ourselves is by
sharing valuable and entertaining content. Doing so grows and nourishes
relationships, seeks to change opinions, encourages action, and informs
others about who we are and what we care about. Sharing lets us feel
-more involved with the world.19
+more involved with the world.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-19]
### The Birth of Creative Commons
expressing the permissions in plain language, which regular people can
read and quickly understand. It acts as a user-friendly interface to the
legal-code layer beneath. The third layer is the machine-readable one,
-making it easy for the Web to know a work is Creative Commons–licensed
+making it easy for the Web to know a work is Creative Commons--licensed
by expressing permissions in a way that software systems, search
-engines, and other kinds of technology can understand.20 Taken together,
+engines, and other kinds of technology can understand.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-20] Taken together,
these three layers ensure creators, users, and even the Web itself
understand the norms and rules associated with digital content in a
commons.
Creative Commons, but so do museums, governments, creative industries,
manufacturers, and publishers. Millions of websites use CC licenses,
including major platforms like Wikipedia and Flickr and smaller ones
-like blogs.21 Users of Creative Commons are diverse and cut across many
+like blogs.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-21] Users of Creative Commons are diverse and cut across many
different sectors. (Our case studies were chosen to reflect that
diversity.)
Open Government Partnership was launched in 2011 to provide an
international platform for governments to become more open, accountable,
and responsive to citizens. Since then, it has grown from eight
-participating countries to seventy.22 In all these countries, government
+participating countries to seventy.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-22] In all these countries, government
and civil society are working together to develop and implement
ambitious open-government reforms. Governments are increasingly adopting
Creative Commons to ensure works funded with taxpayer dollars are open
### The Changing Market
-Today’s market is largely driven by global capitalism. Law and financial
+Today's market is largely driven by global capitalism. Law and financial
systems are structured to support extraction, privatization, and
corporate growth. A perception that the market is more efficient than
the state has led to continual privatization of many public natural
-resources, utilities, services, and infrastructures.23 While this system
+resources, utilities, services, and infrastructures.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-23] While this system
has been highly efficient at generating consumerism and the growth of
gross domestic product, the impact on human well-being has been mixed.
Offsetting rising living standards and improvements to health and
education are ever-increasing wealth inequality, social inequality,
poverty, deterioration of our natural environment, and breakdowns of
-democracy.24
+democracy.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-24]
In light of these challenges there is a growing recognition that GDP
growth should not be an end in itself, that development needs to be
socially and economically inclusive, that environmental sustainability
is a requirement not an option, and that we need to better balance the
-market, state and community.25
+market, state and community.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-25]
These realizations have led to a resurgence of interest in the commons
as a means of enabling that balance. City governments like Bologna,
Italy, are collaborating with their citizens to put in place regulations
-for the care and regeneration of urban commons.26 Seoul and Amsterdam
-call themselves “sharing cities,” looking to make sustainable and more
+for the care and regeneration of urban commons.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-26] Seoul and Amsterdam
+call themselves "sharing cities," looking to make sustainable and more
efficient use of scarce resources. They see sharing as a way to improve
-the use of public spaces, mobility, social cohesion, and safety.27
+the use of public spaces, mobility, social cohesion, and safety.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-27]
The market itself has taken an interest in the sharing economy, with
businesses like Airbnb providing a peer-to-peer marketplace for
norms and rules of the market, making them less like a commons and more
like a traditional business seeking financial gain. Much of the sharing
economy is not about the commons or building an alternative to a
-corporate-driven market economy; it’s about extending the deregulated
-free market into new areas of our lives.28 While none of the people we
+corporate-driven market economy; it's about extending the deregulated
+free market into new areas of our lives.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-28] While none of the people we
interviewed for our case studies would describe themselves as part of
the sharing economy, there are in fact some significant parallels. Both
the sharing economy and the commons make better use of asset capacity.
increasing, but rather than costs going up, costs are coming down.
Digital technologies are getting faster, better, and cheaper. The cost
of anything built on these technologies will always go down until it is
-close to zero.29
+close to zero.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-29]
Those that are Made with Creative Commons are looking to leverage the
unique inherent characteristics of digital resources, including lowering
The incremental cost of storing, copying, and distributing digital goods
is next to zero, making abundance possible. But imagining a market based
on abundance rather than scarcity is so alien to the way we conceive of
-economic theory and practice that we struggle to do so.30 Those that are
+economic theory and practice that we struggle to do so.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-30] Those that are
Made with Creative Commons are each pioneering in this new landscape,
devising their own economic models and practice.
operates.
For an ordinary corporation, making social benefit a part of its
-operations is difficult, as it’s legally required to make decisions that
+operations is difficult, as it's legally required to make decisions that
financially benefit stockholders. But new forms of business are
emerging. There are benefit corporations and social enterprises, which
broaden their business goals from making a profit to making a positive
-impact on society, workers, the community, and the environment.31
+impact on society, workers, the community, and the environment.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-31]
Community-owned businesses, worker-owned businesses, cooperatives,
guilds, and other organizational forms offer alternatives to the
traditional corporation. Collectively, these alternative market entities
-are changing the rules and norms of the market.32
+are changing the rules and norms of the market.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-32]
-“A book on open business models” is how we described it in this book’s
+"A book on open business models" is how we described it in this book's
Kickstarter campaign. We used a handbook called Business Model
Generation as our reference for defining just what a business model is.
-Developed over nine years using an “open process” involving 470
+Developed over nine years using an "open process" involving 470
coauthors from forty-five countries, it is useful as a framework for
-talking about business models.33
+talking about business models.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-33]
-It contains a “business model canvas,” which conceives of a business
-model as having nine building blocks.34 This blank canvas can serve as a
+It contains a "business model canvas," which conceives of a business
+model as having nine building blocks.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-34] This blank canvas can serve as a
tool for anyone to design their own business model. We remixed this
business model canvas into an open business model canvas, adding three
more building blocks relevant to hybrid market, commons enterprises:
-social good, Creative Commons license, and “type of open environment
-that the business fits in.”35 This enhanced canvas proved useful when we
+social good, Creative Commons license, and "type of open environment
+that the business fits in."[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-35] This enhanced canvas proved useful when we
analyzed businesses and helped start-ups plan their economic model.
In our case study interviews, many expressed discomfort over describing
-themselves as an open business model—the term business model suggested
+themselves as an open business model---the term business model suggested
primarily being situated in the market. Where you sit on the
commons-to-market spectrum affects the extent to which you see yourself
as a business in the market. The more central to the mission shared
The creators, businesses, and organizations we profile all engage with
the market to generate revenue in some way. The ways in which this is
-done vary widely. Donations, pay what you can, memberships, “digital for
-free but physical for a fee,” crowdfunding, matchmaking, value-add
+done vary widely. Donations, pay what you can, memberships, "digital for
+free but physical for a fee," crowdfunding, matchmaking, value-add
services, patrons . . . the list goes on and on. (Initial description of
how to earn revenue available through reference note. For latest
-thinking see How to Bring In Money in the next section.) 36 There is no
+thinking see How to Bring In Money in the next section.)[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-36] There is no
single magic bullet, and each endeavor has devised ways that work for
them. Most make use of more than one way. Diversifying revenue streams
lowers risk and provides multiple paths to sustainability.
used and contributed to by everyone. Using the resources of others,
contributing your own, and mixing yours with others to create new works
are all dynamic forms of participation made possible by the commons.
-Being Made with Creative Commons means you’re engaging as many users
+Being Made with Creative Commons means you're engaging as many users
with your resources as possible. Users are also authoring, editing,
remixing, curating, localizing, translating, and distributing. The
commons makes it possible for people to directly participate in culture,
Creative Commons deliberately encourage users to take the resources
being shared and innovate them. Doing so moves research and development
(R&D) from being solely inside the organization to being in the
-community.37 Community-based innovation will keep an organization or
+community.[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-37] Community-based innovation will keep an organization or
business on its toes. It must continue to contribute new ideas, absorb
and build on top of the innovations of others, and steward the resources
and the relationship with the community.
Give more than you take. Be open and inclusive. Add value. Make visible
what you are using from the commons, what you are adding, and what you
are monetizing. Maximize abundance. Give attribution. Express gratitude.
-Develop trust; don’t exploit. Build relationship and community. Be
+Develop trust; don't exploit. Build relationship and community. Be
transparent. Defend the commons.
The new digital commons is here to stay. Made With Creative Commons case
-studies show how it’s possible to be part of this commons while still
+studies show how it's possible to be part of this commons while still
functioning within market and state systems. The commons generates
benefits neither the market nor state can achieve on their own. Rather
than the market or state dominating as primary means of resource
### Notes
-1. Jonathan Rowe, Our Common Wealth (San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler,
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-1]: Jonathan Rowe, Our Common Wealth (San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler,
2013), 14.
-2. David Bollier, Think Like a Commoner: A Short Introduction to the
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-2]: David Bollier, Think Like a Commoner: A Short Introduction to the
Life of the Commons (Gabriola Island, BC: New Society, 2014), 176.
-3. Ibid., 15.
-4. Ibid., 145.
-5. Ibid., 175.
-6. Daniel H. Cole, “Learning from Lin: Lessons and Cautions from the
- Natural Commons for the Knowledge Commons,” in Governing Knowledge
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-3]: Ibid., 15.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-4]: Ibid., 145.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-5]: Ibid., 175.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-6]: Daniel H. Cole, "Learning from Lin: Lessons and Cautions from the
+ Natural Commons for the Knowledge Commons," in Governing Knowledge
Commons, eds. Brett M. Frischmann, Michael J. Madison, and
Katherine J. Strandburg (New York: Oxford University Press,
2014), 53.
-7. Max Haiven, Crises of Imagination, Crises of Power: Capitalism,
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-7]: Max Haiven, Crises of Imagination, Crises of Power: Capitalism,
Creativity and the Commons (New York: Zed Books, 2014), 93.
-8. Cole, “Learning from Lin,” in Frischmann, Madison, and Strandburg,
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-8]: Cole, "Learning from Lin," in Frischmann, Madison, and Strandburg,
Governing Knowledge Commons, 59.
-9. Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 175.
-10. Joshua Farley and Ida Kubiszewski, “The Economics of Information in
- a Post-Carbon Economy,” in Free Knowledge: Confronting the
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-9]: Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 175.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-10]: Joshua Farley and Ida Kubiszewski, "The Economics of Information in
+ a Post-Carbon Economy," in Free Knowledge: Confronting the
Commodification of Human Discovery, eds. Patricia W. Elliott and
Daryl H. Hepting (Regina, SK: University of Regina Press, 2015),
- 201–4.
-11. Rowe, Our Common Wealth, 19; and Heather Menzies, Reclaiming the
+ 201--4.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-11]: Rowe, Our Common Wealth, 19; and Heather Menzies, Reclaiming the
Commons for the Common Good: A Memoir and Manifesto (Gabriola
- Island, BC: New Society, 2014), 42–43.
-12. Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 55–78.
-13. Fritjof Capra and Ugo Mattei, The Ecology of Law: Toward a Legal
+ Island, BC: New Society, 2014), 42--43.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-12]: Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 55--78.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-13]: Fritjof Capra and Ugo Mattei, The Ecology of Law: Toward a Legal
System in Tune with Nature and Community (Oakland, CA:
- Berrett-Koehler, 2015), 46–57; and Bollier, Think Like a
+ Berrett-Koehler, 2015), 46--57; and Bollier, Think Like a
Commoner, 88.
-14. Brett M. Frischmann, Michael J. Madison, and Katherine J.
- Strandburg, “Governing Knowledge Commons,” in Frischmann, Madison,
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-14]: Brett M. Frischmann, Michael J. Madison, and Katherine J.
+ Strandburg, "Governing Knowledge Commons," in Frischmann, Madison,
and Strandburg Governing Knowledge Commons, 12.
-15. Farley and Kubiszewski, “Economics of Information,” in Elliott and
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-15]: Farley and Kubiszewski, "Economics of Information," in Elliott and
Hepting, Free Knowledge, 203.
-16. “What Is Free Software?” GNU Operating System, the Free Software
- Foundation’s Licensing and Compliance Lab, accessed December 30,
- 2016, www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.
-17. Wikipedia, s.v. “Open-source software,” last modified November
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-16]: "What Is Free Software?" GNU Operating System, the Free Software
+ Foundation's Licensing and Compliance Lab, accessed December 30,
+ 2016, [](http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-17]: Wikipedia, s.v. "Open-source software," last modified November
22, 2016.
-18. Eric S. Raymond, “The Magic Cauldron,” in The Cathedral and the
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-18]: Eric S. Raymond, "The Magic Cauldron," in The Cathedral and the
Bazaar: Musings on Linux and Open Source by an Accidental
- Revolutionary, rev. ed. (Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media, 2001),
- www.catb.org/esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/.
-19. New York Times Customer Insight Group, The Psychology of Sharing:
+ Revolutionary, rev. ed. (Sebastopol, CA: O'Reilly Media, 2001),
+ [](http://www.catb.org/esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-19]: New York Times Customer Insight Group, The Psychology of Sharing:
Why Do People Share Online? (New York: New York Times Customer
- Insight Group, 2011), www.iab.net/media/file/POSWhitePaper.pdf.
-20. “Licensing Considerations,” Creative Commons, accessed December 30,
- 2016, creativecommons.org/share-your-work/licensing-considerations/.
-21. Creative Commons, 2015 State of the Commons (Mountain View, CA:
- Creative Commons, 2015), stateof.creativecommons.org/2015/.
-22. Wikipedia, s.v. “Open Government Partnership,” last modified
+ Insight Group, 2011), [](http://www.iab.net/media/file/POSWhitePaper.pdf).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-20]: "Licensing Considerations," Creative Commons, accessed December 30,
+ 2016, [](http://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/licensing-considerations/).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-21]: Creative Commons, 2015 State of the Commons (Mountain View, CA:
+ Creative Commons, 2015), [](http://stateof.creativecommons.org/2015/).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-22]: Wikipedia, s.v. "Open Government Partnership," last modified
September 24, 2016,
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open\_Government\_Partnership.
-23. Capra and Mattei, Ecology of Law, 114.
-24. Ibid., 116.
-25. The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, “Stockholm
- Statement” accessed February 15, 2017,
- sida.se/globalassets/sida/eng/press/stockholm-statement.pdf
-26. City of Bologna, Regulation on Collaboration between Citizens and
+ [](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open\_Government\_Partnership).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-23]: Capra and Mattei, Ecology of Law, 114.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-24]: Ibid., 116.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-25]: The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, "Stockholm
+ Statement" accessed February 15, 2017,
+ [](http://sida.se/globalassets/sida/eng/press/stockholm-statement.pdf)
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-26]: City of Bologna, Regulation on Collaboration between Citizens and
the City for the Care and Regeneration of Urban Commons, trans.
LabGov (LABoratory for the GOVernance of Commons) (Bologna, Italy:
City of Bologna, 2014),
- www.labgov.it/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/Bologna-Regulation-on-collaboration-between-citizens-and-the-city-for-the-cure-and-regeneration-of-urban-commons1.pdf.
-27. The Seoul Sharing City website is english.sharehub.kr; for Amsterdam
- Sharing City, go to www.sharenl.nl/amsterdam-sharing-city/.
-28. Tom Slee, What’s Yours Is Mine: Against the Sharing Economy (New
+ [](http://www.labgov.it/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/Bologna-Regulation-on-collaboration-between-citizens-and-the-city-for-the-cure-and-regeneration-of-urban-commons1.pdf).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-27]: The Seoul Sharing City website is [](http://english.sharehub.kr); for Amsterdam
+ Sharing City, go to [](http://www.sharenl.nl/amsterdam-sharing-city/).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-28]: Tom Slee, What's Yours Is Mine: Against the Sharing Economy (New
York: OR Books, 2015), 42.
-29. Chris Anderson, Free: How Today’s Smartest Businesses Profit by
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-29]: Chris Anderson, Free: How Today's Smartest Businesses Profit by
Giving Something for Nothing, Reprint with new preface. (New York:
Hyperion, 2010), 78.
-30. Jeremy Rifkin, The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-30]: Jeremy Rifkin, The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of
Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism
(New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014), 273.
-31. Gar Alperovitz, What Then Must We Do? Straight Talk about the Next
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-31]: Gar Alperovitz, What Then Must We Do? Straight Talk about the Next
American Revolution: Democratizing Wealth and Building a
Community-Sustaining Economy from the Ground Up (White River
Junction, VT: Chelsea Green, 2013), 39.
-32. Marjorie Kelly, Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-32]: Marjorie Kelly, Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership
Revolution; Journeys to a Generative Economy (San Francisco:
- Berrett-Koehler, 2012), 8–9.
-33. Alex Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur, Business Model Generation
+ Berrett-Koehler, 2012), 8--9.
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-33]: Alex Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur, Business Model Generation
(Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2010). A preview of the book is
- available at strategyzer.com/books/business-model-generation.
-34. This business model canvas is available to download at
- strategyzer.com/canvas/business-model-canvas.
-35. We’ve made the “Open Business Model Canvas,” designed by the
+ available at [](http://strategyzer.com/books/business-model-generation).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-34]: This business model canvas is available to download at
+ [](http://strategyzer.com/canvas/business-model-canvas).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-35]: We've made the "Open Business Model Canvas," designed by the
coauthor Paul Stacey, available online at
- docs.google.com/drawings/d/1QOIDa2qak7wZSSOa4Wv6qVMO77IwkKHN7CYyq0wHivs/edit.
+ [](http://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1QOIDa2qak7wZSSOa4Wv6qVMO77IwkKHN7CYyq0wHivs/edit).
You can also find the accompanying Open Business Model Canvas
Questions at
- docs.google.com/drawings/d/1kACK7TkoJgsM18HUWCbX9xuQ0Byna4plSVZXZGTtays/edit.
-36. A more comprehensive list of revenue streams is available in this
- post I wrote on Medium on March 6, 2016. “What Is an Open Business
- Model and How Can You Generate Revenue?”, available at
- medium.com/made-with-creative-commons/what-is-an-open-business-model-and-how-can-you-generate-revenue-5854d2659b15.
-37. Henry Chesbrough, Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating
+ [](http://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1kACK7TkoJgsM18HUWCbX9xuQ0Byna4plSVZXZGTtays/edit).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-36]: A more comprehensive list of revenue streams is available in this
+ post I wrote on Medium on March 6, 2016. "What Is an Open Business
+ Model and How Can You Generate Revenue?", available at
+ [](http://medium.com/made-with-creative-commons/what-is-an-open-business-model-and-how-can-you-generate-revenue-5854d2659b15).
+[^The-New-World-of-Digital-Commons-37]: Henry Chesbrough, Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating
and Profiting from Technology (Boston: Harvard Business Review
- Press, 2006), 31–44.
+ Press, 2006), 31--44.
## How to Be Made with Creative Commons
When we began this project in August 2015, we set out to write a book
about business models that involve Creative Commons licenses in some
-significant way—what we call being Made with Creative Commons. With the
-help of our Kickstarter backers, we chose twenty-four endeavors from all
-around the world that are Made with Creative Commons. The mix is
+significant way---what we call being Made with Creative Commons. With
+the help of our Kickstarter backers, we chose twenty-four endeavors from
+all around the world that are Made with Creative Commons. The mix is
diverse, from an individual musician to a university-textbook publisher
to an electronics manufacturer. Some make their own content and share
under Creative Commons licensing. Others are platforms for CC-licensed
creative work made by others. Many sit somewhere in between, both using
-and contributing creative work that’s shared with the public. Like all
-who use the licenses, these endeavors share their work—whether it’s open
-data or furniture designs—in a way that enables the public not only to
-access it but also to make use of it.
+and contributing creative work that's shared with the public. Like all
+who use the licenses, these endeavors share their work---whether it's
+open data or furniture designs---in a way that enables the public not
+only to access it but also to make use of it.
We analyzed the revenue models, customer segments, and value
propositions of each endeavor. We searched for ways that putting their
quite different from the one that was revealing itself in our interviews
and research.
-It isn’t that we were wrong to think you can make money while using
+It isn't that we were wrong to think you can make money while using
Creative Commons licenses. In many instances, CC can help make you more
money. Nor were we wrong that there are business models out there that
others who want to use CC licensing as part of their livelihood or
-business could replicate. What we didn’t realize was just how misguided
+business could replicate. What we didn't realize was just how misguided
it would be to write a book about being Made with Creative Commons using
only a business lens.
According to the seminal handbook Business Model Generation, a business
-model “describes the rationale of how an organization creates, delivers,
-and captures value.”1 Thinking about sharing in terms of creating and
+model "describes the rationale of how an organization creates, delivers,
+and captures value."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-1] Thinking about sharing in terms of creating and
capturing value always felt inappropriately transactional and out of
place, something we heard time and time again in our interviews. And as
-Cory Doctorow told us in our interview with him, “Business model can
-mean anything you want it to mean.”
+Cory Doctorow told us in our interview with him, "Business model can
+mean anything you want it to mean."
Eventually, we got it. Being Made with Creative Commons is more than a
business model. While we will talk about specific revenue models as one
everything we learned from the case studies and write up the practical
lessons and takeaways. I spent months trying to jam what we learned into
the business-model box, convinced there must be some formula for the way
-things interacted. But there is no formula. You’ll probably have to
+things interacted. But there is no formula. You'll probably have to
discard that way of thinking before you read any further.
In every interview, we started from the same simple questions. Amid all
Whether the public makes use of the opportunity to copy and adapt your
work, sharing with a Creative Commons license is a symbol of how you
want to interact with the people who consume your work. Whenever you
-create something, “all rights reserved” under copyright is automatic, so
+create something, "all rights reserved" under copyright is automatic, so
the copyright symbol (©) on the work does not necessarily come across as
a marker of distrust or excessive protectionism. But using a CC license
-can be a symbol of the opposite—of wanting a real human relationship,
+can be a symbol of the opposite---of wanting a real human relationship,
rather than an impersonal market transaction. It leaves open the
possibility of connection.
The driving motivation varies depending on the type of endeavor. For
individual creators, it is most often about personal inspiration. In
-some ways, this is nothing new. As Doctorow has written, “Creators
-usually start doing what they do for love.”2 But when you share your
+some ways, this is nothing new. As Doctorow has written, "Creators
+usually start doing what they do for love."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-2] But when you share your
creative work under a CC license, that dynamic is even more pronounced.
Similarly, for technological innovators, it is often less about creating
a specific new thing that will make you rich and more about solving a
specific problem you have. The creators of Arduino told us that the key
-question when creating something is “Do you as the creator want to use
-it? It has to have personal use and meaning.”
+question when creating something is "Do you as the creator want to use
+it? It has to have personal use and meaning."
Many that are Made with Creative Commons have an express social mission
that underpins everything they do. In many cases, sharing with Creative
Commons expressly advances that social mission, and using the licenses
can be the difference between legitimacy and hypocrisy. Noun Project
co-founder Edward Boatman told us they could not have stated their
-social mission of sharing with a straight face if they weren’t willing
+social mission of sharing with a straight face if they weren't willing
to show the world that it was OK to share their content using a Creative
Commons license.
business or livelihood, where profit is not paramount, and producing
social good and human connection are integral to success.
-Even if profit isn’t the end goal, you have to bring in money to be
+Even if profit isn't the end goal, you have to bring in money to be
successfully Made with Creative Commons. At a bare minimum, you have to
make enough money to keep the lights on.
there is generally a much lower threshold for sustainability than there
used to be for any creative endeavor. Digital technology has made it
easier than ever to create, and easier than ever to distribute. As
-Doctorow put it in his book Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free, “If
+Doctorow put it in his book Information Doesn't Want to Be Free, "If
analog dollars have turned into digital dimes (as the critics of
-ad-supported media have it), there is the fact that it’s possible to run
+ad-supported media have it), there is the fact that it's possible to run
a business that gets the same amount of advertising as its forebears at
-a fraction of the price.”
+a fraction of the price."
Some creation costs are the same as they always were. It takes the same
amount of time and money to write a peer-reviewed journal article or
-paint a painting. Technology can’t change that. But other costs are
+paint a painting. Technology can't change that. But other costs are
dramatically reduced by technology, particularly in production-heavy
-domains like filmmaking.3 CC-licensed content and content in the public
+domains like filmmaking.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-3] CC-licensed content and content in the public
domain, as well as the work of volunteer collaborators, can also
-dramatically reduce costs if they’re being used as resources to create
+dramatically reduce costs if they're being used as resources to create
something new. And, of course, there is the reality that some content
would be created whether or not the creator is paid because it is a
labor of love.
Distributing content is almost universally cheaper than ever. Once
content is created, the costs to distribute copies digitally are
-essentially zero.4 The costs to distribute physical copies are still
+essentially zero.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-4] The costs to distribute physical copies are still
significant, but lower than they have been historically. And it is now
much easier to print and distribute physical copies on-demand, which
also reduces costs. Depending on the endeavor, there can be a whole host
expenses associated with the various ways money is being made, like
touring or custom training.
-It’s important to recognize that the biggest impact of technology on
+It's important to recognize that the biggest impact of technology on
creative endeavors is that creators can now foot the costs of creation
and distribution themselves. People now often have a direct route to
their potential public without necessarily needing intermediaries like
-record labels and book publishers. Doctorow wrote, “If you’re a creator
+record labels and book publishers. Doctorow wrote, "If you're a creator
who never got the time of day from one of the great imperial powers,
this is your time. Where once you had no means of reaching an audience
without the assistance of the industry-dominating megacompanies, now you
-have hundreds of ways to do it without them.”5 Previously, distribution
+have hundreds of ways to do it without them."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-5] Previously, distribution
of creative work involved the costs associated with sustaining a
monolithic entity, now creators can do the work themselves. That means
the financial needs of creative endeavors can be a lot more modest.
-Whether for an individual creator or a larger endeavor, it usually isn’t
-enough to break even if you want to make what you’re doing a livelihood.
+Whether for an individual creator or a larger endeavor, it usually isn't
+enough to break even if you want to make what you're doing a livelihood.
You need to build in some support for the general operation. This extra
bit looks different for everyone, but importantly, in nearly all cases
-for those Made with Creative Commons, the definition of “enough money”
+for those Made with Creative Commons, the definition of "enough money"
looks a lot different than it does in the world of venture capital and
stock options. It is more about sustainability and less about unlimited
-growth and profit. SparkFun founder Nathan Seidle told us, “Business
+growth and profit. SparkFun founder Nathan Seidle told us, "Business
model is a really grandiose word for it. It is really just about keeping
-the operation going day to day.”
+the operation going day to day."
This book is a testament to the notion that it is possible to make money
while using CC licenses and CC-licensed content, but we are still very
There are, however, plenty of ways in which CC licensing can be good for
business in fairly predictable ways. The first is how it helps solve
-“problem zero.”
+"problem zero."
### Problem Zero: Getting Discovered
Once you create or collect your content, the next step is finding users,
-customers, fans—in other words, your people. As Amanda Palmer wrote, “It
-has to start with the art. The songs had to touch people initially, and
-mean something, for anything to work at all.”6 There isn’t any magic to
-finding your people, and there is certainly no formula. Your work has to
-connect with people and offer them some artistic and/or utilitarian
+customers, fans---in other words, your people. As Amanda Palmer wrote,
+"It has to start with the art. The songs had to touch people initially,
+and mean something, for anything to work at all."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-6] There isn't any magic
+to finding your people, and there is certainly no formula. Your work has
+to connect with people and offer them some artistic and/or utilitarian
value. In some ways, this is easier than ever. Online we are not limited
by shelf space, so there is room for every obscure interest, taste, and
need imaginable. This is what Chris Anderson dubbed the Long Tail, where
-consumption becomes less about mainstream mass “hits” and more about
-micromarkets for every particular niche. As Anderson wrote, “We are all
+consumption becomes less about mainstream mass "hits" and more about
+micromarkets for every particular niche. As Anderson wrote, "We are all
different, with different wants and needs, and the Internet now has a
-place for all of them in the way that physical markets did not.”7 We are
+place for all of them in the way that physical markets did not."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-7] We are
no longer limited to what appeals to the masses.
-While finding “your people” online is theoretically easier than in the
+While finding "your people" online is theoretically easier than in the
analog world, as a practical matter it can still be difficult to
actually get noticed. The Internet is a firehose of content, one that
only grows larger by the minute. As a content creator, not only are you
competing for attention against more content creators than ever before,
you are competing against creativity generated outside the market as
-well.8 Anderson wrote, “The greatest change of the past decade has been
+well.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-8] Anderson wrote, "The greatest change of the past decade has been
the shift in time people spend consuming amateur content instead of
-professional content.”9 To top it all off, you have to compete against
-the rest of their lives, too—“friends, family, music playlists, soccer
-games, and nights on the town.”10 Somehow, some way, you have to get
+professional content."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-9] To top it all off, you have to compete against
+the rest of their lives, too---"friends, family, music playlists, soccer
+games, and nights on the town."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-10] Somehow, some way, you have to get
noticed by the right people.
When you come to the Internet armed with an all-rights-reserved
mentality from the start, you are often restricting access to your work
before there is even any demand for it. In many cases, requiring payment
for your work is part of the traditional copyright system. Even a tiny
-cost has a big effect on demand. It’s called the penny gap—the large
+cost has a big effect on demand. It's called the penny gap---the large
difference in demand between something that is available at the price of
-one cent versus the price of zero.11 That doesn’t mean it is wrong to
+one cent versus the price of zero.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-11] That doesn't mean it is wrong to
charge money for your content. It simply means you need to recognize the
effect that doing so will have on demand. The same principle applies to
restricting access to copy the work. If your problem is how to get
-discovered and find “your people,” prohibiting people from copying your
+discovered and find "your people," prohibiting people from copying your
work and sharing it with others is counterproductive.
-Of course, it’s not that being discovered by people who like your work
-will make you rich—far from it. But as Cory Doctorow says, “Recognition
-is one of many necessary preconditions for artistic success.”12
+Of course, it's not that being discovered by people who like your work
+will make you rich---far from it. But as Cory Doctorow says,
+"Recognition is one of many necessary preconditions for artistic
+success."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-12]
Choosing not to spend time and energy restricting access to your work
and policing infringement also builds goodwill. Lumen Learning, a
It is not just that restricting access to your work may undermine your
social mission. It also may alienate the people who most value your
creative work. If people like your work, their natural instinct will be
-to share it with others. But as David Bollier wrote, “Our natural human
-impulses to imitate and share—the essence of culture—have been
-criminalized.”13
+to share it with others. But as David Bollier wrote, "Our natural human
+impulses to imitate and share---the essence of culture---have been
+criminalized."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-13]
The fact that copying can carry criminal penalties undoubtedly deters
copying it, but copying with the click of a button is too easy and
convenient to ever fully stop it. Try as the copyright industry might to
-persuade us otherwise, copying a copyrighted work just doesn’t feel like
-stealing a loaf of bread. And, of course, that’s because it isn’t.
-Sharing a creative work has no impact on anyone else’s ability to make
+persuade us otherwise, copying a copyrighted work just doesn't feel like
+stealing a loaf of bread. And, of course, that's because it isn't.
+Sharing a creative work has no impact on anyone else's ability to make
use of it.
If you take some amount of copying and sharing your work as a given, you
can invest your time and resources elsewhere, rather than wasting them
on playing a cat and mouse game with people who want to copy and share
-your work. Lizzy Jongma from the Rijksmuseum said, “We could spend a lot
+your work. Lizzy Jongma from the Rijksmuseum said, "We could spend a lot
of money trying to protect works, but people are going to do it anyway.
-And they will use bad-quality versions.” Instead, they started releasing
+And they will use bad-quality versions." Instead, they started releasing
high-resolution digital copies of their collection into the public
domain and making them available for free on their website. For them,
sharing was a form of quality control over the copies that were
Being Made with Creative Commons means you stop thinking about ways to
artificially make your content scarce, and instead leverage it as the
-potentially abundant resource it is.14 When you see information
+potentially abundant resource it is.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-14] When you see information
abundance as a feature, not a bug, you start thinking about the ways to
use the idling capacity of your content to your advantage. As my friend
-and colleague Eric Steuer once said, “Using CC licenses shows you get
-the Internet.”
+and colleague Eric Steuer once said, "Using CC licenses shows you get
+the Internet."
Cory Doctorow says it costs him nothing when other people make copies of
his work, and it opens the possibility that he might get something in
-return.15 Similarly, the makers of the Arduino boards knew it was
+return.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-15] Similarly, the makers of the Arduino boards knew it was
impossible to stop people from copying their hardware, so they decided
not to even try and instead look for the benefits of being open. For
them, the result is one of the most ubiquitous pieces of hardware in the
#### Use CC to grow a larger audience
-Putting a Creative Commons license on your content won’t make it
+Putting a Creative Commons license on your content won't make it
automatically go viral, but eliminating legal barriers to copying the
-work certainly can’t hurt the chances that your work will be shared. The
+work certainly can't hurt the chances that your work will be shared. The
CC license symbolizes that sharing is welcome. It can act as a little
-tap on the shoulder to those who come across the work—a nudge to copy
+tap on the shoulder to those who come across the work---a nudge to copy
the work if they have any inkling of doing so. All things being equal,
if one piece of content has a sign that says Share and the other says
-Don’t Share (which is what “©” means), which do you think people are
+Don't Share (which is what "©" means), which do you think people are
more likely to share?
The Conversation is an online news site with in-depth articles written
The idea that more eyeballs equates with more success is a form of the
max strategy, adopted by Google and other technology companies.
-According to Google’s Eric Schmidt, the idea is simple: “Take whatever
+According to Google's Eric Schmidt, the idea is simple: "Take whatever
it is you are doing and do it at the max in terms of distribution. The
other way of saying this is that since marginal cost of distribution is
-free, you might as well put things everywhere.”16 This strategy is what
+free, you might as well put things everywhere."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-16] This strategy is what
often motivates companies to make their products and services free
(i.e., no cost), but the same logic applies to making content freely
shareable. Because CC-licensed content is free (as in cost) and can be
If you are successful in reaching more users, readers, listeners, or
other consumers of your work, you can start to benefit from the
bandwagon effect. The simple fact that there are other people consuming
-or following your work spurs others to want to do the same.17 This is,
+or following your work spurs others to want to do the same.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-17] This is,
in part, because we simply have a tendency to engage in herd behavior,
but it is also because a large following is at least a partial indicator
-of quality or usefulness.18
+of quality or usefulness.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-18]
#### Use CC to get attribution and name recognition
enforcement, that most often motivate people to provide attribution and
otherwise comply with the CC license terms anyway. This is the mark of
any well-functioning community, within both the marketplace and the
-society at large.19 CC licenses reflect a set of wishes on the part of
+society at large.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-19] CC licenses reflect a set of wishes on the part of
creators, and in the vast majority of circumstances, people are
naturally inclined to follow those wishes. This is particularly the case
for something as straightforward and consistent with basic notions of
Attribution can be about more than just receiving credit. It can also be
about establishing provenance. People naturally want to know where
-content came from—the source of a work is sometimes just as interesting
-as the work itself. Opendesk is a platform for furniture designers to
-share their designs. Consumers who like those designs can then get
-matched with local makers who turn the designs into real-life furniture.
-The fact that I, sitting in the middle of the United States, can pick
-out a design created by a designer in Tokyo and then use a maker within
-my own community to transform the design into something tangible is part
-of the power of their platform. The provenance of the design is a
-special part of the product.
+content came from---the source of a work is sometimes just as
+interesting as the work itself. Opendesk is a platform for furniture
+designers to share their designs. Consumers who like those designs can
+then get matched with local makers who turn the designs into real-life
+furniture. The fact that I, sitting in the middle of the United States,
+can pick out a design created by a designer in Tokyo and then use a
+maker within my own community to transform the design into something
+tangible is part of the power of their platform. The provenance of the
+design is a special part of the product.
Knowing the source of a work is also critical to ensuring its
credibility. Just as a trademark is designed to give consumers a way to
As we will cover in more detail later, many endeavors that are Made with
Creative Commons make money by providing a product or service other than
the CC-licensed work. Sometimes that other product or service is
-completely unrelated to the CC content. Other times it’s a physical copy
+completely unrelated to the CC content. Other times it's a physical copy
or live performance of the CC content. In all cases, the CC content can
attract people to your other product or service.
-Knowledge Unlatched’s Pinter told us she has seen time and again how
-offering CC-licensed content—that is, digitally for free—actually
+Knowledge Unlatched's Pinter told us she has seen time and again how
+offering CC-licensed content---that is, digitally for free---actually
increases sales of the printed goods because it functions as a marketing
tool. We see this phenomenon regularly with famous artwork. The Mona
Lisa is likely the most recognizable painting on the planet. Its
the content often entice more demand, not blunt it. Another example came
with the advent of the radio. Although the music industry did not see it
coming (and fought it!), free music on the radio functioned as
-advertising for the paid version people bought in music stores.20 Free
+advertising for the paid version people bought in music stores.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-20] Free
can be a form of promotion.
In some cases, endeavors that are Made with Creative Commons do not even
Four of the six CC licenses enable reusers to take apart, build upon, or
otherwise adapt the work. Depending on the context, adaptation can mean
-wildly different things—translating, updating, localizing, improving,
+wildly different things---translating, updating, localizing, improving,
transforming. It enables a work to be customized for particular needs,
uses, people, and communities, which is another distinct value to offer
-the public.21 Adaptation is more game changing in some contexts than
+the public.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-21] Adaptation is more game changing in some contexts than
others. With educational materials, the ability to customize and update
the content is critically important for its usefulness. For photography,
the ability to adapt a photo is less important.
This is a way to counteract a potential downside of the abundance of
free and open content described above. As Anderson wrote in Free,
-“People often don’t care as much about things they don’t pay for, and as
-a result they don’t think as much about how they consume them.”22 If
+"People often don't care as much about things they don't pay for, and as
+a result they don't think as much about how they consume them."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-22] If
even the tiny act of volition of paying one penny for something changes
our perception of that thing, then surely the act of remixing it
-enhances our perception exponentially.23 We know that people will pay
-more for products they had a part in creating.24 And we know that
+enhances our perception exponentially.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-23] We know that people will pay
+more for products they had a part in creating.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-24] And we know that
creating something, no matter what quality, brings with it a type of
creative satisfaction that can never be replaced by consuming something
-created by someone else.25
+created by someone else.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-25]
Actively engaging with the content helps us avoid the type of aimless
consumption that anyone who has absentmindedly scrolled through their
social-media feeds for an hour knows all too well. In his book,
-Cognitive Surplus, Clay Shirky says, “To participate is to act as if
+Cognitive Surplus, Clay Shirky says, "To participate is to act as if
your presence matters, as if, when you see something or hear something,
-your response is part of the event.”26 Opening the door to your content
+your response is part of the event."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-26] Opening the door to your content
can get people more deeply tied to your work.
#### Use CC to differentiate yourself
under the rules of establishment players in the media. Business
strategies that are embedded in the traditional copyright system, like
using digital rights management (DRM) and signing exclusivity contracts,
-can tie the hands of creators, often at the expense of the creator’s
-best interest.27 Being Made with Creative Commons means you can function
+can tie the hands of creators, often at the expense of the creator's
+best interest.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-27] Being Made with Creative Commons means you can function
without those barriers and, in many cases, use the increased openness as
a competitive advantage. David Harris from OpenStax said they
specifically pursue strategies they know that traditional publishers
-cannot. “Don’t go into a market and play by the incumbent rules,” David
-said. “Change the rules of engagement.”
+cannot. "Don't go into a market and play by the incumbent rules," David
+said. "Change the rules of engagement."
### Making Money
beneficiaries of that value. Funders, whether philanthropic
institutions, governments, or concerned individuals, provide money to
the organization out of a sense of pure altruism. This is the way
-traditional nonprofit funding operates.28 But in many cases, the revenue
+traditional nonprofit funding operates.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-28] But in many cases, the revenue
streams used by endeavors that are Made with Creative Commons are
directly tied to the value they generate, where the recipient is paying
for the value they receive like any standard market transaction. In
bring in revenue, some market-based and some not. One common strategy is
using grant funding for content creation when research-and-development
costs are particularly high, and then finding a different revenue stream
-(or streams) for ongoing expenses. As Shirky wrote, “The trick is in
+(or streams) for ongoing expenses. As Shirky wrote, "The trick is in
knowing when markets are an optimal way of organizing interactions and
-when they are not.”29
+when they are not."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-29]
Our case studies explore in more detail the various revenue-generating
mechanisms used by the creators, organizations, and businesses we
#### Market-based revenue streams
In the market, the central question when determining how to bring in
-revenue is what value people are willing to pay for.30 By definition, if
+revenue is what value people are willing to pay for.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-30] By definition, if
you are Made with Creative Commons, the content you provide is available
for free and not a market commodity. Like the ubiquitous freemium
business model, any possible market transaction with a consumer of your
-content has to be based on some added value you provide.31
+content has to be based on some added value you provide.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-31]
In many ways, this is the way of the future for all content-driven
endeavors. In the market, value lives in things that are scarce. Because
struggling newspaper industry is a testament to this fact. This is
compounded by the fact that at least some amount of copying is probably
inevitable. That means you may end up competing with free versions of
-your own content, whether you condone it or not.32 If people can easily
+your own content, whether you condone it or not.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-32] If people can easily
find your content for free, getting people to buy it will be difficult,
particularly in a context where access to content is more important than
-owning it. In Free, Anderson wrote, “Copyright protection schemes,
+owning it. In Free, Anderson wrote, "Copyright protection schemes,
whether coded into either law or software, are simply holding up a price
-against the force of gravity.”
+against the force of gravity."
-Of course, this doesn’t mean that content-driven endeavors have no
+Of course, this doesn't mean that content-driven endeavors have no
future in the traditional marketplace. In Free, Anderson explains how
when one product or service becomes free, as information and content
largely have in the digital age, other things become more valuable.
-“Every abundance creates a new scarcity,” he wrote. You just have to
+"Every abundance creates a new scarcity," he wrote. You just have to
find some way other than the content to provide value to your audience
-or customers. As Anderson says, “It’s easy to compete with Free: simply
-offer something better or at least different from the free version.”33
+or customers. As Anderson says, "It's easy to compete with Free: simply
+offer something better or at least different from the free version."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-33]
In light of this reality, in some ways endeavors that are Made with
Creative Commons are at a level playing field with all content-based
Here are the most common high-level categories.
-#### Providing a custom service to consumers of your work * \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Providing a custom service to consumers of your work *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
-In this age of information abundance, we don’t lack for content. The
+In this age of information abundance, we don't lack for content. The
trick is finding content that matches our needs and wants, so customized
-services are particularly valuable. As Anderson wrote, “Commodity
+services are particularly valuable. As Anderson wrote, "Commodity
information (everybody gets the same version) wants to be free.
Customized information (you get something unique and meaningful to you)
-wants to be expensive.”34 This can be anything from the artistic and
+wants to be expensive."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-34] This can be anything from the artistic and
cultural consulting services provided by Ártica to the custom-song
-business of Jonathan “Song-A-Day” Mann.
+business of Jonathan "Song-A-Day" Mann.
-#### Charging for the physical copy * \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Charging for the physical copy *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
In his book about maker culture, Anderson characterizes this model as
giving away the bits and selling the atoms (where bits refers to digital
-content and atoms refer to a physical object).35 This is particularly
-successful in domains where the digital version of the content isn’t as
+content and atoms refer to a physical object).[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-35] This is particularly
+successful in domains where the digital version of the content isn't as
valuable as the analog version, like book publishing where a significant
subset of people still prefer reading something they can hold in their
-hands. Or in domains where the content isn’t useful until it is in
+hands. Or in domains where the content isn't useful until it is in
physical form, like furniture designs. In those situations, a
significant portion of consumers will pay for the convenience of having
someone else put the physical version together for them. Some endeavors
with other providers of the same works based on quality, service, or
other traditional business principles.
-#### Charging for the in-person version * \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Charging for the in-person version *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
As anyone who has ever gone to a concert will tell you, experiencing
creativity in person is a completely different experience from consuming
people go view original art in person or pay to attend a talk or
training course.
-#### Selling merchandise * \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Selling merchandise *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
In many cases, people who like your work will pay for products
demonstrating a connection to your work. As a child of the 1980s, I can
content is free increases the size of the audience, which in turn makes
the offer more valuable to the paying customers. This is a variation of
a traditional business model built on free called multi-sided
-platforms.36 Access to your audience isn’t the only thing people are
-willing to pay for—there are other services you can provide as well.
+platforms.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-36] Access to your audience isn't the only thing people are
+willing to pay for---there are other services you can provide as well.
-#### Charging advertisers or sponsors * \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Charging advertisers or sponsors *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
The traditional model of subsidizing free content is advertising. In
this version of multi-sided platforms, advertisers pay for the
opportunity to reach the set of eyeballs the content creators provide in
-the form of their audience.37 The Internet has made this model more
+the form of their audience.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-37] The Internet has made this model more
difficult because the number of potential channels available to reach
-those eyeballs has become essentially infinite.38 Nonetheless, it
+those eyeballs has become essentially infinite.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-38] Nonetheless, it
remains a viable revenue stream for many content creators, including
those who are Made with Creative Commons. Often, instead of paying to
display advertising, the advertiser pays to be an official sponsor of
particular content or projects, or of the overall endeavor.
-#### Charging your content creators * \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Charging your content creators *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
Another type of multisided platform is where the content creators
themselves pay to be featured on the platform. Obviously, this revenue
stream is only available to those who rely on work created, at least in
part, by others. The most well-known version of this model is the
-“author-processing charge” of open-access journals like those published
+"author-processing charge" of open-access journals like those published
by the Public Library of Science, but there are other variations. The
Conversation is primarily funded by a university-membership model, where
universities pay to have their faculties participate as writers of the
content on the Conversation website.
-#### Charging a transaction fee * \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Charging a transaction fee *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
This is a version of a traditional business model based on brokering
-transactions between parties.39 Curation is an important element of this
+transactions between parties.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-39] Curation is an important element of this
model. Platforms like the Noun Project add value by wading through
CC-licensed content to curate a high-quality set and then derive revenue
when creators of that content make transactions with customers. Other
site pays a maker to make furniture based on one of the designs on the
platform.
-#### Providing a service to your creators* \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Providing a service to your creators *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
As mentioned above, endeavors can make money by providing customized
services to their users. Platforms can undertake a variation of this
this model by providing paid tools to help their users make the data
they contribute to the platform more discoverable and reusable.
-#### Licensing a trademark* \[MARKET-BASED\]*
+#### Licensing a trademark *\[MARKET-BASED\]*
Finally, some that are Made with Creative Commons make money by selling
use of their trademarks. Well known brands that consumers associate with
some direct value provided to them, many of the revenue streams were
more about providing value, building a relationship, and then eventually
finding some money that flows back out of a sense of reciprocity. While
-some look like traditional nonprofit funding models, they aren’t
+some look like traditional nonprofit funding models, they aren't
charity. The endeavor exchange value with people, just not necessarily
synchronously or in a way that requires that those values be equal. As
-David Bollier wrote in Think Like a Commoner, “There is no self-serving
-calculation of whether the value given and received is strictly equal.”
+David Bollier wrote in Think Like a Commoner, "There is no self-serving
+calculation of whether the value given and received is strictly equal."
-This should be a familiar dynamic—it is the way you deal with your
+This should be a familiar dynamic---it is the way you deal with your
friends and family. We give without regard for what and when we will get
-back. David Bollier wrote, “Reciprocal social exchange lies at the heart
+back. David Bollier wrote, "Reciprocal social exchange lies at the heart
of human identity, community and culture. It is a vital brain function
-that helps the human species survive and evolve.”
+that helps the human species survive and evolve."
What is rare is to incorporate this sort of relationship into an
-endeavor that also engages with the market.40 We almost can’t help but
+endeavor that also engages with the market.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-40] We almost can't help but
think of relationships in the market as being centered on an even-steven
-exchange of value.41
+exchange of value.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-41]
#### Memberships and individual donations *\[RECIPROCITY-BASED\]*
#### The pay-what-you-want model *\[RECIPROCITY-BASED\]*
In the pay-what-you-want model, the beneficiary of Creative Commons
-content is invited to give—at any amount they can and feel is
+content is invited to give---at any amount they can and feel is
appropriate, based on the public and personal value they feel is
generated by the open content. Critically, these models are not touted
-as “buying” something free. They are similar to a tip jar. People make
+as "buying" something free. They are similar to a tip jar. People make
financial contributions as an act of gratitude. These models capitalize
on the fact that we are naturally inclined to give money for things we
value in the marketplace, even in situations where we could find a way
Crowdfunding models are based on recouping the costs of creating and
distributing content before the content is created. If the endeavor is
Made with Creative Commons, anyone who wants the work in question could
-simply wait until it’s created and then access it for free. That means,
+simply wait until it's created and then access it for free. That means,
for this model to work, people have to care about more than just
receiving the work. They have to want you to succeed. Amanda Palmer
credits the success of her crowdfunding on Kickstarter and Patreon to
the years she spent building her community and creating a connection
-with her fans. She wrote in The Art of Asking, “Good art is made, good
+with her fans. She wrote in The Art of Asking, "Good art is made, good
art is shared, help is offered, ears are bent, emotions are exchanged,
the compost of real, deep connection is sprayed all over the fields.
Then one day, the artist steps up and asks for something. And if the
ground has been fertilized enough, the audience says, without
-hesitation: of course.”
+hesitation: of course."
Other types of crowdfunding rely on a sense of responsibility that a
particular community may feel. Knowledge Unlatched pools funds from
### Making Human Connections
Regardless of how they made money, in our interviews, we repeatedly
-heard language like “persuading people to buy” and “inviting people to
-pay.” We heard it even in connection with revenue streams that sit
-squarely within the market. Cory Doctorow told us, “I have to convince
-my readers that the right thing to do is to pay me.” The founders of the
+heard language like "persuading people to buy" and "inviting people to
+pay." We heard it even in connection with revenue streams that sit
+squarely within the market. Cory Doctorow told us, "I have to convince
+my readers that the right thing to do is to pay me." The founders of the
for-profit company Lumen Learning showed us the letter they send to
those who opt not to pay for the services they provide in connection
-with their CC-licensed educational content. It isn’t a cease-and-desist
-letter; it’s an invitation to pay because it’s the right thing to do.
+with their CC-licensed educational content. It isn't a cease-and-desist
+letter; it's an invitation to pay because it's the right thing to do.
This sort of behavior toward what could be considered nonpaying
customers is largely unheard of in the traditional marketplace. But it
seems to be part of the fabric of being Made with Creative Commons.
Nearly every endeavor we profiled relied, at least in part, on people
being invested in what they do. The closer the Creative Commons content
-is to being “the product,” the more pronounced this dynamic has to be.
+is to being "the product," the more pronounced this dynamic has to be.
Rather than simply selling a product or service, they are making
ideological, personal, and creative connections with the people who
value what they do.
about community, social good, contributing ideas, expressing a value
system, working together. These components of sharing are hard to
cultivate if you think about what you do in purely market terms. Decent
-social behavior isn’t as intuitive when we are doing something that
+social behavior isn't as intuitive when we are doing something that
involves monetary exchange. It takes a conscious effort to foster the
context for real sharing, based not strictly on impersonal market
exchange, but on connections with the people with whom you
-share—connections with you, with your work, with your values, with each
-other.
+share---connections with you, with your work, with your values, with
+each other.
The rest of this section will explore some of the common strategies that
creators, companies, and organizations use to remind us that there are
#### Be human
Humans are social animals, which means we are naturally inclined to
-treat each other well.42 But the further removed we are from the person
+treat each other well.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-42] But the further removed we are from the person
with whom we are interacting, the less caring our behavior will be.
While the Internet has democratized cultural production, increased
access to knowledge, and connected us in extraordinary ways, it can also
licenses work to demonstrate their humanity. For some, this means
pouring their lives out on the page. For others, it means showing their
creative process, giving a glimpse into how they do what they do. As
-writer Austin Kleon wrote, “Our work doesn’t speak for itself. Human
+writer Austin Kleon wrote, "Our work doesn't speak for itself. Human
beings want to know where things came from, how they were made, and who
made them. The stories you tell about the work you do have a huge effect
on how people feel and what they understand about your work, and how
people feel and what they understand about your work affects how they
-value it.”43
+value it."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-43]
A critical component to doing this effectively is not worrying about
-being a “brand.” That means not being afraid to be vulnerable. Amanda
-Palmer says, “When you’re afraid of someone’s judgment, you can’t
-connect with them. You’re too preoccupied with the task of impressing
-them.” Not everyone is suited to live life as an open book like Palmer,
-and that’s OK. There are a lot of ways to be human. The trick is just
+being a "brand." That means not being afraid to be vulnerable. Amanda
+Palmer says, "When you're afraid of someone's judgment, you can't
+connect with them. You're too preoccupied with the task of impressing
+them." Not everyone is suited to live life as an open book like Palmer,
+and that's OK. There are a lot of ways to be human. The trick is just
avoiding pretense and the temptation to artificially craft an image.
-People don’t just want the glossy version of you. They can’t relate to
+People don't just want the glossy version of you. They can't relate to
it, at least not in a meaningful way.
This advice is probably even more important for businesses and
corporations and organizations make the people behind them more
apparent, it reminds people that they are dealing with something other
than an anonymous corporate entity. In business-speak, this is about
-“humanizing your interactions” with the public.44 But it can’t be a
-gimmick. You can’t fake being human.
+"humanizing your interactions" with the public.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-44] But it can't be a
+gimmick. You can't fake being human.
#### Be open and accountable
Transparency helps people understand who you are and why you do what you
do, but it also inspires trust. Max Temkin of Cards Against Humanity
-told us, “One of the most surprising things you can do in capitalism is
-just be honest with people.” That means sharing the good and the bad. As
-Amanda Palmer wrote, “You can fix almost anything by authentically
-communicating.”45 It isn’t about trying to satisfy everyone or trying to
+told us, "One of the most surprising things you can do in capitalism is
+just be honest with people." That means sharing the good and the bad. As
+Amanda Palmer wrote, "You can fix almost anything by authentically
+communicating."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-45] It isn't about trying to satisfy everyone or trying to
sugarcoat mistakes or bad news, but instead about explaining your
rationale and then being prepared to defend it when people are
-critical.46
+critical.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-46]
Being accountable does not mean operating on consensus. According to
James Surowiecki, consensus-driven groups tend to resort to
lowest-common-denominator solutions and
avoid the sort of candid exchange of ideas that cultivates healthy
-collaboration.47 Instead, it can be as simple as asking for input and
+collaboration.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-47] Instead, it can be as simple as asking for input and
then giving context and explanation about decisions you make, even if
soliciting feedback and inviting discourse is time-consuming. If you
-don’t go through the effort to actually respond to the input you
-receive, it can be worse than not inviting input in the first place.48
+don't go through the effort to actually respond to the input you
+receive, it can be worse than not inviting input in the first place.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-48]
But when you get it right, it can guarantee the type of diversity of
thought that helps endeavors excel. And it is another way to get people
involved and invested in what you do.
#### Design for the good actors
Traditional economics assumes people make decisions based solely on
-their own economic self-interest.49 Any relatively introspective human
-knows this is a fiction—we are much more complicated beings with a whole
-range of needs, emotions, and motivations. In fact, we are hardwired to
-work together and ensure fairness.50 Being Made with Creative Commons
-requires an assumption that people will largely act on those social
-motivations, motivations that would be considered “irrational” in an
-economic sense. As Knowledge Unlatched’s Pinter told us, “It is best to
-ignore people who try to scare you about free riding. That fear is based
-on a very shallow view of what motivates human behavior.” There will
-always be people who will act in purely selfish ways, but endeavors that
-are Made with Creative Commons design for the good actors.
+their own economic self-interest.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-49] Any relatively introspective human
+knows this is a fiction---we are much more complicated beings with a
+whole range of needs, emotions, and motivations. In fact, we are
+hardwired to work together and ensure fairness.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-50] Being Made with
+Creative Commons requires an assumption that people will largely act on
+those social motivations, motivations that would be considered
+"irrational" in an economic sense. As Knowledge Unlatched's Pinter told
+us, "It is best to ignore people who try to scare you about free riding.
+That fear is based on a very shallow view of what motivates human
+behavior." There will always be people who will act in purely selfish
+ways, but endeavors that are Made with Creative Commons design for the
+good actors.
The assumption that people will largely do the right thing can be a
-self-fulfilling prophecy. Shirky wrote in Cognitive Surplus, “Systems
+self-fulfilling prophecy. Shirky wrote in Cognitive Surplus, "Systems
that assume people will act in ways that create public goods, and that
give them opportunities and rewards for doing so, often let them work
-together better than neoclassical economics would predict.”51 When we
+together better than neoclassical economics would predict."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-51] When we
acknowledge that people are often motivated by something other than
financial self-interest, we design our endeavors in ways that encourage
and accentuate our social instincts.
-Rather than trying to exert control over people’s behavior, this mode of
+Rather than trying to exert control over people's behavior, this mode of
operating requires a certain level of trust. We might not realize it,
but our daily lives are already built on trust. As Surowiecki wrote in
-The Wisdom of Crowds, “It’s impossible for a society to rely on law
-alone to make sure citizens act honestly and responsibly. And it’s
+The Wisdom of Crowds, "It's impossible for a society to rely on law
+alone to make sure citizens act honestly and responsibly. And it's
impossible for any organization to rely on contracts alone to make sure
-that its managers and workers live up to their obligation.” Instead, we
-largely trust that people—mostly strangers—will do what they are
-supposed to do.52 And most often, they do.
+that its managers and workers live up to their obligation." Instead, we
+largely trust that people---mostly strangers---will do what they are
+supposed to do.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-52] And most often, they do.
#### Treat humans like, well, humans
For creators, treating people as humans means not treating them like
-fans. As Kleon says, “If you want fans, you have to be a fan first.”53
+fans. As Kleon says, "If you want fans, you have to be a fan first."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-53]
Even if you happen to be one of the few to reach celebrity levels of
fame, you are better off remembering that the people who follow your
work are human, too. Cory Doctorow makes a point to answer every single
email someone sends him. Amanda Palmer spends vast quantities of time
going online to communicate with her public, making a point to listen
-just as much as she talks.54
+just as much as she talks.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-54]
The same idea goes for businesses and organizations. Rather than
automating its customer service, the music platform Tribe of Noise makes
with users.
When we treat people like humans, they typically return the gift in
-kind. It’s called karma. But social relationships are fragile. It is all
+kind. It's called karma. But social relationships are fragile. It is all
too easy to destroy them if you make the mistake of treating people as
-anonymous customers or free labor.55 Platforms that rely on content from
+anonymous customers or free labor.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-55] Platforms that rely on content from
contributors are especially at risk of creating an exploitative dynamic.
It is important to find ways to acknowledge and pay back the value that
contributors generate. That does not mean you can solve this problem by
simply paying contributors for their time or contributions. As soon as
-we introduce money into a relationship—at least when it takes a form of
-paying monetary value in exchange for other value—it can dramatically
-change the dynamic.56
+we introduce money into a relationship---at least when it takes a form
+of paying monetary value in exchange for other value---it can
+dramatically change the dynamic.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-56]
#### State your principles and stick to them
will be drawn to endeavors that are Made with Creative Commons as a way
of demonstrating their own commitment to the Creative Commons value
system, akin to a political statement. Other times people will identify
-and feel connected with an endeavor’s separate social mission. Often
+and feel connected with an endeavor's separate social mission. Often
both.
-The expression of your values doesn’t have to be implicit. In fact, many
+The expression of your values doesn't have to be implicit. In fact, many
of the people we interviewed talked about how important it is to state
your guiding principles up front. Lumen Learning attributes a lot of
their success to having been outspoken about the fundamental values that
in which they operate.
When your end goal is not about making a profit, people trust that you
-aren’t just trying to extract value for your own gain. People notice
+aren't just trying to extract value for your own gain. People notice
when you have a sense of purpose that transcends your own
-self-interest.57 It attracts committed employees, motivates
+self-interest.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-57] It attracts committed employees, motivates
contributors, and builds trust.
#### Build a community
built around what they do. This may mean a community collaborating
together to create something new, or it may simply be a collection of
like-minded people who get to know each other and rally around common
-interests or beliefs.58 To a certain extent, simply being Made with
+interests or beliefs.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-58] To a certain extent, simply being Made with
Creative Commons automatically brings with it some element of community,
by helping connect you to like-minded others who recognize and are drawn
to the values symbolized by
using CC.
To be sustainable, though, you have to work to nurture community. People
-have to care—about you and each other. One critical piece to this is
+have to care---about you and each other. One critical piece to this is
fostering a sense of belonging. As Jono Bacon writes in The Art of
-Community, “If there is no belonging, there is no community.” For Amanda
+Community, "If there is no belonging, there is no community." For Amanda
Palmer and her band, that meant creating an accepting and inclusive
-environment where people felt a part of their “weird little family.”59
+environment where people felt a part of their "weird little family."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-59]
For organizations like Red Hat, that means connecting around common
beliefs or goals. As the CEO Jim Whitehurst wrote in The Open
-Organization, “Tapping into passion is especially important in building
+Organization, "Tapping into passion is especially important in building
the kinds of participative communities that drive open
-organizations.”60
+organizations."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-60]
Communities that collaborate together take deliberate planning.
-Surowiecki wrote, “It takes a lot of work to put the group together.
-It’s difficult to ensure that people are working in the group’s interest
-and not in their own. And when there’s a lack of trust between the
-members of the group (which isn’t surprising given that they don’t
+Surowiecki wrote, "It takes a lot of work to put the group together.
+It's difficult to ensure that people are working in the group's interest
+and not in their own. And when there's a lack of trust between the
+members of the group (which isn't surprising given that they don't
really know each other), considerable energy is wasted trying to
-determine each other’s bona fides.”61 Building true community requires
+determine each other's bona fides."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-61] Building true community requires
giving people within the community the power to create or influence the
-rules that govern the community.62 If the rules are created and imposed
-in a top-down manner, people feel like they don’t have a voice, which in
+rules that govern the community.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-62] If the rules are created and imposed
+in a top-down manner, people feel like they don't have a voice, which in
turn leads to disengagement.
Community takes work, but working together, or even simply being
Conventional wisdom in the marketplace dictates that people should try
to extract as much money as possible from resources. This is essentially
what defines so much of the so-called sharing economy. In an article on
-the Harvard Business Review website called “The Sharing Economy Isn’t
-about Sharing at All,” authors Giana Eckhardt and Fleura Bardhi
+the Harvard Business Review website called "The Sharing Economy Isn't
+about Sharing at All," authors Giana Eckhardt and Fleura Bardhi
explained how the anonymous market-driven trans-actions in most
-sharing-economy businesses are purely about monetizing access.63 As Lisa
+sharing-economy businesses are purely about monetizing access.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-63] As Lisa
Gansky put it in her book The Mesh, the primary strategy of the sharing
economy is to sell the same product multiple times, by selling access
-rather than ownership.64 That is not sharing.
+rather than ownership.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-64] That is not sharing.
Sharing requires adding as much or more value to the ecosystem than you
-take. You can’t simply treat open content as a free pool of resources
+take. You can't simply treat open content as a free pool of resources
from which to extract value. Part of giving back to the ecosystem is
contributing content back to the public under CC licenses. But it
-doesn’t have to just be about creating content; it can be about adding
+doesn't have to just be about creating content; it can be about adding
value in other ways. The social blogging platform Medium provides value
to its community by incentivizing good behavior, and the result is an
online space with remarkably high-quality user-generated content and
-limited trolling.65 Opendesk contributes to its community by committing
+limited trolling.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-65] Opendesk contributes to its community by committing
to help its designers make money, in part by actively curating and
displaying their work on its platform effectively.
Thanks to the Internet, we can tap into the talents and expertise of
people around the globe. Chris Anderson calls it the Long Tail of
-talent.66 But to make collaboration work, the group has to be effective
+talent.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-66] But to make collaboration work, the group has to be effective
at what it is doing, and the people within the group have to find
-satisfaction from being involved.67 This is easier to facilitate for
+satisfaction from being involved.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-67] This is easier to facilitate for
some types of creative work than it is for others. Groups tied together
online collaborate best when people can work independently and
asynchronously, and particularly for larger groups with loose ties, when
contributors can make simple improvements without a particularly heavy
time
-commitment.68
+commitment.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-68]
As the success of Wikipedia demonstrates, editing an online encyclopedia
is exactly the sort of activity that is perfect for massive co-creation
acting on their own are immensely valuable in the aggregate. Those same
sorts of small contributions would be less useful for many other types
of creative work, and people are inherently less motivated to contribute
-when it doesn’t appear that their efforts will make much of a
-difference.69
+when it doesn't appear that their efforts will make much of a
+difference.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-69]
It is easy to romanticize the opportunities for global cocreation made
possible by the Internet, and, indeed, the successful examples of it are
truly incredible and inspiring. But in a wide range of
-circumstances—perhaps more often than not—community cocreation is not
-part of the equation, even within endeavors built on CC content. Shirky
-wrote, “Sometimes the value of professional work trumps the value of
-amateur sharing or a feeling of belonging.70 The textbook publisher
+circumstances---perhaps more often than not---community cocreation is
+not part of the equation, even within endeavors built on CC content.
+Shirky wrote, "Sometimes the value of professional work trumps the value
+of amateur sharing or a feeling of belonging.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-70] The textbook publisher
OpenStax, which distributes all of its material for free under CC
licensing, is an example of this dynamic. Rather than tapping the
community to help cocreate their college textbooks, they invest a
For individual creators, where the creative work is the basis for what
they do, community cocreation is only rarely a part of the picture. Even
musician Amanda Palmer, who is famous for her openness and involvement
-with her fans, said, “The only department where I wasn’t open to input
-was the writing, the music itself.”71
+with her fans, said, "The only department where I wasn't open to input
+was the writing, the music itself."[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-71]
While we tend to immediately think of cocreation and remixing when we
hear the word collaboration, you can also involve others in your
creative process in more informal ways, by sharing half-baked ideas and
early drafts, and interacting with the public to incubate ideas and get
-feedback. So-called “making in public” opens the door to letting people
-feel more invested in your creative work.72 And it shows a
+feedback. So-called "making in public" opens the door to letting people
+feel more invested in your creative work.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-72] And it shows a
nonterritorial approach to ideas and information. Stephen Covey (of The
7 Habits of Highly Effective People fame) calls this the abundance
-mentality—treating ideas like something plentiful—and it can create an
-environment where collaboration flourishes.73
+mentality---treating ideas like something plentiful---and it can create
+an environment where collaboration flourishes.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-73]
There is no one way to involve people in what you do. They key is
finding a way for people to contribute on their terms, compelled by
-their own motivations.74 What that looks like varies wildly depending on
+their own motivations.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-74] What that looks like varies wildly depending on
the project. Not every endeavor that is Made with Creative Commons can
be Wikipedia, but every endeavor can find ways to invite the public into
what they do. The goal for any form of collaboration is to move away
from thinking of consumers as passive recipients of your content and
-transition them into active participants.75
+transition them into active participants.[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-75]
### Notes
-1. Alex Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur, Business Model Generation
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-1]: Alex Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur, Business Model Generation
(Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2010), 14. A preview of the book
- is available at strategyzer.com/books/business-model-generation.
-2. Cory Doctorow, Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free: Laws for the
- Internet Age (San Francisco, CA: McSweeney’s, 2014) 68.
-3. Ibid., 55.
-4. Chris Anderson, Free: How Today’s Smartest Businesses Profit by
+ is available at [](http://strategyzer.com/books/business-model-generation).
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-2]: Cory Doctorow, Information Doesn't Want to Be Free: Laws for the
+ Internet Age (San Francisco, CA: McSweeney's, 2014) 68.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-3]: Ibid., 55.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-4]: Chris Anderson, Free: How Today's Smartest Businesses Profit by
Giving Something for Nothing, reprint with new preface (New York:
Hyperion, 2010), 224.
-5. Doctorow, Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free, 44.
-6. Amanda Palmer, The Art of Asking: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-5]: Doctorow, Information Doesn't Want to Be Free, 44.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-6]: Amanda Palmer, The Art of Asking: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying
and Let People Help (New York: Grand Central, 2014), 121.
-7. Chris Anderson, Makers: The New Industrial Revolution (New York:
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-7]: Chris Anderson, Makers: The New Industrial Revolution (New York:
Signal, 2012), 64.
-8. David Bollier, Think Like a Commoner: A Short Introduction to the
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-8]: David Bollier, Think Like a Commoner: A Short Introduction to the
Life of the Commons (Gabriola Island, BC: New Society, 2014), 70.
-9. Anderson, Makers, 66.
-10. Bryan Kramer, Shareology: How Sharing Is Powering the Human Economy
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-9]: Anderson, Makers, 66.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-10]: Bryan Kramer, Shareology: How Sharing Is Powering the Human Economy
(New York: Morgan James, 2016), 10.
-11. Anderson, Free, 62.
-12. Doctorow, Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free, 38.
-13. Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 68.
-14. Anderson, Free, 86.
-15. Doctorow, Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free, 144.
-16. Anderson, Free, 123.
-17. Ibid., 132.
-18. Ibid., 70.
-19. James Surowiecki, The Wisdom of Crowds (New York: Anchor Books,
- 2005), 124. Surowiecki says, “The measure of success of laws and
- contracts is how rarely they are invoked.”
-20. Anderson, Free, 44.
-21. Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 23.
-22. Anderson, Free, 67.
-23. Ibid., 58.
-24. Anderson, Makers, 71.
-25. Clay Shirky, Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers into
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-11]: Anderson, Free, 62.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-12]: Doctorow, Information Doesn't Want to Be Free, 38.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-13]: Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 68.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-14]: Anderson, Free, 86.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-15]: Doctorow, Information Doesn't Want to Be Free, 144.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-16]: Anderson, Free, 123.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-17]: Ibid., 132.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-18]: Ibid., 70.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-19]: James Surowiecki, The Wisdom of Crowds (New York: Anchor Books,
+ 2005), 124. Surowiecki says, "The measure of success of laws and
+ contracts is how rarely they are invoked."
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-20]: Anderson, Free, 44.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-21]: Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 23.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-22]: Anderson, Free, 67.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-23]: Ibid., 58.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-24]: Anderson, Makers, 71.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-25]: Clay Shirky, Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers into
Collaborators (London: Penguin Books, 2010), 78.
-26. Ibid., 21.
-27. Doctorow, Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free, 43.
-28. William Landes Foster, Peter Kim, and Barbara Christiansen, “Ten
- Nonprofit Funding Models,” Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring
- 2009, ssir.org/articles/entry/ten\_nonprofit\_funding\_models.
-29. Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 111.
-30. Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 30.
-31. Jim Whitehurst, The Open Organization: Igniting Passion and
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-26]: Ibid., 21.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-27]: Doctorow, Information Doesn't Want to Be Free, 43.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-28]: William Landes Foster, Peter Kim, and Barbara Christiansen, "Ten
+ Nonprofit Funding Models," Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring
+ 2009, [](http://ssir.org/articles/entry/ten\_nonprofit\_funding\_models).
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-29]: Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 111.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-30]: Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 30.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-31]: Jim Whitehurst, The Open Organization: Igniting Passion and
Performance (Boston: Harvard Business Review Press, 2015), 202.
-32. Anderson, Free, 71.
-33. Ibid., 231.
-34. Ibid., 97.
-35. Anderson, Makers, 107.
-36. Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 89.
-37. Ibid., 92.
-38. Anderson, Free, 142.
-39. Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 32.
-40. Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 150.
-41. Ibid., 134.
-42. Dan Ariely, Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-32]: Anderson, Free, 71.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-33]: Ibid., 231.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-34]: Ibid., 97.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-35]: Anderson, Makers, 107.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-36]: Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 89.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-37]: Ibid., 92.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-38]: Anderson, Free, 142.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-39]: Osterwalder and Pigneur, Business Model Generation, 32.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-40]: Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 150.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-41]: Ibid., 134.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-42]: Dan Ariely, Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our
Decisions, rev. ed. (New York: Harper Perennial, 2010), 109.
-43. Austin Kleon, Show Your Work: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-43]: Austin Kleon, Show Your Work: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and
Get Discovered (New York: Workman, 2014), 93.
-44. Kramer, Shareology, 76.
-45. Palmer, Art of Asking, 252.
-46. Whitehurst, Open Organization, 145.
-47. Surowiecki, Wisdom of Crowds, 203.
-48. Whitehurst, Open Organization, 80.
-49. Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 25.
-50. Ibid., 31.
-51. Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 112.
-52. Surowiecki, Wisdom of Crowds, 124.
-53. Kleon, Show Your Work, 127.
-54. Palmer, Art of Asking, 121.
-55. Ariely, Predictably Irrational, 87.
-56. Ibid., 105.
-57. Ibid., 36.
-58. Jono Bacon, The Art of Community, 2nd ed. (Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-44]: Kramer, Shareology, 76.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-45]: Palmer, Art of Asking, 252.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-46]: Whitehurst, Open Organization, 145.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-47]: Surowiecki, Wisdom of Crowds, 203.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-48]: Whitehurst, Open Organization, 80.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-49]: Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 25.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-50]: Ibid., 31.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-51]: Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 112.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-52]: Surowiecki, Wisdom of Crowds, 124.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-53]: Kleon, Show Your Work, 127.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-54]: Palmer, Art of Asking, 121.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-55]: Ariely, Predictably Irrational, 87.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-56]: Ibid., 105.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-57]: Ibid., 36.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-58]: Jono Bacon, The Art of Community, 2nd ed. (Sebastopol, CA: O'Reilly
Media, 2012), 36.
-59. Palmer, Art of Asking, 98.
-60. Whitehurst, Open Organization, 34.
-61. Surowiecki, Wisdom of Crowds, 200.
-62. Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 29.
-63. Giana Eckhardt and Fleura Bardhi, “The Sharing Economy Isn’t about
- Sharing at All,” Harvard Business Review (website), January 28,
- 2015, hbr.org/2015/01/the-sharing-economy-isnt-about-sharing-at-all.
-64. Lisa Gansky, The Mesh: Why the Future of Business Is Sharing,
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-59]: Palmer, Art of Asking, 98.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-60]: Whitehurst, Open Organization, 34.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-61]: Surowiecki, Wisdom of Crowds, 200.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-62]: Bollier, Think Like a Commoner, 29.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-63]: Giana Eckhardt and Fleura Bardhi, "The Sharing Economy Isn't about
+ Sharing at All," Harvard Business Review (website), January 28,
+ 2015, [](http://hbr.org/2015/01/the-sharing-economy-isnt-about-sharing-at-all).
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-64]: Lisa Gansky, The Mesh: Why the Future of Business Is Sharing,
reprint with new epilogue (New York: Portfolio, 2012).
-65. David Lee, “Inside Medium: An Attempt to Bring Civility to the
- Internet,” BBC News, March 3, 2016,
- www.bbc.com/news/technology-35709680.
-66. Anderson, Makers, 148.
-67. Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 164.
-68. Whitehurst, foreword to Open Organization.
-69. Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 144.
-70. Ibid., 154.
-71. Palmer, Art of Asking, 163.
-72. Anderson, Makers, 173.
-73. Tom Kelley and David Kelley, Creative Confidence: Unleashing the
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-65]: David Lee, "Inside Medium: An Attempt to Bring Civility to the
+ Internet," BBC News, March 3, 2016,
+ [](http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-35709680).
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-66]: Anderson, Makers, 148.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-67]: Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 164.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-68]: Whitehurst, foreword to Open Organization.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-69]: Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, 144.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-70]: Ibid., 154.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-71]: Palmer, Art of Asking, 163.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-72]: Anderson, Makers, 173.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-73]: Tom Kelley and David Kelley, Creative Confidence: Unleashing the
Potential within Us All (New York: Crown, 2013), 82.
-74. Whitehurst, foreword to Open Organization.
-75. Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers, What’s Mine Is Yours: The Rise of
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-74]: Whitehurst, foreword to Open Organization.
+[^How-to-Be-Made-with-Creative-Commons-75]: Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers, What's Mine Is Yours: The Rise of
Collaborative Consumption (New York: Harper Business, 2010), 188.
## The Creative Commons Licenses
Here are the six licenses:
-{width="4.198in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
The Attribution license (CC BY) lets others distribute, remix, tweak,
and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you
offered. Recommended for maximum dissemination and use of licensed
materials.
-{width="4.198in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
The Attribution-Share-Alike license (CC BY-SA) lets others remix, tweak,
and build upon your work, even for commercial purposes, as long as they
credit you and license their new creations under identical terms. This
-license is often compared to “copyleft” free and open source software
+license is often compared to "copyleft" free and open source software
licenses. All new works based on yours will carry the same license, so
any derivatives will also allow commercial use.
-{width="4.198in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
The Attribution-NoDerivs license (CC BY-ND) allows for redistribution,
commercial and noncommercial, as long as it is passed along unchanged
with credit to you.
-{width="4.198in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
The Attribution-NonCommercial license (CC BY-NC) lets others remix,
tweak, and build upon your work noncommercially. Although their new
-works must also acknowledge you, they don’t have to license their
+works must also acknowledge you, they don't have to license their
derivative works on the same terms.
-{width="4.198in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
The Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license (CC BY-NC-SA) lets
others remix, tweak, and build upon your work noncommercially, as long
as they credit you and license their new creations under the same terms.
-{width="4.198in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
The Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license (CC BY-NC-ND) is the most
restrictive of our six main licenses, only allowing others to download
your works and share them with others as long as they credit you, but
-they can’t change them or use them commercially.
+they can't change them or use them commercially.
In addition to these six licenses, Creative Commons has two
-public-domain tools—one for creators and the other for those who manage
-collections of existing works by authors whose terms of copyright have
-expired:
+public-domain tools---one for creators and the other for those who
+manage collections of existing works by authors whose terms of copyright
+have expired:
-{width="4.1665in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
CC0 enables authors and copyright owners to dedicate their works to the
-worldwide public domain (“no rights reserved”).
+worldwide public domain ("no rights reserved").
-{width="4.1665in"
-height="1.4689in"}
+{width="40%"
+}
The Creative Commons Public Domain Mark facilitates the labeling and
discovery of works that are already free of known copyright
true that a license that allows others to make commercial use of your
work (CC BY, CC BY-SA, and CC BY-ND) forecloses some traditional revenue
streams. If you apply an Attribution (CC BY) license to your book, you
-can’t force a film company to pay you royalties if they turn your book
+can't force a film company to pay you royalties if they turn your book
into a feature-length film, or prevent another company from selling
physical copies of your work.
significant portion of the exclusive bundle of rights that copyright
grants to creators. In some cases, reserving those rights is important
to how you bring in revenue. In other cases, creators use a
-NonCommercial or NoDerivs license because they can’t give up on the
+NonCommercial or NoDerivs license because they can't give up on the
dream of hitting the creative jackpot. The music platform Tribe of Noise
told us the NonCommercial licenses were popular among their users
because people still held out the dream of having a major record label
For more about the licenses including examples and tips on sharing your
work in the digital commons, start with the Creative Commons page called
-“Share Your Work” at
-
-creativecommons.org/share-your-work/.
+"Share Your Work" at
+[](http://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/).
# The Case Studies
those we interviewed.
## Arduino
-
-Arduino is a for-profit open-source electronics platform and computer
-hardware and software company. Founded in 2005 in Italy.
-
-www.arduino.cc
-
-Revenue model: charging for physical copies (sales of boards, modules,
-shields, and kits), licensing a trademark (fees paid by those who want
-to sell Arduino products using their name)
-
-Interview date: February 4, 2016
-
-Interviewees: David Cuartielles and Tom Igoe, cofounders
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> Arduino is a for-profit open-source electronics platform and computer
+> hardware and software company. Founded in 2005 in Italy.
+>
+> [](http://www.arduino.cc)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for physical copies (sales of boards, modules,
+> shields, and kits), licensing a trademark (fees paid by those who want
+> to sell Arduino products using their name)
+>
+> **Interview date**: February 4, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewees**: David Cuartielles and Tom Igoe, cofounders
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
In 2005, at the Interaction Design Institute Ivrea in northern Italy,
teachers and students needed an easy way to use electronics and
programming to quickly prototype design ideas. As musicians, artists,
-and designers, they needed a platform that didn’t require engineering
+and designers, they needed a platform that didn't require engineering
expertise. A group of teachers and students, including Massimo Banzi,
David Cuartielles, Tom Igoe, Gianluca Martino, and David Mellis, built a
platform that combined different open technologies. They called it
hardware designs and documentation with the Attribution-Share-Alike
license (CC BY-SA), and software with the GNU General Public License.
-Arduino boards are able to read inputs—light on a sensor, a finger on a
-button, or a Twitter message—and turn it into outputs—activating a
+Arduino boards are able to read inputs---light on a sensor, a finger on
+a button, or a Twitter message---and turn it into outputs---activating a
motor, turning on an LED, publishing something online. You send a set of
instructions to the microcontroller on the board by using the Arduino
programming language and Arduino software (based on a piece of
open-source software called Processing, a programming tool used to make
visual art).
-“The reasons for making Arduino open source are complicated,” Tom says.
+"The reasons for making Arduino open source are complicated," Tom says.
Partly it was about supporting flexibility. The open-source nature of
Arduino empowers users to modify it and create a lot of different
variations, adding on top of what the founders build. David says this
-“ended up strengthening the platform far beyond what we had even thought
-of building.”
+"ended up strengthening the platform far beyond what we had even thought
+of building."
For Tom another factor was the impending closure of the Ivrea design
-school. He’d seen other organizations close their doors and all their
+school. He'd seen other organizations close their doors and all their
work and research just disappear. Open-sourcing ensured that Arduino
would outlive the Ivrea closure. Persistence is one thing Tom really
likes about open source. If key people leave, or a company shuts down,
-an open-source product lives on. In Tom’s view, “Open sourcing makes it
+an open-source product lives on. In Tom's view, "Open sourcing makes it
easier to trust a
-product.”
+product."
With the school closing, David and some of the other Arduino founders
started a consulting firm and multidisciplinary design studio they
new technologies in creative ways. Revenue from Tinker was invested in
sustaining and enhancing Arduino.
-For Tom, part of Arduino’s success is because the founders made
+For Tom, part of Arduino's success is because the founders made
themselves the first customer of their product. They made products they
-themselves personally wanted. It was a matter of “I need this thing,”
-not “If we make this, we’ll make a lot of money.” Tom notes that being
+themselves personally wanted. It was a matter of "I need this thing,"
+not "If we make this, we'll make a lot of money." Tom notes that being
your own first customer makes you more confident and convincing at
selling your product.
-Arduino’s business model has evolved over time—and Tom says model is a
+Arduino's business model has evolved over time---and Tom says model is a
grandiose term for it. Originally, they just wanted to make a few boards
and get them out into the world. They started out with two hundred
boards, sold them, and made a little profit. They used that to make
the venture going day to day. When they hit the ten thousand mark, they
started to think about Arduino as a company. By then it was clear you
can open-source the design but still manufacture the physical product.
-As long as it’s a quality product and sold at a reasonable price, people
+As long as it's a quality product and sold at a reasonable price, people
will buy it.
-Arduino now has a worldwide community of makers—students, hobbyists,
+Arduino now has a worldwide community of makers---students, hobbyists,
artists, programmers, and professionals. Arduino provides a wiki called
Playground (a wiki is where all users can edit and add pages,
contributing to and benefiting from collective research). People share
code, circuit diagrams, tutorials, DIY instructions, and tips and
-tricks, and show off their projects. In addition, there’s a
+tricks, and show off their projects. In addition, there's a
multilanguage discussion forum where users can get help using Arduino,
discuss topics like robotics, and make suggestions for new Arduino
product designs. As of January 2017, 324,928 members had made 2,989,489
For a business, getting to the end of the year and not being in the red
is a success. Arduino may have an open-licensing strategy, but they are
still a business, and all the things needed to successfully run one
-still apply. David says, “If you do those other things well, sharing
-things in an open-source way can only help you.”
+still apply. David says, "If you do those other things well, sharing
+things in an open-source way can only help you."
While openly licensing the designs, documentation, and software ensures
-longevity, it does have risks. There’s a possibility that others will
+longevity, it does have risks. There's a possibility that others will
create knockoffs, clones, and copies. The CC BY-SA license means anyone
can produce copies of their boards, redesign them, and even sell boards
-that copy the design. They don’t have to pay a license fee to Arduino or
+that copy the design. They don't have to pay a license fee to Arduino or
even ask permission. However, if they republish the design of the board,
they have to give attribution to Arduino. If they change the design,
they must release the new design using the same Creative Commons license
creating Internet of Things applications, wearables, and 3-D printing.
The full range of official Arduino products includes boards, modules (a
smaller form-factor of classic boards), shields (elements that can be
-plugged onto a board to give it extra features), and kits.1
+plugged onto a board to give it extra features), and kits.[^Arduino-1]
-Arduino’s focus is on high-quality boards, well-designed support
+Arduino's focus is on high-quality boards, well-designed support
materials, and the building of community; this focus is one of the keys
to their success. And being open lets you build a real community. David
-says Arduino’s community is a big strength and something that really
-does matter—in his words, “It’s good business.” When they started, the
+says Arduino's community is a big strength and something that really
+does matter---in his words, "It's good business." When they started, the
Arduino team had almost entirely no idea how to build a community. They
started by conducting numerous workshops, working directly with people
using the platform to make sure the hardware and software worked the way
-it was meant to work and solved people’s problems. The community grew
+it was meant to work and solved people's problems. The community grew
organically from there.
A key decision for Arduino was trademarking the name. The founders
sanctioned by them. If others want to sell boards using the Arduino name
and logo, they have to pay a small fee to Arduino. This allows Arduino
to scale up manufacturing and distribution while at the same time
-ensuring the Arduino brand isn’t hurt by low-quality copies.
+ensuring the Arduino brand isn't hurt by low-quality copies.
Current official manufacturers are Smart Projects in Italy, SparkFun in
the United States, and Dog Hunter in Taiwan/China. These are the only
manufacturers that are allowed to use the Arduino logo on their boards.
Trademarking their brand provided the founders with a way to protect
Arduino, build it out further, and fund software and tutorial
-development. The trademark-licensing fee for the brand became Arduino’s
+development. The trademark-licensing fee for the brand became Arduino's
revenue-generating model.
-How far to open things up wasn’t always something the founders perfectly
+How far to open things up wasn't always something the founders perfectly
agreed on. David, who was always one to advocate for opening things up
more, had some fears about protecting the Arduino name, thinking people
would be mad if they policed their brand. There was some early backlash
a default strategy, and then think about whether there is anything that
really needs to be protected and why. There are lots of good reasons to
not open up certain elements. This strategy of sharing everything is
-certainly the complete opposite of how today’s world operates, where
+certainly the complete opposite of how today's world operates, where
nothing is shared. Tom suggests a business formalize which elements are
based on open sharing and which are closed. An Arduino blog post from
-2013 entitled “Send In the Clones,” by one of the founders Massimo
+2013 entitled "Send In the Clones," by one of the founders Massimo
Banzi, does a great job of explaining the full complexities of how
trademarking their brand has played out, distinguishing between official
boards and those that are clones, derivatives, compatibles, and
-counterfeits.2
+counterfeits.[^Arduino-2]
For David, an exciting aspect of Arduino is the way lots of people can
use it to adapt technology in many different ways. Technology is always
-making more things possible but doesn’t always focus on making it easy
-to use and adapt. This is where Arduino steps in. Arduino’s goal is
-“making things that help other people make things.”
+making more things possible but doesn't always focus on making it easy
+to use and adapt. This is where Arduino steps in. Arduino's goal is
+"making things that help other people make things."
Arduino has been hugely successful in making technology and electronics
-reach a larger audience. For Tom, Arduino has been about “the
-democratization of technology.” Tom sees Arduino’s open-source strategy
+reach a larger audience. For Tom, Arduino has been about "the
+democratization of technology." Tom sees Arduino's open-source strategy
as helping the world get over the idea that technology has to be
-protected. Tom says, “Technology is a literacy everyone should learn.”
+protected. Tom says, "Technology is a literacy everyone should learn."
-Ultimately, for Arduino, going open has been good business—good for
+Ultimately, for Arduino, going open has been good business---good for
product development, good for distribution, good for pricing, and good
for manufacturing.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. www.arduino.cc/en/Main/Products
-2. blog.arduino.cc/2013/07/10/send-in-the-clones/
+[^Arduino-1]: [](http://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/Products)
+[^Arduino-2]: [](http://blog.arduino.cc/2013/07/10/send-in-the-clones/)
## Ártica
-
-Ártica provides online courses and consulting services focused on how to
-use digital technology to share knowledge and enable collaboration in
-arts and culture. Founded in 2011 in Uruguay.
-
-www.articaonline.com
-
-Revenue model: charging for custom services
-
-Interview date: March 9, 2016
-
-Interviewees: Mariana Fossatti and Jorge Gemetto, cofounders
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
-
-The story of Mariana Fossatti and Jorge Gemetto’s business, Ártica, is
+>
+> Ártica provides online courses and consulting services focused on how to
+> use digital technology to share knowledge and enable collaboration in
+> arts and culture. Founded in 2011 in Uruguay.
+>
+> [](http://www.articaonline.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for custom services
+>
+> **Interview date**: March 9, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewees**: Mariana Fossatti and Jorge Gemetto, cofounders
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+
+The story of Mariana Fossatti and Jorge Gemetto's business, Ártica, is
the ultimate example of DIY. Not only are they successful entrepreneurs,
the niche in which their small business operates is essentially one they
built themselves.
-Their dream jobs didn’t exist, so they created them.
+Their dream jobs didn't exist, so they created them.
In 2011, Mariana was a sociologist working for an international
organization to develop research and online education about
Ártica offers personalized education and consulting services, and helps
clients implement projects. All of these services are customized. They
-call it an “artisan” process because of the time and effort it takes to
-adapt their work for the particular needs of students and clients. “Each
+call it an "artisan" process because of the time and effort it takes to
+adapt their work for the particular needs of students and clients. "Each
student or client is paying for a specific solution to his or her
-problems and questions,” Mariana said. Rather than sell access to their
+problems and questions," Mariana said. Rather than sell access to their
content, they provide it for free and charge for the personalized
services.
When they started, they offered a smaller number of courses designed to
-attract large audiences. “Over the years, we realized that online
-communities are more specific than we thought,” Mariana said. Ártica now
+attract large audiences. "Over the years, we realized that online
+communities are more specific than we thought," Mariana said. Ártica now
provides more options for classes and has lower enrollment in each
course. This means they can provide more attention to individual
students and offer classes on more specialized topics.
They take the stance that every new project leads them to something new,
every new resource they create opens new doors.
-Ártica relies heavily on their free Creative Commons–licensed content to
-attract new students and clients. Everything they create—online
-education, blog posts, videos—is published under an
-Attribution-ShareAlike license (CC BY-SA). “We use a ShareAlike license
+Ártica relies heavily on their free Creative Commons--licensed content
+to attract new students and clients. Everything they create---online
+education, blog posts, videos---is published under an
+Attribution-ShareAlike license (CC BY-SA). "We use a ShareAlike license
because we want to give the greatest freedom to our students and
-readers, and we also want that freedom to be viral,” Jorge said. For
+readers, and we also want that freedom to be viral," Jorge said. For
them, giving others the right to reuse and remix their content is a
-fundamental value. “How can you offer an online educational service
+fundamental value. "How can you offer an online educational service
without giving permission to download, make and keep copies, or print
-the educational resources?” Jorge said. “If we want to do the best for
-our students—those who trust in us to the point that they are willing to
-pay online without face-to-face contact—we have to offer them a fair and
-ethical agreement.”
+the educational resources?" Jorge said. "If we want to do the best for
+our students---those who trust in us to the point that they are willing
+to pay online without face-to-face contact---we have to offer them a
+fair and ethical agreement."
They also believe sharing their ideas and expertise openly helps them
build their reputation and visibility. People often share and cite their
way to open up new opportunities for their business.
This belief that openness creates new opportunities reflects another
-belief—in serendipity. When describing their process for creating
+belief---in serendipity. When describing their process for creating
content, they spoke of all of the spontaneous and organic ways they find
-inspiration. “Sometimes, the collaborative process starts with a
-conversation between us, or with friends from other projects,” Jorge
-said. “That can be the first step for a new blog post or another simple
+inspiration. "Sometimes, the collaborative process starts with a
+conversation between us, or with friends from other projects," Jorge
+said. "That can be the first step for a new blog post or another simple
piece of content, which can evolve to a more complex product in the
-future, like a course or a book.”
+future, like a course or a book."
Rather than planning their work in advance, they let their creative
-process be dynamic. “This doesn’t mean that we don’t need to work hard
+process be dynamic. "This doesn't mean that we don't need to work hard
in order to get good professional results, but the design process is
-more flexible,” Jorge said. They share early and often, and they adjust
+more flexible," Jorge said. They share early and often, and they adjust
based on what they learn, always exploring and testing new ideas and
ways of operating. In many ways, for them, the process is just as
important as the final product.
-People and relationships are also just as important, sometimes more. “In
+People and relationships are also just as important, sometimes more. "In
the educational and cultural business, it is more important to pay
attention to people and process, rather than content or specific formats
-or materials,” Mariana said. “Materials and content are fluid. The
-important thing is the relationships.”
+or materials," Mariana said. "Materials and content are fluid. The
+important thing is the relationships."
Ártica believes in the power of the network. They seek to make
connections with people and institutions across the globe so they can
learn from them and share their knowledge.
-At the core of everything Ártica does is a set of values. “Good content
-is not enough,” Jorge said. “We also think that it is very important to
-take a stand for some things in the cultural sector.” Mariana and Jorge
+At the core of everything Ártica does is a set of values. "Good content
+is not enough," Jorge said. "We also think that it is very important to
+take a stand for some things in the cultural sector." Mariana and Jorge
are activists. They defend free culture (the movement promoting the
freedom to modify and distribute creative work) and work to demonstrate
the intersection between free culture and other social-justice
operation is small, efficient, and sustainable, and because of that, it
is a success.
-“There are lots of people offering online courses,” Jorge said. “But it
+"There are lots of people offering online courses," Jorge said. "But it
is easy to differentiate us. We have an approach that is very specific
-and personal.” Ártica’s model is rooted in the personal at every level.
+and personal." Ártica's model is rooted in the personal at every level.
For Mariana and Jorge, success means doing what brings them personal
meaning and purpose, and doing it sustainably and collaboratively.
In their work with younger artists, Mariana and Jorge try to emphasize
that this model of success is just as valuable as the picture of success
-we get from the media. “If they seek only the traditional type of
-success, they will get frustrated,” Mariana said. “We try to show them
-another image of what it looks like.”
+we get from the media. "If they seek only the traditional type of
+success, they will get frustrated," Mariana said. "We try to show them
+another image of what it looks like."
## Blender Institute
-
-The Blender Institute is an animation studio that creates 3-D films
-using Blender software. Founded in 2006 in the Netherlands.
-
-www.blender.org
-
-Revenue model: crowdfunding (subscription-based), charging for physical
-copies, selling merchandise
-
-Interview date: March 8, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Francesco Siddi, production coordinator
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+>
+> The Blender Institute is an animation studio that creates 3-D films
+> using Blender software. Founded in 2006 in the Netherlands.
+>
+> [](http://www.blender.org)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: crowdfunding (subscription-based), charging for physical
+> copies, selling merchandise
+>
+> **Interview date**: March 8, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Francesco Siddi, production coordinator
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
For Ton Roosendaal, the creator of Blender software and its related
entities, sharing is practical. Making their 3-D content creation
Rather than just talking about the theoretical benefits of sharing and
free culture, Ton is very much about doing and making free culture.
-Blender’s production coordinator Francesco Siddi told us, “Ton believes
-if you don’t make content using your tools, then you’re not doing
-anything.”
+Blender's production coordinator Francesco Siddi told us, "Ton believes
+if you don't make content using your tools, then you're not doing
+anything."
-Blender’s history begins in the late 1990s, when Ton created the Blender
+Blender's history begins in the late 1990s, when Ton created the Blender
software. Originally, the software was an in-house resource for his
animation studio based in the Netherlands. Investors became interested
in the software, so he began marketing the software to the public,
offering a free version in addition to a paid version. Sales were
disappointing, and his investors gave up on the endeavor in the early
-2000s. He made a deal with investors—if he could raise enough money, he
-could then make the Blender software available under the GNU General
+2000s. He made a deal with investors---if he could raise enough money,
+he could then make the Blender software available under the GNU General
Public License.
This was long before Kickstarter and other online crowdfunding sites
quickly raised the money he needed. The Blender software became freely
available for anyone to use. Simply applying the General Public License
to the software, however, was not enough to create a thriving community
-around it. Francesco told us, “Software of this complexity relies on
+around it. Francesco told us, "Software of this complexity relies on
people and their vision of how people work together. Ton is a fantastic
community builder and manager, and he put a lot of work into fostering a
-community of developers so that the project could live.”
+community of developers so that the project could live."
Like any successful free and open-source software project, Blender
developed quickly because the community could make fixes and
-improvements. “Software should be free and open to hack,” Francesco
-said. “Otherwise, everyone is doing the same thing in the dark for ten
-years.” Ton set up the Blender Foundation to oversee and steward the
+improvements. "Software should be free and open to hack," Francesco
+said. "Otherwise, everyone is doing the same thing in the dark for ten
+years." Ton set up the Blender Foundation to oversee and steward the
software development and maintenance.
After a few years, Ton began looking for new ways to push development of
They turned to crowdfunding to subsidize the costs of the project. They
had about twenty people working full-time for six to ten months, so the
costs were significant. Francesco said that when their crowdfunding
-campaign succeeded, people were astounded. “The idea that making money
+campaign succeeded, people were astounded. "The idea that making money
was possible by producing CC-licensed material was mind-blowing to
-people,” he said. “They were like, ‘I have to see it to believe it.’”
+people," he said. "They were like, 'I have to see it to believe it.'"
The first film, which was released in 2006, was an experiment. It was so
successful that Ton decided to set up the Blender Institute, an entity
-dedicated to hosting open-movie projects. The Blender Institute’s next
+dedicated to hosting open-movie projects. The Blender Institute's next
project was an even bigger success. The film, Big Buck Bunny, went
viral, and its animated characters were picked up by marketers.
on storytelling. Francesco says the process is almost on an industrial
scale because of the number of moving parts. This requires a lot of
specialized assistance, but the Blender Institute has no problem finding
-the talent it needs to help on projects. “Blender hardly does any
-recruiting for film projects because the talent emerges naturally,”
-Francesco said. “So many people want to work with us, and we can’t
-always hire them because of budget constraints.”
+the talent it needs to help on projects. "Blender hardly does any
+recruiting for film projects because the talent emerges naturally,"
+Francesco said. "So many people want to work with us, and we can't
+always hire them because of budget constraints."
Blender has had a lot of success raising money from its community over
the years. In many ways, the pitch has gotten easier to make. Not only
is crowdfunding simply more familiar to the public, but people know and
trust Blender to deliver, and Ton has developed a reputation as an
-effective community leader and visionary for their work. “There is a
-whole community who sees and understands the benefit of these projects,”
+effective community leader and visionary for their work. "There is a
+whole community who sees and understands the benefit of these projects,"
Francesco said.
While these benefits of each open-movie project make a compelling pitch
for crowdfunding campaigns, Francesco told us the Blender Institute has
found some limitations in the standard crowdfunding model where you
-propose a specific project and ask for funding. “Once a project is over,
-everyone goes home,” he said. “It is great fun, but then it ends. That
-is a problem.”
+propose a specific project and ask for funding. "Once a project is over,
+everyone goes home," he said. "It is great fun, but then it ends. That
+is a problem."
To make their work more sustainable, they needed a way to receive
ongoing support rather than on a project-by-project basis. Their
solution is Blender Cloud, a subscription-style crowdfunding model akin
to the online crowdfunding platform, Patreon. For about ten euros each
month, subscribers get access to download everything the Blender
-Institute produces—software, art, training, and more. All of the assets
-are available under an Attribution license (CC BY) or placed in the
-public domain (CC0), but they are initially made available only to
-subscribers. Blender Cloud enables subscribers to follow Blender’s movie
+Institute produces---software, art, training, and more. All of the
+assets are available under an Attribution license (CC BY) or placed in
+the public domain (CC0), but they are initially made available only to
+subscribers. Blender Cloud enables subscribers to follow Blender's movie
projects as they develop, sharing detailed information and content used
in the creative process. Blender Cloud also has extensive training
materials and libraries of characters and other assets used in various
The continuous financial support provided by Blender Cloud subsidizes
five to six full-time employees at the Blender Institute. Francesco says
-their goal is to grow their subscriber base. “This is our freedom,” he
-told us, “and for artists, freedom is everything.”
+their goal is to grow their subscriber base. "This is our freedom," he
+told us, "and for artists, freedom is everything."
Blender Cloud is the primary revenue stream of the Blender Institute.
The Blender Foundation is funded primarily by donations, and that money
Since 2006, he has been making films available along with all of their
source material. He says he has hardly ever seen people stepping into
-Blender’s shoes and trying to make money off of their content. Ton
+Blender's shoes and trying to make money off of their content. Ton
believes this is because the true value of what they do is in the
-creative and production process. “Even when you share everything, all
+creative and production process. "Even when you share everything, all
your original sources, it still takes a lot of talent, skills, time, and
-budget to reproduce what you did,” Ton said.
+budget to reproduce what you did," Ton said.
For Ton and Blender, it all comes back to doing.
## Cards Against Humanity
-
-Cards Against Humanity is a private, for-profit company that makes a
-popular party game by the same name. Founded in 2011 in the U.S.
-
-www.cardsagainsthumanity.com
-
-Revenue model: charging for physical copies
-
-Interview date: February 3, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Max Temkin, cofounder
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+>
+> Cards Against Humanity is a private, for-profit company that makes a
+> popular party game by the same name. Founded in 2011 in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://www.cardsagainsthumanity.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for physical copies
+>
+> **Interview date**: February 3, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Max Temkin, cofounder
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
If you ask cofounder Max Temkin, there is nothing particularly
-interesting about the Cards Against Humanity business model. “We make a
-product. We sell it for money. Then we spend less money than we make,”
+interesting about the Cards Against Humanity business model. "We make a
+product. We sell it for money. Then we spend less money than we make,"
Max said.
He is right. Cards Against Humanity is a simple party game, modeled
fill-in-the-blank statement from a black card, and the other players
submit their funniest white card in response. The catch is that all of
the cards are filled with crude, gruesome, and otherwise awful things.
-For the right kind of people (“horrible people,” according to Cards
+For the right kind of people ("horrible people," according to Cards
Against Humanity advertising), this makes for a hilarious and fun game.
The revenue model is simple. Physical copies of the game are sold for a
available under the same noncommercial terms. The ability to adapt the
game is like an entire new game unto itself.
-All together, these factors—the crass tone of the game and company, the
-free download, the
-openness to fans remixing the game—give
+All together, these factors---the crass tone of the game and company,
+the free download, the
+openness to fans remixing the game---give
the game a massive cult following.
Their success is not the result of a grand plan. Instead, Cards Against
Humanity was the last in a long line of games and comedy projects that
Max Temkin and his friends put together for their own amusement. As Max
tells the story, they made the game so they could play it themselves on
-New Year’s Eve because they were too nerdy to be invited to other
+New Year's Eve because they were too nerdy to be invited to other
parties. The game was a hit, so they decided to put it up online as a
free PDF. People started asking if they could pay to have the game
printed for them, and eventually they decided to run a Kickstarter to
-fund the printing. They set their Kickstarter goal at \$4,000—and raised
-\$15,000. The game was officially released in May 2011.
+fund the printing. They set their Kickstarter goal at \$4,000---and
+raised \$15,000. The game was officially released in May 2011.
The game caught on quickly, and it has only grown more popular over
time. Max says the eight founders never had a meeting where they decided
-to make it an ongoing business. “It kind of just happened,” he said.
+to make it an ongoing business. "It kind of just happened," he said.
-But this tale of a “happy accident” belies marketing genius. Just like
+But this tale of a "happy accident" belies marketing genius. Just like
the game, the Cards Against Humanity brand is irreverent and memorable.
-It is hard to forget a company that calls the FAQ on their website “Your
-dumb questions.”
+It is hard to forget a company that calls the FAQ on their website "Your
+dumb questions."
Like most quality satire, however, there is more to the joke than
-vulgarity and shock value. The company’s marketing efforts around Black
+vulgarity and shock value. The company's marketing efforts around Black
Friday illustrate this particularly well. For those outside the United
States, Black Friday is the term for the day after the Thanksgiving
holiday, the biggest shopping day of the year. It is an incredibly
important day for Cards Against Humanity, like it is for all U.S.
retailers. Max said they struggled with what to do on Black Friday
-because they didn’t want to support what he called the “orgy of
-consumerism” the day has become, particularly since it follows a day
+because they didn't want to support what he called the "orgy of
+consumerism" the day has become, particularly since it follows a day
that is about being grateful for what you have. In 2013, after
deliberating, they decided to have an Everything Costs \$5 More sale.
-“We sweated it out the night before Black Friday, wondering if our fans
-were going to hate us for it,” he said. “But it made us laugh so we went
-with it. People totally caught the joke.”
+"We sweated it out the night before Black Friday, wondering if our fans
+were going to hate us for it," he said. "But it made us laugh so we went
+with it. People totally caught the joke."
This sort of bold transparency delights the media, but more importantly,
-it engages their fans. “One of the most surprising things you can do in
-capitalism is just be honest with people,” Max said. “It shocks people
-that there is transparency about what you are doing.”
+it engages their fans. "One of the most surprising things you can do in
+capitalism is just be honest with people," Max said. "It shocks people
+that there is transparency about what you are doing."
-Max also likened it to a grand improv scene. “If we do something a
+Max also likened it to a grand improv scene. "If we do something a
little subversive and unexpected, the public wants to be a part of the
-joke.” One year they did a Give Cards Against Humanity \$5 event, where
+joke." One year they did a Give Cards Against Humanity \$5 event, where
people literally paid them five dollars for no reason. Their fans wanted
to make the joke funnier by making it successful. They made \$70,000 in
a single day.
This remarkable trust they have in their customers is what inspired
their decision to apply a Creative Commons license to the game. Trusting
your customers to reuse and remix your work requires a leap of faith.
-Cards Against Humanity obviously isn’t afraid of doing the unexpected,
+Cards Against Humanity obviously isn't afraid of doing the unexpected,
but there are lines even they do not want to cross. Before applying the
license, Max said they worried that some fans would adapt the game to
include all of the jokes they intentionally never made because they
-crossed that line. “It happened, and the world didn’t end,” Max said.
-“If that is the worst cost of using CC, I’d pay that a hundred times
-over because there are so many benefits.”
+crossed that line. "It happened, and the world didn't end," Max said.
+"If that is the worst cost of using CC, I'd pay that a hundred times
+over because there are so many benefits."
Any successful product inspires its biggest fans to create remixes of
it, but unsanctioned adaptations are more likely to fly under the radar.
creations openly. Today there are thousands of fan expansions of the
game.
-Max said, “CC was a no-brainer for us because it gets the most people
+Max said, "CC was a no-brainer for us because it gets the most people
involved. Making the game free and available under a CC license led to
the unbelievable situation where we are one of the best-marketed games
-in the world, and we have never spent a dime on marketing.”
+in the world, and we have never spent a dime on marketing."
Of course, there are limits to what the company allows its customers to
do with the game. They chose the Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
license because it restricts people from using the game to make money.
It also requires that adaptations of the game be made available under
the same licensing terms if they are shared publicly. Cards Against
-Humanity also polices its brand. “We feel like we’re the only ones who
-can use our brand and our game and make money off of it,” Max said.
+Humanity also polices its brand. "We feel like we're the only ones who
+can use our brand and our game and make money off of it," Max said.
About 99.9 percent of the time, they just send an email to those making
commercial use of the game, and that is the end of it. There have only
been a handful of instances where they had to get a lawyer involved.
business model, the same can be said of the game itself. To be playable,
every white card has to work syntactically with enough black cards. The
eight creators invest an incredible amount of work into creating new
-cards for the game. “We have daylong arguments about commas,” Max said.
-“The slacker tone of the cards gives people the impression that it is
-easy to write them, but it is actually a lot of work and quibbling.”
+cards for the game. "We have daylong arguments about commas," Max said.
+"The slacker tone of the cards gives people the impression that it is
+easy to write them, but it is actually a lot of work and quibbling."
-That means cocreation with their fans really doesn’t work. The company
+That means cocreation with their fans really doesn't work. The company
has a submission mechanism on their website, and they get thousands of
suggestions, but it is very rare that a submitted card is adopted.
Instead, the eight initial creators remain the primary authors of
For all of their success, the creators of Cards Against Humanity are
only partially motivated by money. Max says they have always been
-interested in the Walt Disney philosophy of financial success. “We don’t
-make jokes and games to make money—we make money so we can make more
-jokes and games,” he said.
+interested in the Walt Disney philosophy of financial success. "We don't
+make jokes and games to make money---we make money so we can make more
+jokes and games," he said.
In fact, the company has given more than \$4 million to various
-charities and causes. “Cards is not our life plan,” Max said. “We all
+charities and causes. "Cards is not our life plan," Max said. "We all
have other interests and hobbies. We are passionate about other things
going on in our lives. A lot of the activism we have done comes out of
us taking things from the rest of our lives and channeling some of the
-excitement from the game into it.”
+excitement from the game into it."
Seeing money as fuel rather than the ultimate goal is what has enabled
them to embrace Creative Commons licensing without reservation. CC
nonetheless, giving up exclusive control of your work necessarily means
giving up some opportunities to extract more money from customers.
-“It’s not right for everyone to release everything under CC licensing,”
-Max said. “If your only goal is to make a lot of money, then CC is not
+"It's not right for everyone to release everything under CC licensing,"
+Max said. "If your only goal is to make a lot of money, then CC is not
best strategy. This kind of business model, though, speaks to your
-values, and who you are and why you’re making things.”
+values, and who you are and why you're making things."
## The Conversation
-
-The Conversation is an independent source of news, sourced from the
-academic and research community and delivered direct to the public over
-the Internet. Founded in 2011 in Australia.
-
-theconversation.com
-
-Revenue model: charging content creators (universities pay membership
-fees to have their faculties serve as writers), grant funding
-
-Interview date: February 4, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Andrew Jaspan, founder
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> The Conversation is an independent source of news, sourced from the
+> academic and research community and delivered direct to the public over
+> the Internet. Founded in 2011 in Australia.
+>
+> [](http://theconversation.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging content creators (universities pay membership
+> fees to have their faculties serve as writers), grant funding
+>
+> **Interview date**: February 4, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Andrew Jaspan, founder
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
Andrew Jaspan spent years as an editor of major newspapers including the
Observer in London, the Sunday Herald in Glasgow, and the Age in
Melbourne, Australia. He experienced firsthand the decline of
newspapers, including the collapse of revenues, layoffs, and the
constant pressure to reduce costs. After he left the Age in 2005, his
-concern for the future journalism didn’t go away. Andrew made a
+concern for the future journalism didn't go away. Andrew made a
commitment to come up with an alternative model.
Around the time he left his job as editor of the Melbourne Age, Andrew
for journalism with depth and substance but was concerned about the
increasing focus on the sensational and sexy.
-While at the Age, he’d become friends with a vice-chancellor of a
+While at the Age, he'd become friends with a vice-chancellor of a
university in Melbourne who encouraged him to talk to smart people
-across campus—an astrophysicist, a Nobel laureate, earth scientists,
+across campus---an astrophysicist, a Nobel laureate, earth scientists,
economists . . . These were the kind of smart people he wished were more
involved in informing the world about what is going on and correcting
the errors that appear in media. However, they were reluctant to engage
-with mass media. Often, journalists didn’t understand what they said, or
+with mass media. Often, journalists didn't understand what they said, or
unilaterally chose what aspect of a story to tell, putting out a version
that these people felt was wrong or mischaracterized. Newspapers want to
attract a mass audience. Scholars want to communicate serious news,
-findings, and insights. It’s not a perfect match. Universities are
+findings, and insights. It's not a perfect match. Universities are
massive repositories of knowledge, research, wisdom, and expertise. But
-a lot of that stays behind a wall of their own making—there are the
+a lot of that stays behind a wall of their own making---there are the
walled garden and ivory tower metaphors, and in more literal terms, the
paywall. Broadly speaking, universities are part of society but
disconnected from it. They are an enormous public resource but not that
working one-on-one to refine everything from story structure to
headline, captions, and quotes. The editors could help turn something
that is academic into something understandable and readable. And this
-would be a key difference from traditional journalism—the subject matter
-expert would get a chance to check the article and give final approval
-before it is published. Compare this with reporters just picking and
-choosing the quotes and writing whatever they want.
+would be a key difference from traditional journalism---the subject
+matter expert would get a chance to check the article and give final
+approval before it is published. Compare this with reporters just
+picking and choosing the quotes and writing whatever they want.
The people he spoke to liked this idea, and Andrew embarked on raising
money and support with the help of the Commonwealth Scientific and
The Conversation is founded on the belief that underpinning a
functioning democracy is access to independent, high-quality,
-informative journalism. The Conversation’s aim is for people to have a
-better understanding of current affairs and complex issues—and hopefully
-a better quality of public discourse. The Conversation sees itself as a
-source of trusted information dedicated to the public good. Their core
-mission is simple: to provide readers with a reliable source of
-evidence-based information.
+informative journalism. The Conversation's aim is for people to have a
+better understanding of current affairs and complex issues---and
+hopefully a better quality of public discourse. The Conversation sees
+itself as a source of trusted information dedicated to the public good.
+Their core mission is simple: to provide readers with a reliable source
+of evidence-based information.
Andrew worked hard to reinvent a methodology for creating reliable,
credible content. He introduced strict new working practices, a charter,
-and codes of conduct.1 These include fully disclosing who every author
+and codes of conduct.[^The-Conversation-1] These include fully disclosing who every author
is (with their relevant expertise); who is funding their research; and
if there are any potential or real conflicts of interest. Also important
is where the content originates, and even though it comes from the
university and research community, it still needs to be fully disclosed.
The Conversation does not sit behind a paywall. Andrew believes access
-to information is an issue of equality—everyone should have access, like
-access to clean water. The Conversation is committed to an open and free
-Internet. Everyone should have free access to their content, and be able
-to share it or republish it.
+to information is an issue of equality---everyone should have access,
+like access to clean water. The Conversation is committed to an open and
+free Internet. Everyone should have free access to their content, and be
+able to share it or republish it.
Creative Commons help with these goals; articles are published with the
Attribution-
-NoDerivs license (CC BY-ND). They’re freely available for others to
+NoDerivs license (CC BY-ND). They're freely available for others to
republish elsewhere as long as attribution is given and the content is
not edited. Over five years, more than twenty-two thousand sites have
republished their content. The Conversation website gets about 2.9
million unique views per month, but through republication they have
-thirty-five million readers. This couldn’t have been done without the
-Creative Commons license, and in Andrew’s view, Creative Commons is
+thirty-five million readers. This couldn't have been done without the
+Creative Commons license, and in Andrew's view, Creative Commons is
central to everything the Conversation does.
When readers come across the Conversation, they seem to like what they
find and recommend it to their friends, peers, and networks. Readership
-has grown primarily through word of mouth. While they don’t have sales
+has grown primarily through word of mouth. While they don't have sales
and marketing, they do promote their work through social media
(including Twitter and Facebook), and by being an accredited supplier to
Google News.
-It’s usual for the founders of any company to ask themselves what kind
+It's usual for the founders of any company to ask themselves what kind
of company it should be. It quickly became clear to the founders of the
Conversation that they wanted to create a public good rather than make
money off of information. Most media companies are working to aggregate
as many eyeballs as possible and sell ads. The Conversation founders
-didn’t want this model. It takes no advertising and is a not-for-profit
+didn't want this model. It takes no advertising and is a not-for-profit
venture.
There are now different editions of the Conversation for Africa, the
United Kingdom, France, and the United States, in addition to the one
for Australia. All five editions have their own editorial mastheads,
-advisory boards, and content. The Conversation’s global virtual newsroom
+advisory boards, and content. The Conversation's global virtual newsroom
has roughly ninety staff working with thirty-five thousand academics
from over sixteen hundred universities around the world. The
Conversation would like to be working with university scholars from even
more parts of the world.
Additionally, each edition has its own set of founding partners,
-strategic partners, and funders. They’ve received funding from
+strategic partners, and funders. They've received funding from
foundations, corporates, institutions, and individual donations, but the
Conversation is shifting toward paid memberships by universities and
research institutions to sustain operations. This would safeguard the
When professors from member universities write an article, there is some
branding of the university associated with the article. On the
-Conversation website, paying university members are listed as “members
-and funders.” Early participants may be designated as “founding
-members,” with seats on the editorial advisory board.
+Conversation website, paying university members are listed as "members
+and funders." Early participants may be designated as "founding
+members," with seats on the editorial advisory board.
Academics are not paid for their contributions, but they get free
editing from a professional (four to five hours per piece, on average).
These reach and impact metrics show the benefits of membership. With the
Conversation, universities can engage with the public and show why
-they’re of value.
+they're of value.
-With its tagline, “Academic Rigor, Journalistic Flair,” the Conversation
+With its tagline, "Academic Rigor, Journalistic Flair," the Conversation
represents a new form of journalism that contributes to a more informed
citizenry and improved democracy around the world. Its open business
-model and use of Creative Commons show how it’s possible to generate
+model and use of Creative Commons show how it's possible to generate
both a public good and operational revenue at the same time.
-Web link
+### Web link
-1. theconversation.com/us/charter
+[^The-Conversation-1]: [](http://theconversation.com/us/charter)
## Cory Doctorow
-
-Cory Doctorow is a science fiction writer, activist, blogger, and
-journalist. Based in the U.S.
-
-craphound.com and boingboing.net
-
-Revenue model: charging for physical copies (book sales),
-pay-what-you-want, selling translation rights to books
-
-Interview date: January 12, 2016
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
-
-Cory Doctorow hates the term “business model,” and he is adamant that he
-is not a brand. “To me, branding is the idea that you can take a thing
-that has certain qualities, remove the qualities, and go on selling it,”
-he said. “I’m not out there trying to figure out how to be a brand. I’m
+>
+> Cory Doctorow is a science fiction writer, activist, blogger, and
+> journalist. Based in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://craphound.com) and [](http://boingboing.net)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for physical copies (book sales),
+> pay-what-you-want, selling translation rights to books
+>
+> **Interview date**: January 12, 2016
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+
+Cory Doctorow hates the term "business model," and he is adamant that he
+is not a brand. "To me, branding is the idea that you can take a thing
+that has certain qualities, remove the qualities, and go on selling it,"
+he said. "I'm not out there trying to figure out how to be a brand. I'm
doing this thing that animates me to work crazy insane hours because
-it’s the most important thing I know how to do.”
+it's the most important thing I know how to do."
Cory calls himself an entrepreneur. He likes to say his success came
from making stuff people happened to like and then getting out of the
is coeditor of the popular CC-licensed site Boing Boing, where he writes
about technology, politics, and intellectual property. He has also
written several nonfiction books, including the most recent Information
-Doesn’t Want to Be Free, about the ways in which creators can make a
+Doesn't Want to Be Free, about the ways in which creators can make a
living in the Internet age.
Cory primarily makes money by selling physical books, but he also takes
on paid speaking gigs and is experimenting with pay-what-you-want models
for his work.
-While Cory’s extensive body of fiction work has a large following, he is
+While Cory's extensive body of fiction work has a large following, he is
just as well known for his activism. He is an outspoken opponent of
restrictive copyright and digital-rights-management (DRM) technology
used to lock up content because he thinks both undermine creators and
the public interest. He is currently a special adviser at the Electronic
Frontier Foundation, where he is involved in a lawsuit challenging the
-U.S. law that protects DRM. Cory says his political work doesn’t
+U.S. law that protects DRM. Cory says his political work doesn't
directly make him money, but if he gave it up, he thinks he would lose
credibility and, more importantly, lose the drive that propels him to
-create. “My political work is a different expression of the same
-artistic-political urge,” he said. “I have this suspicion that if I gave
-up the things that didn’t make me money, the genuineness would leach out
+create. "My political work is a different expression of the same
+artistic-political urge," he said. "I have this suspicion that if I gave
+up the things that didn't make me money, the genuineness would leach out
of what I do, and the quality that causes people to like what I do would
-be gone.”
+be gone."
Cory has been financially successful, but money is not his primary
-motivation. At the start of his book Information Doesn’t Want to Be
+motivation. At the start of his book Information Doesn't Want to Be
Free, he stresses how important it is not to become an artist if your
-goal is to get rich. “Entering the arts because you want to get rich is
-like buying lottery tickets because you want to get rich,” he wrote. “It
-might work, but it almost certainly won’t. Though, of course, someone
-always wins the lottery.” He acknowledges that he is one of the lucky
-few to “make it,” but he says he would be writing no matter what. “I am
-compelled to write,” he wrote. “Long before I wrote to keep myself fed
-and sheltered, I was writing to keep myself sane.”
+goal is to get rich. "Entering the arts because you want to get rich is
+like buying lottery tickets because you want to get rich," he wrote. "It
+might work, but it almost certainly won't. Though, of course, someone
+always wins the lottery." He acknowledges that he is one of the lucky
+few to "make it," but he says he would be writing no matter what. "I am
+compelled to write," he wrote. "Long before I wrote to keep myself fed
+and sheltered, I was writing to keep myself sane."
Just as money is not his primary motivation to create, money is not his
primary motivation to share. For Cory, sharing his work with Creative
-Commons is a moral imperative. “It felt morally right,” he said of his
-decision to adopt Creative Commons licenses. “I felt like I wasn’t
+Commons is a moral imperative. "It felt morally right," he said of his
+decision to adopt Creative Commons licenses. "I felt like I wasn't
contributing to the culture of surveillance and censorship that has been
-created to try to stop copying.” In other words, using CC licenses
+created to try to stop copying." In other words, using CC licenses
symbolizes his worldview.
He also feels like there is a solid commercial basis for licensing his
-work with Creative Commons. While he acknowledges he hasn’t been able to
+work with Creative Commons. While he acknowledges he hasn't been able to
do a controlled experiment to compare the commercial benefits of
licensing with CC against reserving all rights, he thinks he has sold
more books using a CC license than he would have without it. Cory says
-his goal is to convince people they should pay him for his work. “I
-started by not calling them thieves,” he said.
+his goal is to convince people they should pay him for his work. "I
+started by not calling them thieves," he said.
Cory started using CC licenses soon after they were first created. At
the time his first novel came out, he says the science fiction genre was
overrun with people scanning and downloading books without permission.
When he and his publisher took a closer look at who was doing that sort
-of thing online, they realized it looked a lot like book promotion. “I
+of thing online, they realized it looked a lot like book promotion. "I
knew there was a relationship between having enthusiastic readers and
-having a successful career as a writer,” he said. “At the time, it took
+having a successful career as a writer," he said. "At the time, it took
eighty hours to OCR a book, which is a big effort. I decided to spare
them the time and energy, and give them the book for free in a format
-destined to spread.”
+destined to spread."
Cory admits the stakes were pretty low for him when he first adopted
Creative Commons licenses. He only had to sell two thousand copies of
The bottom line, Cory says, is that no one has found a way to prevent
people from copying the stuff they like. Rather than fighting the tide,
-Cory makes his work intrinsically shareable. “Getting the hell out of
+Cory makes his work intrinsically shareable. "Getting the hell out of
the way for people who want to share their love of you with other people
-sounds obvious, but it’s remarkable how many people don’t do it,” he
+sounds obvious, but it's remarkable how many people don't do it," he
said.
Making his work available under Creative Commons licenses enables him to
-view his biggest fans as his ambassadors. “Being open to fan activity
+view his biggest fans as his ambassadors. "Being open to fan activity
makes you part of the conversation about what fans do with your work and
-how they interact with it,” he said. Cory’s own website routinely
+how they interact with it," he said. Cory's own website routinely
highlights cool things his audience has done with his work. Unlike
corporations like Disney that tend to have a hands-off relationship with
their fan activity, he has a symbiotic relationship with his audience.
-“Engaging with your audience can’t guarantee you success,” he said. “And
+"Engaging with your audience can't guarantee you success," he said. "And
Disney is an example of being able to remain aloof and still being the
most successful company in the creative industry in history. But I
figure my likelihood of being Disney is pretty slim, so I should take
-all the help I can get.”
+all the help I can get."
His first book was published under the most restrictive Creative Commons
license, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND). It allows
difficult to get people to pay for translations if there are fan
translations already available for free.
-In his book Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free, Cory likens his
+In his book Information Doesn't Want to Be Free, Cory likens his
philosophy to thinking like a dandelion. Dandelions produce thousands of
seeds each spring, and they are blown into the air going in every
direction. The strategy is to maximize the number of blind chances the
dandelion has for continuing its genetic line. Similarly, he says there
are lots of people out there who may want to buy creative work or
-compensate authors for it in some other way. “The more places your work
+compensate authors for it in some other way. "The more places your work
can find itself, the greater the likelihood that it will find one of
those would-be customers in some unsuspected crack in the metaphorical
-pavement,” he wrote. “The copies that others make of my work cost me
-nothing, and present the possibility that I’ll get something.”
+pavement," he wrote. "The copies that others make of my work cost me
+nothing, and present the possibility that I'll get something."
Applying a CC license to his work increases the chances it will be
-shared more widely around the Web. He avoids DRM—and openly opposes the
-practice—for similar reasons. DRM has the effect of tying a work to a
-particular platform. This digital lock, in turn, strips the authors of
-control over their own work and hands that control over to the platform.
-He calls it Cory’s First Law: “Anytime someone puts a lock on something
-that belongs to you and won’t give you the key, that lock isn’t there
-for your benefit.”
+shared more widely around the Web. He avoids DRM---and openly opposes
+the practice---for similar reasons. DRM has the effect of tying a work
+to a particular platform. This digital lock, in turn, strips the authors
+of control over their own work and hands that control over to the
+platform. He calls it Cory's First Law: "Anytime someone puts a lock on
+something that belongs to you and won't give you the key, that lock
+isn't there for your benefit."
Cory operates under the premise that artists benefit when there are
more, rather than fewer, places where people can access their work. The
Internet has opened up those avenues, but DRM is designed to limit them.
-“On the one hand, we can credibly make our work available to a widely
-dispersed audience,” he said. “On the other hand, the intermediaries we
-historically sold to are making it harder to go around them.” Cory
+"On the one hand, we can credibly make our work available to a widely
+dispersed audience," he said. "On the other hand, the intermediaries we
+historically sold to are making it harder to go around them." Cory
continually looks for ways to reach his audience without relying upon
major platforms that will try to take control over his work.
content they like, even when it is available for free, as long as it is
easy to do. He was extremely successful using Humble Bundle, a platform
that allows people to pay what they want for DRM-free versions of a
-bundle of a particular creator’s work. He is planning to try his own
+bundle of a particular creator's work. He is planning to try his own
pay-what-you-want experiment soon.
Fans are particularly willing to pay when they feel personally connected
to the artist. Cory works hard to create that personal connection. One
way he does this is by personally answering every single email he gets.
-“If you look at the history of artists, most die in penury,” he said.
-“That reality means that for artists, we have to find ways to support
+"If you look at the history of artists, most die in penury," he said.
+"That reality means that for artists, we have to find ways to support
ourselves when public tastes shift, when copyright stops producing.
Future-proofing your artistic career in many ways means figuring out how
-to stay connected to those people who have been touched by your work.”
+to stay connected to those people who have been touched by your work."
-Cory’s realism about the difficulty of making a living in the arts does
+Cory's realism about the difficulty of making a living in the arts does
not reflect pessimism about the Internet age. Instead, he says the fact
that it is hard to make a living as an artist is nothing new. What is
-new, he writes in his book, “is how many ways there are to make things,
-and to get them into other people’s hands and minds.”
+new, he writes in his book, "is how many ways there are to make things,
+and to get them into other people's hands and minds."
It has never been easier to think like a dandelion.
## Figshare
-
-Figshare is a for-profit company offering an online repository where
-researchers can preserve and share the output of their research,
-including figures, data sets, images, and videos. Founded in 2011 in the
-UK.
-
-figshare.com
-
-Revenue model: platform providing paid services to creators
-
-Interview date: January 28, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Mark Hahnel, founder
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
-
-Figshare’s mission is to change the face of academic publishing through
+>
+> Figshare is a for-profit company offering an online repository where
+> researchers can preserve and share the output of their research,
+> including figures, data sets, images, and videos. Founded in 2011 in the
+> UK.
+>
+> [](http://figshare.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: platform providing paid services to creators
+>
+> **Interview date**: January 28, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Mark Hahnel, founder
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
+
+Figshare's mission is to change the face of academic publishing through
improved dissemination, discoverability, and reusability of scholarly
research. Figshare is a repository where users can make all the output
-of their research available—from posters and presentations to data sets
-and code—in a way that’s easy to discover, cite, and share. Users can
-upload any file format, which can then be previewed in a Web browser.
-Research output is disseminated in a way that the current
+of their research available---from posters and presentations to data
+sets and code---in a way that's easy to discover, cite, and share. Users
+can upload any file format, which can then be previewed in a Web
+browser. Research output is disseminated in a way that the current
scholarly-publishing model does not allow.
Figshare founder Mark Hahnel often gets asked: How do you make money?
-How do we know you’ll be here in five years? Can you, as a for-profit
+How do we know you'll be here in five years? Can you, as a for-profit
venture, be trusted? Answers have evolved over time.
Mark traces the origins of Figshare back to when he was a graduate
solution.
There were two key needs: licenses to make the data citable, and
-persistent identifiers— URL links that always point back to the original
-object ensuring the research is citable for the long term.
+persistent identifiers--- URL links that always point back to the
+original object ensuring the research is citable for the long term.
Mark chose Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) to meet the need for a
-persistent identifier. In the DOI system, an object’s metadata is stored
+persistent identifier. In the DOI system, an object's metadata is stored
as a series of numbers in the DOI name. Referring to an object by its
DOI is more stable than referring to it by its URL, because the location
of an object (the web page or URL) can often change. Mark partnered with
As for licenses, Mark chose Creative Commons. The open-access and
open-science communities were already using and recommending Creative
-Commons. Based on what was happening in those communities and Mark’s
+Commons. Based on what was happening in those communities and Mark's
dialogue with peers, he went with CC0 (in the public domain) for data
sets and CC BY (Attribution) for figures, videos, and data sets.
private online space designed for a set number of research
collaborators, which is ideal for larger teams and geographically
dispersed research groups. Figshare sums up its value proposition to
-researchers as “You retain ownership. You license it. You get credit. We
-just make sure it persists.”
+researchers as "You retain ownership. You license it. You get credit. We
+just make sure it persists."
In January 2012, Figshare was launched. (The fig in Figshare stands for
figures.) Using investment funds, Mark made significant improvements to
Figshare provide that functionality for them.
Figshare diversified its business model to include services for
-journals. Figshare began hosting large amounts of data for the journals’
+journals. Figshare began hosting large amounts of data for the journals'
online articles. This additional data improved the quality of the
articles. Outsourcing this service to Figshare freed publishers from
having to develop this functionality as part of their own
infrastructure. Figshare-hosted data also provides a link back to the
-article, generating additional click-through and readership—a benefit to
-both journal publishers and researchers. Figshare now provides
+article, generating additional click-through and readership---a benefit
+to both journal publishers and researchers. Figshare now provides
research-data infrastructure for a wide variety of publishers including
Wiley, Springer Nature, PLOS, and Taylor and Francis, to name a few, and
has convinced them to use Creative Commons licenses for the data.
including their own minibranded Figshare space (called Figshare for
Institutions) that securely hosts research data of institutions in the
cloud. Services include not just hosting but data metrics, data
-dissemination, and user-group administration. Figshare’s workflow, and
+dissemination, and user-group administration. Figshare's workflow, and
the services they offer for institutions, take into account the needs of
librarians and administrators, as well as of the researchers.
For Mark this created a conflict. On the one hand, the principles and
benefits of open science are at the heart of Figshare, and Mark believes
CC BY is the best license for this. On the other hand, institutions were
-saying they wouldn’t use Figshare unless it offered a choice in
+saying they wouldn't use Figshare unless it offered a choice in
licenses. He initially refused to offer anything beyond CC0 and CC BY,
but after seeing an open-source CERN project offer all Creative Commons
licenses without any negative repercussions, he decided to follow suit.
possible for data to be pulled from Figshare and used in other
applications. As an example, Mark shared a Figshare data set showing the
journal subscriptions that higher-education institutions in the United
-Kingdom paid to ten major publishers.1 Figshare’s API enables that data
+Kingdom paid to ten major publishers.[^Figshare-1] Figshare's API enables that data
to be pulled into an app developed by a completely different researcher
that converts the data into a visually interesting graph, which any
-viewer can alter by changing any of the variables.2
+viewer can alter by changing any of the variables.[^Figshare-2]
The free version of Figshare has built a community of academics, who
through word of mouth and presentations have promoted and spread
licenses.
Mark says his success is partly about being in the right place at the
-right time. He also believes that the diversification of Figshare’s
+right time. He also believes that the diversification of Figshare's
model over time has been key to success. Figshare now offers a
comprehensive set of services to researchers, publishers, and
-institutions.3 If he had relied solely on revenue from premium
-subscriptions, he believes Figshare would have struggled. In Figshare’s
+institutions.[^Figshare-3] If he had relied solely on revenue from premium
+subscriptions, he believes Figshare would have struggled. In Figshare's
early days, their primary users were early-career and late-career
academics. It has only been because funders mandated open licensing that
Figshare is now being used by the mainstream.
-Today Figshare has 26 million–plus page views, 7.5 million–plus
-downloads, 800,000–plus user uploads, 2 million–plus articles,
-500,000-plus collections, and 5,000–plus projects. Sixty percent of
+Today Figshare has 26 million--plus page views, 7.5 million--plus
+downloads, 800,000--plus user uploads, 2 million--plus articles,
+500,000-plus collections, and 5,000--plus projects. Sixty percent of
their traffic comes from Google. A sister company called Altmetric
tracks the use of Figshare by others, including Wikipedia and news
sources.
Figshare uses the revenue it generates from the premium subscribers,
journal publishers, and institutions to fund and expand what it can
offer to researchers for free. Figshare has publicly stuck to its
-principles—keeping the free service free and requiring the use of CC BY
-and CC0 from the start—and from Mark’s perspective, this is why people
-trust Figshare. Mark sees new competitors coming forward who are just in
-it for money. If Figshare was only in it for the money, they wouldn’t
-care about offering a free version. Figshare’s principles and advocacy
-for openness are a key differentiator. Going forward, Mark sees Figshare
-not only as supporting open access to research but also enabling people
-to collaborate and make new discoveries.
+principles---keeping the free service free and requiring the use of CC
+BY and CC0 from the start---and from Mark's perspective, this is why
+people trust Figshare. Mark sees new competitors coming forward who are
+just in it for money. If Figshare was only in it for the money, they
+wouldn't care about offering a free version. Figshare's principles and
+advocacy for openness are a key differentiator. Going forward, Mark sees
+Figshare not only as supporting open access to research but also
+enabling people to collaborate and make new discoveries.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. figshare.com/articles/Journal\_subscription\_costs\_FOIs\_to\_UK\_universities/1186832
-2. retr0.shinyapps.io/journal\_costs/?year=2014&inst=19,22,38,42,59,64,80,95,136
-3. figshare.com/features
+[^Figshare-1]: [](http://figshare.com/articles/Journal\_subscription\_costs\_FOIs\_to\_UK\_universities/1186832)
+[^Figshare-2]: [](http://retr0.shinyapps.io/journal\_costs/?year=2014&inst=19,22,38,42,59,64,80,95,136)
+[^Figshare-3]: [](http://figshare.com/features)
## Figure.NZ
-
-Figure.NZ is a nonprofit charity that makes an online data platform
-designed to make data reusable and easy to understand. Founded in 2012
-in New Zealand.
-
-figure.nz
-
-Revenue model: platform providing paid services to creators, donations,
-sponsorships
-
-Interview date: May 3, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Lillian Grace, founder
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> Figure.NZ is a nonprofit charity that makes an online data platform
+> designed to make data reusable and easy to understand. Founded in 2012
+> in New Zealand.
+>
+> [](http://figure.nz)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: platform providing paid services to creators, donations,
+> sponsorships
+>
+> **Interview date**: May 3, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Lillian Grace, founder
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
In the paper Harnessing the Economic and Social Power of Data presented
-at the New Zealand Data Futures Forum in 2014,1 Figure.NZ founder
+at the New Zealand Data Futures Forum in 2014,[^Figure.NZ-1] Figure.NZ founder
Lillian Grace said there are thousands of valuable and relevant data
-sets freely available to us right now, but most people don’t use them.
-She used to think this meant people didn’t care about being informed,
-but she’s come to see that she was wrong. Almost everyone wants to be
-informed about issues that matter—not only to them, but also to their
+sets freely available to us right now, but most people don't use them.
+She used to think this meant people didn't care about being informed,
+but she's come to see that she was wrong. Almost everyone wants to be
+informed about issues that matter---not only to them, but also to their
families, their communities, their businesses, and their country. But
-there’s a big difference between availability and accessibility of
+there's a big difference between availability and accessibility of
information. Data is spread across thousands of sites and is held within
databases and spreadsheets that require both time and skill to engage
with. To use data when making a decision, you have to know what specific
the New Zealand Institute, a think tank concerned with improving
economic prosperity, social well-being, environmental quality, and
environmental productivity for New Zealand and New Zealanders. While
-giving talks to community and business groups, Lillian realized “every
+giving talks to community and business groups, Lillian realized "every
single issue we addressed would have been easier to deal with if more
-people understood the basic facts.” But understanding the basic facts
+people understood the basic facts." But understanding the basic facts
sometimes requires data and research that you often have to pay for.
Lillian began to imagine a website that lifted data up to a visual form
as Wiki New Zealand, the original idea was that people could contribute
their data and visuals via a wiki. However, few people had graphs that
could be used and shared, and there were no standards or consistency
-around the data and the visuals. Realizing the wiki model wasn’t
+around the data and the visuals. Realizing the wiki model wasn't
working, Lillian brought the process of data aggregation, curation, and
visual presentation in-house, and invested in the technology to help
automate some of it. Wiki New Zealand became Figure.NZ, and efforts were
reoriented toward providing services to those wanting to open their data
and present it visually.
-Here’s how it works. Figure.NZ sources data from other organizations,
+Here's how it works. Figure.NZ sources data from other organizations,
including corporations, public repositories, government departments, and
academics. Figure.NZ imports and extracts that data, and then validates
-and standardizes it—all with a strong eye on what will be best for
+and standardizes it---all with a strong eye on what will be best for
users. They then make the data available in a series of standardized
forms, both human- and machine-readable, with rich metadata about the
sources, the licenses, and data types. Figure.NZ has a chart-designing
naively fortunate. It was first recommended to her by a colleague.
Lillian spent time looking at what Creative Commons offered and thought
it looked good, was clear, and made common sense. It was easy to use and
-easy for others to understand. Over time, she’s come to realize just how
-fortunate and important that decision turned out to be. New Zealand’s
+easy for others to understand. Over time, she's come to realize just how
+fortunate and important that decision turned out to be. New Zealand's
government has an open-access and licensing framework called NZGOAL,
which provides guidance for agencies when they release copyrighted and
-noncopyrighted work and material.2 It aims to standardize the licensing
+noncopyrighted work and material.[^Figure.NZ-2] It aims to standardize the licensing
of works with government copyright and how they can be reused, and it
does this with Creative Commons licenses. As a result, 98 percent of all
government-agency data is Creative Commons licensed, fitting in nicely
-with Figure.NZ’s decision.
+with Figure.NZ's decision.
Lillian thinks current ideas of what a business is are relatively new,
-only a hundred years old or so. She’s convinced that twenty years from
+only a hundred years old or so. She's convinced that twenty years from
now, we will see new and different models for business. Figure.NZ is set
up as a nonprofit charity. It is purpose-driven but also strives to pay
people well and thinks like a business. Lillian sees the
charity-nonprofit status as an essential element for the mission and
purpose of Figure.NZ. She believes Wikipedia would not work if it were
-for profit, and similarly, Figure.NZ’s nonprofit status assures people
+for profit, and similarly, Figure.NZ's nonprofit status assures people
who have data and people who want to use it that they can rely on
-Figure.NZ’s motives. People see them as a trusted wrangler and source.
+Figure.NZ's motives. People see them as a trusted wrangler and source.
Although Figure.NZ is a social enterprise that openly licenses their
data and graphs for everyone to use for free, they have taken care not
Figure.NZ has multiple lines of business. They provide commercial
services to organizations that want their data publicly available and
want to use Figure.NZ as their publishing platform. People who want to
-publish open data appreciate Figure.NZ’s ability to do it faster, more
+publish open data appreciate Figure.NZ's ability to do it faster, more
easily, and better than they can. Customers are encouraged to help their
users find, use, and make things from the data they make available on
-Figure.NZ’s website. Customers control what is released and the license
+Figure.NZ's website. Customers control what is released and the license
terms (although Figure.NZ encourages Creative Commons licensing).
Figure.NZ also serves customers who want a specific collection of charts
-created—for example, for their website or annual report. Charging the
+created---for example, for their website or annual report. Charging the
organizations that want to make their data available enables Figure.NZ
to provide their site free to all users, to truly democratize data.
not well understood by the people who have it. This sometimes makes it
difficult for customers and Figure.NZ to figure out what it would cost
to import, standardize, and display that data in a useful way. To deal
-with this, Figure.NZ uses “high-trust contracts,” where customers
+with this, Figure.NZ uses "high-trust contracts," where customers
allocate a certain budget to the task that Figure.NZ is then free to
-draw from, as long as Figure.NZ frequently reports on what they’ve
+draw from, as long as Figure.NZ frequently reports on what they've
produced so the customer can determine the value for money. This
strategy has helped build trust and transparency about the level of
effort associated with doing work that has never been done before.
A second line of business is what Figure.NZ calls partners. ASB Bank and
-Statistics New Zealand are partners who back Figure.NZ’s efforts. As one
+Statistics New Zealand are partners who back Figure.NZ's efforts. As one
example, with their support Figure.NZ has been able to create Business
Figures, a special way for businesses to find useful data without having
-to know what questions to ask.3
+to know what questions to ask.[^Figure.NZ-3]
-Figure.NZ also has patrons.4 Patrons donate to topic areas they care
+Figure.NZ also has patrons.[^Figure.NZ-4] Patrons donate to topic areas they care
about, directly enabling Figure.NZ to get data together to flesh out
those areas. Patrons do not direct what data is included or excluded.
curation, and visualizing services all in-house, Figure.NZ has developed
a deep expertise in taking random styles of data, standardizing it, and
making it useful. Lillian realized that Figure.NZ could easily become a
-warehouse of seventy people doing data. But for Lillian, growth isn’t
+warehouse of seventy people doing data. But for Lillian, growth isn't
always good. In her view, bigger often means less effective. Lillian set
artificial constraints on growth, forcing the organization to think
differently and be more efficient. Rather than in-house growth, they are
growing and building external relationships.
-Figure.NZ’s website displays visuals and data associated with a wide
+Figure.NZ's website displays visuals and data associated with a wide
range of categories including crime, economy, education, employment,
energy, environment, health, information and communications technology,
industry, tourism, and many others. A search function helps users find
user manuals.
Figure.NZ believes data and visuals should be useful. They provide their
-customers with a data collection template and teach them why it’s
-important and how to use it. They’ve begun putting more emphasis on
+customers with a data collection template and teach them why it's
+important and how to use it. They've begun putting more emphasis on
tracking what users of their website want. They also get requests from
social media and through email for them to share data for a specific
-topic—for example, can you share data for water quality? If they have
-the data, they respond quickly; if they don’t, they try and identify the
+topic---for example, can you share data for water quality? If they have
+the data, they respond quickly; if they don't, they try and identify the
organizations that would have that data and forge a relationship so they
-can be included on Figure.NZ’s site. Overall, Figure.NZ is seeking to
+can be included on Figure.NZ's site. Overall, Figure.NZ is seeking to
provide a place for people to be curious about, access, and interpret
data on topics they are interested in.
Lillian has a deep and profound vision for Figure.NZ that goes well
beyond simply providing open-data services. She says things are
-different now. “We used to live in a world where it was really hard to
+different now. "We used to live in a world where it was really hard to
share information widely. And in that world, the best future was created
by having a few great leaders who essentially had access to the
information and made decisions on behalf of others, whether it was on
behalf of a country or companies.
-“But now we live in a world where it’s really easy to share information
+"But now we live in a world where it's really easy to share information
widely and also to communicate widely. In the world we live in now, the
best future is the one where everyone can make well-informed decisions.
-“The use of numbers and data as a way of making well-informed decisions
-is one of the areas where there is the biggest gaps. We don’t really use
+"The use of numbers and data as a way of making well-informed decisions
+is one of the areas where there is the biggest gaps. We don't really use
numbers as a part of our thinking and part of our understanding yet.
-“Part of the reason is the way data is spread across hundreds of sites.
+"Part of the reason is the way data is spread across hundreds of sites.
In addition, for the most part, deep thinking based on data is
-constrained to experts because most people don’t have data literacy.
-There once was a time when many citizens in society couldn’t read or
-write. However, as a society, we’ve now come to believe that reading and
-writing skills should be something all citizens have. We haven’t yet
+constrained to experts because most people don't have data literacy.
+There once was a time when many citizens in society couldn't read or
+write. However, as a society, we've now come to believe that reading and
+writing skills should be something all citizens have. We haven't yet
adopted a similar belief around numbers and data literacy. We largely
still believe that only a few specially trained people can analyze and
think with numbers.
-“Figure.NZ may be the first organization to assert that everyone can use
-numbers in their thinking, and it’s built a technological platform along
+"Figure.NZ may be the first organization to assert that everyone can use
+numbers in their thinking, and it's built a technological platform along
with trust and a network of relationships to make that possible. What
you can see on Figure.NZ are tens of thousands of graphs, maps, and
data.
-“Figure.NZ sees this as a new kind of alphabet that can help people
+"Figure.NZ sees this as a new kind of alphabet that can help people
analyze what they see around them. A way to be thoughtful and informed
about society. A means of engaging in conversation and shaping decision
making that transcends personal experience. The long-term value and
impact is almost impossible to measure, but the goal is to help citizens
gain understanding and work together in more informed ways to shape the
-future.”
+future."
-Lillian sees Figure.NZ’s model as having global potential. But for now,
+Lillian sees Figure.NZ's model as having global potential. But for now,
their focus is completely on making Figure.NZ work in New Zealand and to
-get the “network effect”—
+get the "network effect"---
users dramatically increasing value for themselves and for others
through use of their service. Creative Commons is core to making the
network effect possible.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. www.nzdatafutures.org.nz/sites/default/files/NZDFF\_harness-the-power.pdf
-2. www.ict.govt.nz/guidance-and-resources/open-government/new-zealand-government-open-access-and-licensing-nzgoal-framework/
-3. figure.nz/business/
-4. figure.nz/patrons/
+[^Figure.NZ-1]: [](http://www.nzdatafutures.org.nz/sites/default/files/NZDFF\_harness-the-power.pdf)
+[^Figure.NZ-2]: [](http://www.ict.govt.nz/guidance-and-resources/open-government/new-zealand-government-open-access-and-licensing-nzgoal-framework/)
+[^Figure.NZ-3]: [](http://figure.nz/business/)
+[^Figure.NZ-4]: [](http://figure.nz/patrons/)
## Knowledge Unlatched
-
-Knowledge Unlatched is a not-for-profit community interest company that
-brings libraries together to pool funds to publish open-access books.
-Founded in 2012 in the UK.
-
-knowledgeunlatched.org
-
-Revenue model: crowdfunding (specialized)
-
-Interview date: February 26, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Frances Pinter, founder
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> Knowledge Unlatched is a not-for-profit community interest company that
+> brings libraries together to pool funds to publish open-access books.
+> Founded in 2012 in the UK.
+>
+> [](http://knowledgeunlatched.org)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: crowdfunding (specialized)
+>
+> **Interview date**: February 26, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Frances Pinter, founder
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
The serial entrepreneur Dr. Frances Pinter has been at the forefront of
innovation in the publishing industry for nearly forty years. She
print-book sales at all, and the costs associated with getting the book
to print would be lost. Surprisingly, Bloomsbury found that sales of the
print versions of these books were 10 to 20 percent higher than normal.
-Frances found it intriguing that the Creative Commons–licensed free
+Frances found it intriguing that the Creative Commons--licensed free
online book acts as a marketing vehicle for the print format.
Frances began to look at customer interest in the three forms of the
-book: 1) the Creative Commons–licensed free online book in PDF form, 2)
+book: 1) the Creative Commons--licensed free online book in PDF form, 2)
the printed book, and 3) a digital version of the book on an aggregator
-platform with enhanced features. She thought of this as the “ice cream
-model”: the free PDF was vanilla ice cream, the printed book was an ice
+platform with enhanced features. She thought of this as the "ice cream
+model": the free PDF was vanilla ice cream, the printed book was an ice
cream cone, and the enhanced e-book was an ice cream sundae.
-After a while, Frances had an epiphany—what if there was a way to get
-libraries to underwrite the costs of making these books up until they’re
+After a while, Frances had an epiphany---what if there was a way to get
+libraries to underwrite the costs of making these books up until they're
ready be printed, in other words, cover the fixed costs of getting to
the first digital copy? Then you could either bring down the cost of the
printed book, or do a whole bunch of interesting things with the printed
-book and e-book—the ice cream cone or sundae part of the model.
+book and e-book---the ice cream cone or sundae part of the model.
This idea is similar to the article-processing charge some open-access
journals charge researchers to cover publishing costs. Frances began to
-imagine a coalition of libraries paying for the prepress costs—a
-“book-processing charge”—and providing everyone in the world with an
+imagine a coalition of libraries paying for the prepress costs---a
+"book-processing charge"---and providing everyone in the world with an
open-access version of the books released under a Creative Commons
license.
-This idea really took hold in her mind. She didn’t really have a name
+This idea really took hold in her mind. She didn't really have a name
for it but began talking about it and making presentations to see if
there was interest. The more she talked about it, the more people agreed
it had appeal. She offered a bottle of champagne to anyone who could
6. Publishers make print copies, e-Pub, and other digital versions of
selected titles available to member libraries at a discount that
reflects their contribution to the Title Fee and incentivizes
- membership.1
+ membership.[^Knowledge-Unlatched-1]
The first round of this model resulted in a collection of twenty-eight
current titles from thirteen recognized scholarly publishers being
in at just under forty-three dollars.
The open-access, Creative Commons versions of these twenty-eight books
-are still available online.4 Most books have been licensed with CC BY-NC
+are still available online.[^Knowledge-Unlatched-4] Most books have been licensed with CC BY-NC
or CC BY-NC-ND. Authors are the copyright holder, not the publisher, and
negotiate choice of license as part of the publishing agreement. Frances
has found that most authors want to retain control over the commercial
cost per book was just under fifty dollars. The unlatching process took
roughly ten months. It started with a call to publishers for titles,
followed by having a library task force select the titles, getting
-authors’ permissions, getting the libraries to pledge, billing the
+authors' permissions, getting the libraries to pledge, billing the
libraries, and finally, unlatching.
The longest part of the whole process is getting libraries to pledge and
The cost for the publisher to get to a first digital copy of a monograph
is \$5,000 to \$50,000. A good one costs in the \$10,000 to \$15,000
-range. Monographs typically don’t sell a lot of copies. A publisher who
+range. Monographs typically don't sell a lot of copies. A publisher who
in the past sold three thousand copies now typically sells only three
hundred. That makes unlatching monographs a low risk for publishers. For
the first round, it took five months to get thirteen publishers. For the
second round, it took one month to get twenty-six.
-Authors don’t generally make a lot of royalties from monographs.
+Authors don't generally make a lot of royalties from monographs.
Royalties range from zero dollars to 5 to 10 percent of receipts. The
value to the author is the awareness it brings to them; when their book
is being read, it increases their reputation. Open access through
unlatching generates many more downloads and therefore awareness. (On
the Knowledge Unlatched website, you can find interviews with the
twenty-eight round-one authors describing their experience and the
-benefits of taking part.)5
+benefits of taking part.)[^Knowledge-Unlatched-5]
Library budgets are constantly being squeezed, partly due to the
inflation of journal subscriptions. But even without budget constraints,
all libraries. While this means nonparticipating libraries could be seen
as free riders, in the library world, wealthy libraries are used to
paying more than poor libraries and accept that part of their money
-should be spent to support open access. “Free ride” is more like
+should be spent to support open access. "Free ride" is more like
community responsibility. By the end of March 2016, the round-one books
had been downloaded nearly eighty thousand times in 175 countries.
For publishers, authors, and librarians, the Knowledge Unlatched model
for monographs is a win-win-win.
-In the first round, Knowledge Unlatched’s overheads were covered by
+In the first round, Knowledge Unlatched's overheads were covered by
grants. In the second round, they aim to demonstrate the model is
sustainable. Libraries and publishers will each pay a 7.5 percent
-service charge that will go toward Knowledge Unlatched’s running costs.
+service charge that will go toward Knowledge Unlatched's running costs.
With plans to scale up in future rounds, Frances figures they can fully
recover costs when they are unlatching two hundred books at a time.
Moving forward, Knowledge Unlatched is making investments in technology
and processes. Future plans include unlatching journals and older books.
Frances believes that Knowledge Unlatched is tapping into new ways of
-valuing academic content. It’s about considering how many people can
+valuing academic content. It's about considering how many people can
find, access, and use your content without pay barriers. Knowledge
Unlatched taps into the new possibilities and behaviors of the digital
world. In the Knowledge Unlatched model, the content-creation process is
For Frances, Knowledge Unlatched is connected to the past but moving
into the future, an evolution rather than a revolution.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. www.pinter.org.uk/pdfs/Toward\_an\_Open.pdf
-2. www.oapen.org
-3. www.hathitrust.org
-4. collections.knowledgeunlatched.org/collection-availability-1/
-5. www.knowledgeunlatched.org/featured-authors-section/
+[^Knowledge-Unlatched-1]: [](http://www.pinter.org.uk/pdfs/Toward\_an\_Open.pdf)
+[^Knowledge-Unlatched-2]: [](http://www.oapen.org)
+[^Knowledge-Unlatched-3]: [](http://www.hathitrust.org)
+[^Knowledge-Unlatched-4]: [](http://collections.knowledgeunlatched.org/collection-availability-1/)
+[^Knowledge-Unlatched-5]: [](http://www.knowledgeunlatched.org/featured-authors-section/)
## Lumen Learning
-
-Lumen Learning is a for-profit company helping educational institutions
-use open educational resources (OER). Founded in 2013 in the U.S.
-
-lumenlearning.com
-
-Revenue model: charging for custom services, grant funding
-
-Interview date: December 21, 2015
-
-Interviewees: David Wiley and Kim Thanos, cofounders
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> Lumen Learning is a for-profit company helping educational institutions
+> use open educational resources (OER). Founded in 2013 in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://lumenlearning.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for custom services, grant funding
+>
+> **Interview date**: December 21, 2015
+>
+> **Interviewees**: David Wiley and Kim Thanos, cofounders
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
Cofounded by open education visionary Dr. David Wiley and
education-technology strategist Kim Thanos, Lumen Learning is dedicated
to improving student success, bringing new ideas to pedagogy, and making
education more affordable by facilitating adoption of open educational
resources. In 2012, David and Kim partnered on a grant-funded project
-called the Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative.1 It involved a set of
+called the Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative.[^Lumen-Learning-1] It involved a set of
fully open general-education courses across eight colleges predominantly
serving at-risk students, with goals to dramatically reduce textbook
costs and collaborate to improve the courses to help students succeed.
David and Kim went back and forth on whether it should be a nonprofit or
for-
profit. A nonprofit would make it a more comfortable fit with the
-education sector but meant they’d be constantly fund-raising and seeking
+education sector but meant they'd be constantly fund-raising and seeking
grants from philanthropies. Also, grants usually require money to be
used in certain ways for specific deliverables. If you learn things
along the way that change how you think the grant money should be used,
-there often isn’t a lot of flexibility to do so.
+there often isn't a lot of flexibility to do so.
-But as a for-profit, they’d have to convince educational institutions to
-pay for what Lumen had to offer. On the positive side, they’d have more
+But as a for-profit, they'd have to convince educational institutions to
+pay for what Lumen had to offer. On the positive side, they'd have more
control over what to do with the revenue and investment money; they
could make decisions to invest the funds or use them differently based
on the situation and shifting opportunities. In the end, they chose the
Originally, Lumen did custom contracts for each institution. This was
complicated and challenging to manage. However, through that process
patterns emerged which allowed them to generalize a set of approaches
-and offerings. Today they don’t customize as much as they used to, and
+and offerings. Today they don't customize as much as they used to, and
instead they tend to work with customers who can use their off-the-shelf
options. Lumen finds that institutions and faculty are generally very
good at seeing the value Lumen brings and are willing to pay for it.
Serving disadvantaged learner populations has led Lumen to be very
-pragmatic; they describe what they offer in quantitative terms—with
-facts and figures—and in a way that is very student-focused. Lumen
-Learning helps colleges and universities—
+pragmatic; they describe what they offer in quantitative terms---with
+facts and figures---and in a way that is very student-focused. Lumen
+Learning helps colleges and universities---
- replace expensive textbooks in high-enrollment courses with OER;
-- provide enrolled students day one access to Lumen’s fully
- customizable OER course materials through the institution’s
+- provide enrolled students day one access to Lumen's fully
+ customizable OER course materials through the institution's
learning-management system;
- measure improvements in student success with metrics like passing
rates, persistence, and course completion; and
- collaborate with faculty to make ongoing improvements to OER based
on student success research.
-Lumen has developed a suite of open, Creative Commons–licensed
+Lumen has developed a suite of open, Creative Commons--licensed
courseware in more than sixty-five subjects. All courses are freely and
publicly available right off their website. They can be copied and used
by others as long as they provide attribution to Lumen Learning
Then there are three types of bundled services that cost money. One
option, which Lumen calls Candela courseware, offers integration with
-the institution’s learning-management system, technical and pedagogical
+the institution's learning-management system, technical and pedagogical
support, and tracking of effectiveness. Candela courseware costs
institutions ten dollars per enrolled student.
Lumen generates revenue by charging for their value-added tools and
services on top of their free courses, just as solar-power companies
provide the tools and services that help people use a free
-resource—sunlight. And Lumen’s business model focuses on getting the
+resource---sunlight. And Lumen's business model focuses on getting the
institutions to pay, not the students. With projects they did prior to
Lumen, David and Kim learned that students who have access to all course
materials from day one have greater success. If students had to pay,
Lumen would have to restrict access to those who paid. Right from the
start, their stance was that they would not put their content behind a
paywall. Lumen invests zero dollars in technologies and processes for
-restricting access—no digital rights management, no time bombs. While
+restricting access---no digital rights management, no time bombs. While
this has been a challenge from a business-model perspective, from an
open-access perspective, it has generated immense goodwill in the
community.
In most cases, development of their courses is funded by the institution
Lumen has a contract with. When creating new courses, Lumen typically
-works with the faculty who are teaching the new course. They’re often
+works with the faculty who are teaching the new course. They're often
part of the institution paying Lumen, but sometimes Lumen has to expand
the team and contract faculty from other institutions. First, the
-faculty identifies all of the course’s learning outcomes. Lumen then
+faculty identifies all of the course's learning outcomes. Lumen then
searches for, aggregates, and curates the best OER they can find that
addresses those learning needs, which the faculty reviews.
items and feedback for students on their progress are areas where new
content is frequently needed. Once a course is created, Lumen puts it on
their platform with all the attributions and links to the original
-sources intact, and any of Lumen’s new content is given an Attribution
+sources intact, and any of Lumen's new content is given an Attribution
(CC BY) license.
Using only OER made them experience firsthand how complex it could be to
mix differently licensed work together. A common strategy with OER is to
place the Creative Commons license and attribution information in the
-website’s footer, which stays the same for all pages. This doesn’t quite
+website's footer, which stays the same for all pages. This doesn't quite
work, however, when mixing different OER together.
Remixing OER often results in multiple attributions on every page of
-every course—text from one place, images from another, and videos from
+every course---text from one place, images from another, and videos from
yet another. Some are licensed as Attribution (CC BY), others as
Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA). If this information is put within the
text of the course, faculty members sometimes try to edit it and
capturing the license and attribution information as metadata, and
getting it to show up at the end of each page.
-Lumen’s commitment to open licensing and helping low-income students has
+Lumen's commitment to open licensing and helping low-income students has
led to strong relationships with institutions, open-education
enthusiasts, and grant funders. People in their network generously
increase the visibility of Lumen through presentations, word of mouth,
-and referrals. Sometimes the number of general inquiries exceed Lumen’s
+and referrals. Sometimes the number of general inquiries exceed Lumen's
sales
capacity.
To manage demand and ensure the success of projects, their strategy is
-to be proactive and focus on what’s going on in higher education in
+to be proactive and focus on what's going on in higher education in
different regions of the United States, watching out for things
happening at the system level in a way that fits with what Lumen offers.
A great example is the Virginia community college system, which is
building out Z-Degrees. David and Kim say there are nine other U.S.
states with similar system-level activity where Lumen is strategically
focusing its efforts. Where there are projects that would require a lot
-of resources on Lumen’s part, they prioritize the ones that would impact
+of resources on Lumen's part, they prioritize the ones that would impact
the largest number of students.
As a business, Lumen is committed to openness. There are two core
-nonnegotiables: Lumen’s use of CC BY, the most permissive of the
+nonnegotiables: Lumen's use of CC BY, the most permissive of the
Creative Commons licenses, for all the materials it creates; and day-one
access for students. Having clear nonnegotiables allows them to then
engage with the education community to solve for other challenges and
work with institutions to identify new business models that achieve
institution goals, while keeping Lumen healthy.
-Openness also means that Lumen’s OER must necessarily be nonexclusive
+Openness also means that Lumen's OER must necessarily be nonexclusive
and nonrivalrous. This represents several big challenges for the
business model: Why should you invest in creating something that people
will be reluctant to pay for? How do you ensure that the investment the
They proactively contact those institutions, with an estimate of how
much their students are saving and encouraging them to switch to a paid
model. Lumen explains the advantages of the paid model: a more
-interactive relationship with Lumen; integration with the institution’s
+interactive relationship with Lumen; integration with the institution's
learning-management system; a guarantee of support for faculty and
students; and future sustainability with funding supporting the
evolution and improvement of the OER they are using.
strives for a correct balance of all these factors.
Licensing all the content they produce with CC BY is a key part of
-giving more value than they take. They’ve also worked hard at finding
+giving more value than they take. They've also worked hard at finding
the right structure for their value-add and how to package it in a way
that is understandable and repeatable.
percent funded with angel capital. Going forward, their strategy is to
replace grant funding with revenue.
-In creating Lumen Learning, David and Kim say they’ve landed on
+In creating Lumen Learning, David and Kim say they've landed on
solutions they never imagined, and there is still a lot of learning
taking place. For them, open business models are an emerging field where
we are all learning through sharing. Their biggest recommendations for
others wanting to pursue the open model are to make your commitment to
-open resources public, let people know where you stand, and don’t back
+open resources public, let people know where you stand, and don't back
away from it. It really is about trust.
-Web link
+### Web link
-1. lumenlearning.com/innovative-projects/
+[^Lumen-Learning-1]: [](http://lumenlearning.com/innovative-projects/)
## Jonathan Mann
-
-Jonathan Mann is a singer and songwriter who is most well known as the
-“Song A Day” guy. Based in the U.S.
-
-jonathanmann.net and jonathanmann.bandcamp.com
-
-Revenue model: charging for custom services, pay-what-you-want,
-crowdfunding (subscription-based), charging for in-person version
-(speaking engagements and musical performances)
-
-Interview date: February 22, 2016
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
-
-Jonathan Mann thinks of his business model as “hustling”—seizing nearly
-every opportunity he sees to make money. The bulk of his income comes
-from writing songs under commission for people and companies, but he has
-a wide variety of income sources. He has supporters on the crowdfunding
-site Patreon. He gets advertising revenue from YouTube and Bandcamp,
-where he posts all of his music. He gives paid speaking engagements
-about creativity and motivation. He has been hired by major conferences
-to write songs summarizing what speakers have said in the conference
-sessions.
+>
+> Jonathan Mann is a singer and songwriter who is most well known as the
+> "Song A Day" guy. Based in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://jonathanmann.net) and [](http://jonathanmann.bandcamp.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for custom services, pay-what-you-want,
+> crowdfunding (subscription-based), charging for in-person version
+> (speaking engagements and musical performances)
+>
+> **Interview date**: February 22, 2016
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+
+Jonathan Mann thinks of his business model as "hustling"---seizing
+nearly every opportunity he sees to make money. The bulk of his income
+comes from writing songs under commission for people and companies, but
+he has a wide variety of income sources. He has supporters on the
+crowdfunding site Patreon. He gets advertising revenue from YouTube and
+Bandcamp, where he posts all of his music. He gives paid speaking
+engagements about creativity and motivation. He has been hired by major
+conferences to write songs summarizing what speakers have said in the
+conference sessions.
His entrepreneurial spirit is coupled with a willingness to take action
quickly. A perfect illustration of his ability to act fast happened in
video at the Apple conference. The song then went viral, and the
experience landed him in Time magazine.
-Jonathan’s successful “hustling” is also about old-fashioned
+Jonathan's successful "hustling" is also about old-fashioned
persistence. He is currently in his eighth straight year of writing one
song each day. He holds the Guinness World Record for consecutive daily
-songwriting, and he is widely known as the “song-a-day guy.”
+songwriting, and he is widely known as the "song-a-day guy."
He fell into this role by, naturally, seizing a random opportunity a
-friend alerted him to seven years ago—an event called Fun-A-Day, where
+friend alerted him to seven years ago---an event called Fun-A-Day, where
people are supposed to create a piece of art every day for thirty-one
days straight. He was in need of a new project, so he decided to give it
a try by writing and posting a song each day. He added a video component
He had a really good time doing the thirty-one-day challenge, so he
decided to see if he could continue it for one year. He never stopped.
He has written and posted a new song literally every day, seven days a
-week, since he began the project in 2009. When he isn’t writing songs
+week, since he began the project in 2009. When he isn't writing songs
that he is hired to write by clients, he writes songs about whatever is
on his mind that day. His songs are catchy and mostly lighthearted, but
they often contain at least an undercurrent of a deeper theme or
would bring more eyeballs and mean that there were more people wanting
him to write songs for them. Today he earns most of his money this way.
-His website explains his gig as “taking any message, from the super
+His website explains his gig as "taking any message, from the super
simple to the totally complicated, and conveying that message through a
-heartfelt, fun and quirky song.” He charges \$500 to create a produced
+heartfelt, fun and quirky song." He charges \$500 to create a produced
song and \$300 for an acoustic song. He has been hired for product
launches, weddings, conferences, and even Kickstarter campaigns like the
one that funded the production of this book.
-Jonathan can’t recall when exactly he first learned about Creative
+Jonathan can't recall when exactly he first learned about Creative
Commons, but he began applying CC licenses to his songs and videos as
-soon as he discovered the option. “CC seems like such a no-brainer,”
-Jonathan said. “I don’t understand how anything else would make sense.
+soon as he discovered the option. "CC seems like such a no-brainer,"
+Jonathan said. "I don't understand how anything else would make sense.
It seems like such an obvious thing that you would want your work to be
-able to be shared.”
+able to be shared."
His songs are essentially marketing for his services, so obviously the
further his songs spread, the better. Using CC licenses helps grease the
wheels, letting people know that Jonathan allows and encourages them to
-copy, interact with, and remix his music. “If you let someone cover your
-song or remix it or use parts of it, that’s how music is supposed to
-work,” Jonathan said. “That is how music has worked since the beginning
-of time. Our me-me, mine-mine culture has undermined that.”
+copy, interact with, and remix his music. "If you let someone cover your
+song or remix it or use parts of it, that's how music is supposed to
+work," Jonathan said. "That is how music has worked since the beginning
+of time. Our me-me, mine-mine culture has undermined that."
There are some people who cover his songs fairly regularly, and he would
never shut that down. But he acknowledges there is a lot more he could
-do to build community. “There is all of this conventional wisdom about
-how to build an audience online, and I generally think I don’t do any of
-that,” Jonathan said.
-
-He does have a fan community he cultivates on Bandcamp, but it isn’t his
-major focus. “I do have a core audience that has stuck around for a
-really long time, some even longer than I’ve been doing song-a-day,” he
-said. “There is also a transitional aspect that drop in and get what
-they need and then move on.” Focusing less on community building than
-other artists makes sense given Jonathan’s primary income source of
+do to build community. "There is all of this conventional wisdom about
+how to build an audience online, and I generally think I don't do any of
+that," Jonathan said.
+
+He does have a fan community he cultivates on Bandcamp, but it isn't his
+major focus. "I do have a core audience that has stuck around for a
+really long time, some even longer than I've been doing song-a-day," he
+said. "There is also a transitional aspect that drop in and get what
+they need and then move on." Focusing less on community building than
+other artists makes sense given Jonathan's primary income source of
writing custom songs for clients.
Jonathan recognizes what comes naturally to him and leverages those
skills. Through the practice of daily songwriting, he realized he has a
gift for distilling complicated subjects into simple concepts and
-putting them to music. In his song “How to Choose a Master Password,”
+putting them to music. In his song "How to Choose a Master Password,"
Jonathan explained the process of creating a secure password in a silly,
simple song. He was hired to write the song by a client who handed him a
long technical blog post from which to draw the information. Like a good
The first thing he tries to do is grok the core message and develop the
chorus. Then he looks for connections or parts he can make rhyme. The
entire process really does resemble good journalism, but of course the
-final product of his work is a song rather than news. “There is
+final product of his work is a song rather than news. "There is
something about being challenged and forced to take information that
-doesn’t seem like it should be sung about
-or doesn’t seem like it lends itself to a song,” he said. “I find that
+doesn't seem like it should be sung about
+or doesn't seem like it lends itself to a song," he said. "I find that
creative challenge really satisfying. I enjoy getting lost in that
-process.”
+process."
Jonathan admits that in an ideal world, he would exclusively write the
music he wanted to write, rather than what clients hire him to write.
himself.
Jonathan uses nearly every tool possible to make money from his art, but
-he does have lines he won’t cross. He won’t write songs about things he
+he does have lines he won't cross. He won't write songs about things he
fundamentally does not believe in, and there are times he has turned
-down jobs on principle. He also won’t stray too much from his natural
-style. “My style is silly, so I can’t really accommodate people who want
-something super serious,” Jonathan said. “I do what I do very easily,
-and it’s part of who I am.” Jonathan hasn’t gotten into writing
+down jobs on principle. He also won't stray too much from his natural
+style. "My style is silly, so I can't really accommodate people who want
+something super serious," Jonathan said. "I do what I do very easily,
+and it's part of who I am." Jonathan hasn't gotten into writing
commercials for the same reasons; he is best at using his own unique
style rather than mimicking others.
-Jonathan’s song-a-day commitment exemplifies the power of habit and
+Jonathan's song-a-day commitment exemplifies the power of habit and
grit. Conventional wisdom about creative productivity, including advice
in books like the best-seller The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp,
routinely emphasizes the importance of ritual and action. No amount of
planning can replace the value of simple practice and just doing.
-Jonathan Mann’s work is a living embodiment of these principles.
+Jonathan Mann's work is a living embodiment of these principles.
When he speaks about his work, he talks about how much the song-a-day
process has changed him. Rather than seeing any given piece of work as
precious and getting stuck on trying to make it perfect, he has become
-comfortable with just doing. If today’s song is a bust, tomorrow’s song
+comfortable with just doing. If today's song is a bust, tomorrow's song
might be better.
Jonathan seems to have this mentality about his career more generally.
or having his song used by Steve Jobs, he says he never truly feels
successful.
-“Success feels like it’s over,” he said. “To a certain extent, a
+"Success feels like it's over," he said. "To a certain extent, a
creative person is not ever going to feel completely satisfied because
-then so much of what drives you would be gone.”
+then so much of what drives you would be gone."
## Noun Project
-
-The Noun Project is a for-profit company offering an online platform to
-display visual icons from a global network of designers. Founded in 2010
-in the U.S.
-
-thenounproject.com
-
-Revenue model: charging a transaction fee, charging for custom services
-
-Interview date: October 6, 2015
-
-Interviewee: Edward Boatman, cofounder
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> The Noun Project is a for-profit company offering an online platform to
+> display visual icons from a global network of designers. Founded in 2010
+> in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://thenounproject.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging a transaction fee, charging for custom services
+>
+> **Interview date**: October 6, 2015
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Edward Boatman, cofounder
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
The Noun Project creates and shares visual language. There are millions
who use Noun Project symbols to simplify communication across borders,
languages, and cultures.
The original idea for the Noun Project came to cofounder Edward Boatman
-while he was a student in architecture design school. He’d always done a
+while he was a student in architecture design school. He'd always done a
lot of sketches and started to draw what used to fascinate him as a
child, like trains, sequoias, and bulldozers. He began thinking how
great it would be if he had a simple image or small icon of every single
When Edward went on to work at an architecture firm, he had to make a
lot of presentation boards for clients. But finding high-quality sources
-for symbols and icons was difficult. He couldn’t find any website that
+for symbols and icons was difficult. He couldn't find any website that
could provide them. Perhaps his idea for creating a library of icons
could actually help people in similar situations.
Then Edward got laid off during the recession, which turned out to be a
huge catalyst. He decided to give his idea a go, and in 2010 Edward and
Sofya launched the Noun Project with a Kickstarter campaign, back when
-Kickstarter was in its infancy.1 They thought it’d be a good way to
+Kickstarter was in its infancy.[^Noun-Project-1] They thought it'd be a good way to
introduce the global web community to their idea. Their goal was to
raise \$1,500, but in twenty days they got over \$14,000. They realized
their idea had the potential to be something much bigger.
They created a platform where symbols and icons could be uploaded, and
Edward began recruiting talented designers to contribute their designs,
a process he describes as a relatively easy sell. Lots of designers have
-old drawings just gathering “digital dust” on their hard drives. It’s
+old drawings just gathering "digital dust" on their hard drives. It's
easy to convince them to finally share them with the world.
The Noun Project currently has about seven thousand designers from
around the world. But not all submissions are accepted. The Noun
-Project’s quality-review process means that only the best works become
+Project's quality-review process means that only the best works become
part of its collection. They make sure to provide encouraging,
constructive feedback whenever they reject a piece of work, which
maintains and builds the relationship they have with their global
community of designers.
-Creative Commons is an integral part of the Noun Project’s business
-model; this decision was inspired by Chris Anderson’s book Free: The
+Creative Commons is an integral part of the Noun Project's business
+model; this decision was inspired by Chris Anderson's book Free: The
Future of Radical Price, which introduced Edward to the idea that you
could build a business model around free content.
that people can use without having to give credit, they can use CC0 to
put the work into the public domain.
-Noun Project’s business model and means of generating revenue have
+Noun Project's business model and means of generating revenue have
evolved significantly over time. Their initial plan was to sell T-shirts
with the icons on it, which in retrospect Edward says was a horrible
idea. They did get a lot of email from people saying they loved the
icons but asking if they could pay a fee instead of giving attribution.
Ad agencies (among others) wanted to keep marketing and presentation
-materials clean and free of attribution statements. For Edward, “That’s
-when our lightbulb went off.”
+materials clean and free of attribution statements. For Edward, "That's
+when our lightbulb went off."
-They asked their global network of designers whether they’d be open to
+They asked their global network of designers whether they'd be open to
receiving modest remuneration instead of attribution. Designers saw it
as a win-win. The idea that you could offer your designs for free and
have a global audience and maybe even make some money was pretty
exciting for most designers.
The Noun Project first adopted a model whereby using an icon without
-giving attribution would cost \$1.99 per icon. The model’s second
+giving attribution would cost \$1.99 per icon. The model's second
iteration added a subscription component, where there would be a monthly
-fee to access a certain number of icons—ten, fifty, a hundred, or five
-hundred. However, users didn’t like these hard-count options. They
+fee to access a certain number of icons---ten, fifty, a hundred, or five
+hundred. However, users didn't like these hard-count options. They
preferred to try out many similar icons to see which worked best before
eventually choosing the one they wanted to use. So the Noun Project
moved to an unlimited model, whereby users have unlimited access to the
whole library for a flat monthly fee. This service is called NounPro and
-costs \$9.99 per month. Edward says this model is working well—good for
-customers, good for creators, and good for the platform.
+costs \$9.99 per month. Edward says this model is working well---good
+for customers, good for creators, and good for the platform.
Customers then began asking for an application-programming interface
(API), which would allow Noun Project icons and symbols to be directly
accessed from within other applications. Edward knew that the icons and
symbols would be valuable in a lot of different contexts and that they
-couldn’t possibly know all of them in advance, so they built an API with
+couldn't possibly know all of them in advance, so they built an API with
a lot of flexibility. Knowing that most API applications would want to
use the icons without giving attribution, the API was built with the aim
-of charging for its use. You can use what’s called the “Playground API”
+of charging for its use. You can use what's called the "Playground API"
for free to test how it integrates with your application, but full
implementation will require you to purchase the API Pro version.
The revenue from premium purchases (the subscription and API options) is
split a little differently. At the end of each month, the total revenue
-from subscriptions is divided by Noun Project’s total number of
-downloads, resulting in a rate per download—for example, it could be
+from subscriptions is divided by Noun Project's total number of
+downloads, resulting in a rate per download---for example, it could be
\$0.13 per download for that month. For each download, the revenue is
split 40 percent to the designer and 60 percent to the Noun Project.
-(For API usage, it’s per use instead of per download.) Noun Project’s
-share is higher this time as it’s providing more service to the user.
+(For API usage, it's per use instead of per download.) Noun Project's
+share is higher this time as it's providing more service to the user.
The Noun Project tries to be completely transparent about their royalty
-structure.2 They tend to over communicate with creators about it because
+structure.[^Noun-Project-2] They tend to over communicate with creators about it because
building trust is the top
priority.
their combined collections. Lingo is free for personal use. A pro
version for \$9.99 per month lets you add guests. A team version for
\$49.95 per month allows up to twenty-five team members to collaborate,
-and to view, use, edit, and add new assets to each other’s collections.
+and to view, use, edit, and add new assets to each other's collections.
And if you subscribe to NounPro, you can access Noun Project from within
Lingo.
advertising and design agencies, educators, and others who need to
communicate ideas visually.
-For Edward, “creating, sharing, and celebrating the world’s visual
-language” is the most important aspect of what they do; it’s their
+For Edward, "creating, sharing, and celebrating the world's visual
+language" is the most important aspect of what they do; it's their
stated mission. It differentiates them from others who offer graphics,
icons, or clip art.
Noun Project creators agree. When surveyed on why they participate in
the Noun Project, this is how designers rank their reasons: 1) to
support the Noun Project mission, 2) to promote their own personal
-brand, and 3) to generate money. It’s striking to see that money comes
+brand, and 3) to generate money. It's striking to see that money comes
third, and mission, first. If you want to engage a global network of
-contributors, it’s important to have a mission beyond making money.
+contributors, it's important to have a mission beyond making money.
-In Edward’s view, Creative Commons is central to their mission of
-sharing and social good. Using Creative Commons makes the Noun Project’s
+In Edward's view, Creative Commons is central to their mission of
+sharing and social good. Using Creative Commons makes the Noun Project's
mission genuine and has generated a lot of their initial traction and
credibility. CC comes with a built-in community of users and fans.
-Edward told us, “Don’t underestimate the power of a passionate community
+Edward told us, "Don't underestimate the power of a passionate community
around your product or your business. They are going to go to bat for
-you when you’re getting ripped in the media. If you go down the road of
-choosing to work with Creative Commons, you’re taking the first step to
+you when you're getting ripped in the media. If you go down the road of
+choosing to work with Creative Commons, you're taking the first step to
building a great community and tapping into a really awesome community
that comes with it. But you need to continue to foster that community
-through other initiatives and continue to nurture it.”
-
-The Noun Project nurtures their creators’ second motivation—promoting a
-personal brand—by connecting every icon and symbol to the creator’s name
-and profile page; each profile features their full collection. Users can
-also search the icons by the creator’s name.
-
-The Noun Project also builds community through Iconathons—hackathons for
-icons.2 In partnership with a sponsoring organization, the Noun Project
-comes up with a theme (e.g., sustainable energy, food bank, guerrilla
-gardening, human rights) and a list of icons that are needed, which
-designers are invited to create at the event. The results are
+through other initiatives and continue to nurture it."
+
+The Noun Project nurtures their creators' second motivation---promoting
+a personal brand---by connecting every icon and symbol to the creator's
+name and profile page; each profile features their full collection.
+Users can also search the icons by the creator's name.
+
+The Noun Project also builds community through Iconathons---hackathons
+for icons.[^Noun-Project-2] In partnership with a sponsoring organization, the Noun
+Project comes up with a theme (e.g., sustainable energy, food bank,
+guerrilla gardening, human rights) and a list of icons that are needed,
+which designers are invited to create at the event. The results are
vectorized, and added to the Noun Project using CC0 so they can be used
by anyone for free.
Providing a free version of their product that satisfies a lot of their
-customers’ needs has actually enabled the Noun Project to build the paid
-version, using a service-oriented model. The Noun Project’s success lies
+customers' needs has actually enabled the Noun Project to build the paid
+version, using a service-oriented model. The Noun Project's success lies
in creating services and content that are a strategic mix of free and
-paid while staying true to their mission—creating, sharing, and
-celebrating the world’s visual language. Integrating Creative Commons
+paid while staying true to their mission---creating, sharing, and
+celebrating the world's visual language. Integrating Creative Commons
into their model has been key to that goal.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. www.kickstarter.com/projects/tnp/building-a-free-collection-of-our-worlds-visual-sy/description
-2. thenounproject.com/handbook/royalties/\#getting\_paid
-3. thenounproject.com/iconathon/
+[^Noun-Project-1]: [](http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tnp/building-a-free-collection-of-our-worlds-visual-sy/description)
+[^Noun-Project-2]: [](http://thenounproject.com/handbook/royalties/\#getting\_paid)
+[^Noun-Project-3]: [](http://thenounproject.com/iconathon/)
## Open Data Institute
-
-The Open Data Institute is an independent nonprofit that connects,
-equips, and inspires people around the world to innovate with data.
-Founded in 2012 in the UK.
-
-theodi.org
-
-Revenue model: grant and government funding, charging for custom
-services, donations
-
-Interview date: November 11, 2015
-
-Interviewee: Jeni Tennison, technical director
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> The Open Data Institute is an independent nonprofit that connects,
+> equips, and inspires people around the world to innovate with data.
+> Founded in 2012 in the UK.
+>
+> [](http://theodi.org)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: grant and government funding, charging for custom
+> services, donations
+>
+> **Interview date**: November 11, 2015
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Jeni Tennison, technical director
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
Cofounded by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Sir Nigel Shadbolt in 2012, the
London-based Open Data Institute (ODI) offers data-related training,
events, consulting services, and research. For ODI, Creative Commons
licenses are central to making their own business model and their
-customers’ open. CC BY (Attribution), CC BY-SA (Attribution-ShareAlike),
-and CC0 (placed in the public domain) all play a critical role in ODI’s
+customers' open. CC BY (Attribution), CC BY-SA (Attribution-ShareAlike),
+and CC0 (placed in the public domain) all play a critical role in ODI's
mission to help people around the world innovate with data.
Data underpins planning and decision making across all aspects of
efficiency, and target investments. It can help citizens improve their
lives by better understanding what is happening around them.
-The Open Data Institute’s 2012–17 business plan starts out by describing
-its vision to establish itself as a world-leading center and to research
-and be innovative with the opportunities created by the UK government’s
-open data policy. (The government was an early pioneer in open policy
-and open-data initiatives.) It goes on to say that the ODI wants to—
+The Open Data Institute's 2012--17 business plan starts out by
+describing its vision to establish itself as a world-leading center and
+to research and be innovative with the opportunities created by the UK
+government's open data policy. (The government was an early pioneer in
+open policy and open-data initiatives.) It goes on to say that the ODI
+wants to---
- demonstrate the commercial value of open government data and how
open-data policies affect this;
- develop the economic benefits case and business models for open
data;
- help UK businesses use open data; and
-- show how open data can improve public services.1
+- show how open data can improve public services.[^Open-Data-Institute-1]
ODI is very explicit about how it wants to make open business models,
-and defining what this means. Jeni Tennison, ODI’s technical director,
-puts it this way: “There is a whole ecosystem of open—open-source
-software, open government, open-access research—and a whole ecosystem of
-data. ODI’s work cuts across both, with an emphasis on where they
-overlap—with open data.” ODI’s particular focus is to show open data’s
+and defining what this means. Jeni Tennison, ODI's technical director,
+puts it this way: "There is a whole ecosystem of open---open-source
+software, open government, open-access research---and a whole ecosystem
+of data. ODI's work cuts across both, with an emphasis on where they
+overlap---with open data." ODI's particular focus is to show open data's
potential for revenue.
As an independent nonprofit, ODI secured £10 million over five years
a \$4.75-million investment from the Omidyar Network.
Jeni started out as a developer and technical architect for data.gov.uk,
-the UK government’s pioneering open-data initiative. She helped make
+the UK government's pioneering open-data initiative. She helped make
data sets from government departments available as open data. She joined
ODI in 2012 when it was just starting up, as one of six people. It now
has a staff of about sixty.
ODI strives to have half its annual budget come from the core UK
government and Omidyar grants, and the other half from project-based
-research and commercial work. In Jeni’s view, having this balance of
+research and commercial work. In Jeni's view, having this balance of
revenue sources establishes some stability, but also keeps them
motivated to go out and generate these matching funds in response to
market needs.
a year, and corporations and government organizations at £2,200 a year.
Commercial members have greater opportunities to connect and
collaborate, explore the benefits of open data, and unlock new business
-opportunities. (All members are listed on their website.)2
+opportunities. (All members are listed on their website.)[^Open-Data-Institute-2]
ODI provides standardized open data training courses in which anyone can
enroll. The initial idea was to offer an intensive and academically
market for that. Instead, they offered a five-day-long public training
course, which has subsequently been reduced to three days; now the most
popular course is one day long. The fee, in addition to the time
-commitment, can be a barrier for participation. Jeni says, “Most of the
-people who would be able to pay don’t know they need it. Most who know
-they need it can’t pay.” Public-sector organizations sometimes give
+commitment, can be a barrier for participation. Jeni says, "Most of the
+people who would be able to pay don't know they need it. Most who know
+they need it can't pay." Public-sector organizations sometimes give
vouchers to their employees so they can attend as a form of professional
development.
technical staff. The training tends to generate high interest and
commitment.
-Education about open data is also a part of ODI’s annual summit event,
+Education about open data is also a part of ODI's annual summit event,
where curated presentations and speakers showcase the work of ODI and
its members across the entire ecosystem. Tickets to the summit are
available to the public, and hundreds of people and organizations attend
business to get more insight. Businesses can generate value and more
effectively pursue their own goals if they open up their own data
too. Big data is a hot topic.
-- Open innovation. Many large-scale enterprises are aware they don’t
+- Open innovation. Many large-scale enterprises are aware they don't
innovate very well. One way they can innovate is to open up their
data. ODI encourages them to do so even if it exposes problems and
challenges. The key is to invite other people to help while still
During their early years, ODI wanted to focus solely on the United
Kingdom. But in their first year, large delegations of government
visitors from over fifty countries wanted to learn more about the UK
-government’s open-data practices and how ODI saw that translating into
+government's open-data practices and how ODI saw that translating into
economic value. They were contracted as a service provider to
international governments, which prompted a need to set up international
-ODI “nodes.”
+ODI "nodes."
Nodes are franchises of the ODI at a regional or city level. Hosted by
existing (for-profit or not-for-profit) organizations, they operate
ODI also runs programs to help start-ups in the UK and across Europe
develop a sustainable business around open data, offering mentoring,
-advice, training, and even office space.3
+advice, training, and even office space.[^Open-Data-Institute-3]
-A big part of ODI’s business model revolves around community building.
+A big part of ODI's business model revolves around community building.
Memberships, training, summits, consulting services, nodes, and start-up
programs create an ever-growing network of open-data users and leaders.
(In fact, ODI even operates something called an Open Data Leaders
ODI has created an online tool that organizations can use to assess the
legal, practical, technical, and social aspects of their open data. If
-it is of high quality, the organization can earn ODI’s Open Data
+it is of high quality, the organization can earn ODI's Open Data
Certificate, a globally recognized mark that signals that their open
-data is useful, reliable, accessible, discoverable, and supported.4
+data is useful, reliable, accessible, discoverable, and supported.[^Open-Data-Institute-4]
Separate from commercial activities, the ODI generates funding through
research grants. Research includes looking at evidence on the impact of
Creative Commons 4.0 licenses cover database rights and ODI recommends
CC BY, CC BY-SA, and CC0 for data releases. ODI encourages publishers of
-data to use Creative Commons licenses rather than creating new “open
-licenses” of their own.
+data to use Creative Commons licenses rather than creating new "open
+licenses" of their own.
For ODI, open is at the heart of what they do. They also release any
software code they produce under open-source-software licenses, and
-publications and reports under CC BY or CC BY-SA licenses. ODI’s mission
+publications and reports under CC BY or CC BY-SA licenses. ODI's mission
is to connect and equip people around the world so they can innovate
with data. Disseminating stories, research, guidance, and code under an
open license is essential for achieving that mission. It also
not for the content of the training; people pay for the advice ODI gives
them, not for the methodologies they use. Producing open content, data,
and source code helps establish credibility and creates leads for the
-paid services that they offer. According to Jeni, “The biggest lesson we
+paid services that they offer. According to Jeni, "The biggest lesson we
have learned is that it is completely possible to be open, get
-customers, and make money.”
+customers, and make money."
To serve as evidence of a successful open business model and return on
investment, ODI has a public dashboard of key performance indicators.
online: 2.2 million
- Total Open Data Certificates created: 151,000
- Total number of people trained by ODI and its nodes since ODI began:
- 5,0805
+ 5,080[^Open-Data-Institute-5]
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. e642e8368e3bf8d5526e-464b4b70b4554c1a79566214d402739e.r6.cf3.rackcdn.com/odi-business-plan-may-release.pdf
-2. directory.theodi.org/members
-3. theodi.org/odi-startup-programme;
- theodi.org/open-data-incubator-for-europe
-4. certificates.theodi.org
-5. dashboards.theodi.org/company/all
+[^Open-Data-Institute-1]: [](http://e642e8368e3bf8d5526e-464b4b70b4554c1a79566214d402739e.r6.cf3.rackcdn.com/odi-business-plan-may-release.pdf)
+[^Open-Data-Institute-2]: [](http://directory.theodi.org/members)
+[^Open-Data-Institute-3]: [](http://theodi.org/odi-startup-programme);
+ [](http://theodi.org/open-data-incubator-for-europe)
+[^Open-Data-Institute-4]: [](http://certificates.theodi.org)
+[^Open-Data-Institute-5]: [](http://dashboards.theodi.org/company/all)
## OpenDesk
-
-Opendesk is a for-profit company offering an online platform that
-connects furniture designers around the world with customers and local
-makers who bring the designs to life. Founded in 2014 in the UK.
-
-www.opendesk.cc
-
-Revenue model: charging a transaction fee
-
-Interview date: November 4, 2015
-
-Interviewees: Nick Ierodiaconou and Joni Steiner, cofounders
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> Opendesk is a for-profit company offering an online platform that
+> connects furniture designers around the world with customers and local
+> makers who bring the designs to life. Founded in 2014 in the UK.
+>
+> [](http://www.opendesk.cc)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging a transaction fee
+>
+> **Interview date**: November 4, 2015
+>
+> **Interviewees**: Nick Ierodiaconou and Joni Steiner, cofounders
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
Opendesk is an online platform that connects furniture designers around
the world not just with customers but also with local registered makers
Cofounders Nick Ierodiaconou and Joni Steiner studied and worked as
architects together. They also made goods. Their first client was Mint
Digital, who had an interest in open licensing. Nick and Joni were
-exploring digital fabrication, and Mint’s interest in open licensing got
+exploring digital fabrication, and Mint's interest in open licensing got
them to thinking how the open-source world may interact and apply to
physical goods. They sought to design something for their client that
-was also reproducible. As they put it, they decided to “ship the recipe,
-but not the goods.” They created the design using software, put it under
+was also reproducible. As they put it, they decided to "ship the recipe,
+but not the goods." They created the design using software, put it under
an open license, and had it manufactured locally near the client. This
-was the start of the idea for Opendesk. The idea for Wikihouse—another
-open project dedicated to accessible housing for all—started as
+was the start of the idea for Opendesk. The idea for Wikihouse---another
+open project dedicated to accessible housing for all---started as
discussions around the same table. The two projects ultimately went on
separate paths, with Wikihouse becoming a nonprofit foundation and
Opendesk a for-profit company.
licensing options. It was a thorny space, especially for designs. Just
what aspect of a design is copyrightable? What is patentable? How can
allowing for digital sharing and distribution be balanced against the
-designer’s desire to still hold ownership? In the end, they decided
+designer's desire to still hold ownership? In the end, they decided
there was no need to reinvent the wheel and settled on using Creative
Commons.
benefited designers when their designs were sold. Coming up with a
business model was going to be complex.
-They gave a lot of thought to three angles—the potential for social
+They gave a lot of thought to three angles---the potential for social
sharing, allowing designers to choose their license, and the impact
these choices would have on the business model.
In support of social sharing, Opendesk actively advocates for (but
-doesn’t demand) open licensing. And Nick and Joni are agnostic about
-which Creative Commons license is used; it’s up to the designer. They
+doesn't demand) open licensing. And Nick and Joni are agnostic about
+which Creative Commons license is used; it's up to the designer. They
can be proprietary or choose from the full suite of Creative Commons
licenses, deciding for themselves how open or closed they want to be.
For the most part, designers love the idea of sharing content. They
-understand that you get positive feedback when you’re attributed, what
-Nick and Joni called “reputational glow.” And Opendesk does an awesome
-job profiling the designers.1
+understand that you get positive feedback when you're attributed, what
+Nick and Joni called "reputational glow." And Opendesk does an awesome
+job profiling the designers.[^OpenDesk-1]
While designers are largely OK with personal sharing, there is a concern
that someone will take the design and manufacture the furniture in bulk,
with the designer not getting any benefits. So most Opendesk designers
choose the Attribution-NonCommercial license (CC BY-NC).
-Anyone can download a design and make it themselves, provided it’s for
-noncommercial use — and there have been many, many downloads. Or users
+Anyone can download a design and make it themselves, provided it's for
+noncommercial use --- and there have been many, many downloads. Or users
can buy the product from Opendesk, or from a registered maker in
-Opendesk’s network, for on-demand personal fabrication. The network of
+Opendesk's network, for on-demand personal fabrication. The network of
Opendesk makers currently is made up of those who do digital fabrication
using a computer-controlled CNC (Computer Numeric Control) machining
device that cuts shapes out of wooden sheets according to the
specifications in the design file.
-Makers benefit from being part of Opendesk’s network. Making furniture
+Makers benefit from being part of Opendesk's network. Making furniture
for local customers is paid work, and Opendesk generates business for
-them. Joni said, “Finding a whole network and community of makers was
+them. Joni said, "Finding a whole network and community of makers was
pretty easy because we built a site where people could write in about
their capabilities. Building the community by learning from the maker
-community is how we have moved forward.” Opendesk now has relationships
-with hundreds of makers in countries all around the world.2
+community is how we have moved forward." Opendesk now has relationships
+with hundreds of makers in countries all around the world.[^OpenDesk-2]
The makers are a critical part of the Opendesk business model. Their
-model builds off the makers’ quotes. Here’s how it’s expressed on
-Opendesk’s website:
+model builds off the makers' quotes. Here's how it's expressed on
+Opendesk's website:
When customers buy an Opendesk product directly from a registered maker,
they pay:
- a percentage fee to the channel through which the sale is made (at
the moment this is Opendesk, but in the future we aim to open this
up to third-party sellers who can sell Opendesk products through
- their own channels—this covers sales and marketing fees for the
+ their own channels---this covers sales and marketing fees for the
relevant channel)
- a local delivery service charge (the delivery is typically charged
by the maker, but in some cases may be paid to a third-party
delivery partner)
- charges for any additional services the customer chooses, such as
- on-site assembly (additional services are discretionary—in many
+ on-site assembly (additional services are discretionary---in many
cases makers will be happy to quote for assembly on-site and
designers may offer bespoke design options)
-- local sales taxes (variable by customer and maker location)3
+- local sales taxes (variable by customer and maker location)[^OpenDesk-3]
-They then go into detail how makers’ quotes are created:
+They then go into detail how makers' quotes are created:
When a customer wants to buy an Opendesk . . . they are provided with a
transparent breakdown of fees including the manufacturing cost, design
Opendesk shares revenue with their community of designers. According to
Nick and Joni, a typical designer fee is around 2.5 percent, so
-Opendesk’s 8 percent is more generous, and providing a higher value to
+Opendesk's 8 percent is more generous, and providing a higher value to
the designer.
The Opendesk website features stories of designers and makers. Denis
proportion of his business.
To manage resources and remain effective, Opendesk has so far focused on
-a very narrow niche—primarily office furniture of a certain simple
+a very narrow niche---primarily office furniture of a certain simple
aesthetic, which uses only one type of material and one manufacturing
technique. This allows them to be more strategic and more disruptive in
the market, by getting things to market quickly with competitive prices.
It also reflects their vision of creating reproducible and functional
pieces.
-On their website, Opendesk describes what they do as “open making”:
-“Designers get a global distribution channel. Makers get profitable jobs
+On their website, Opendesk describes what they do as "open making":
+"Designers get a global distribution channel. Makers get profitable jobs
and new customers. You get designer products without the designer price
tag, a more social, eco-friendly alternative to mass-production and an
-affordable way to buy custom-made products.”
+affordable way to buy custom-made products."
Nick and Joni say that customers like the fact that the furniture has a
known provenance. People really like that their furniture was designed
by a certain international designer but was made by a maker in their
-local community; it’s a great story to tell. It certainly sets apart
+local community; it's a great story to tell. It certainly sets apart
Opendesk furniture from the usual mass-produced items from a store.
Nick and Joni are taking a community-based approach to define and evolve
-Opendesk and the “open making” business model. They’re engaging thought
+Opendesk and the "open making" business model. They're engaging thought
leaders and practitioners to define this new movement. They have a
separate Open Making site, which includes a manifesto, a field guide,
-and an invitation to get involved in the Open Making community.4 People
+and an invitation to get involved in the Open Making community.[^OpenDesk-4] People
can submit ideas and discuss the principles and business practices
-they’d like to see used.
+they'd like to see used.
Nick and Joni talked a lot with us about intellectual property (IP) and
commercialization. Many of their designers fear the idea that someone
creators out of a sense of fairness. They have found that behavioral
economics can replace some of the thorny legal issues. In their business
model, Nick and Joni are trying to suspend the focus on IP and build an
-open business model that works for all stakeholders—designers, channels,
-manufacturers, and customers. For them, the value Opendesk generates
-hangs off “open,” not IP.
+open business model that works for all stakeholders---designers,
+channels, manufacturers, and customers. For them, the value Opendesk
+generates hangs off "open," not IP.
The mission of Opendesk is about relocalizing manufacturing, which
changes the way we think about how goods are made. Commercialization is
-integral to their mission, and they’ve begun to focus on success metrics
+integral to their mission, and they've begun to focus on success metrics
that track how many makers and designers are engaged through Opendesk in
revenue-making work.
-As a global platform for local making, Opendesk’s business model has
+As a global platform for local making, Opendesk's business model has
been built on honesty, transparency, and inclusivity. As Nick and Joni
describe it, they put ideas out there that get traction and then have
faith in people.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. www.opendesk.cc/designers
-2. www.opendesk.cc/open-making/makers/
-3. www.opendesk.cc/open-making/join
-4. openmaking.is
+[^OpenDesk-1]: [](http://www.opendesk.cc/designers)
+[^OpenDesk-2]: [](http://www.opendesk.cc/open-making/makers/)
+[^OpenDesk-3]: [](http://www.opendesk.cc/open-making/join)
+[^OpenDesk-4]: [](http://openmaking.is)
## OpenStax
-
-OpenStax is a nonprofit that provides free, openly licensed textbooks
-for high-enrollment introductory college courses and Advanced Placement
-courses. Founded in 2012 in the U.S.
-
-www.openstaxcollege.org
-
-Revenue model: grant funding, charging for custom services, charging for
-physical copies (textbook sales)
-
-Interview date: December 16, 2015
-
-Interviewee: David Harris, editor-in-chief
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> OpenStax is a nonprofit that provides free, openly licensed textbooks
+> for high-enrollment introductory college courses and Advanced Placement
+> courses. Founded in 2012 in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://www.openstaxcollege.org)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: grant funding, charging for custom services, charging for
+> physical copies (textbook sales)
+>
+> **Interview date**: December 16, 2015
+>
+> **Interviewee**: David Harris, editor-in-chief
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
OpenStax is an extension of a program called Connexions, which was
started in 1999 by Dr. Richard Baraniuk, the Victor E. Cameron Professor
courses, Dr. Baraniuk wanted to provide authors and learners a way to
share and freely adapt educational materials such as courses, books, and
reports. Today, Connexions (now called OpenStax CNX) is one of the
-world’s best libraries of customizable educational materials, all
+world's best libraries of customizable educational materials, all
licensed with Creative Commons and available to anyone, anywhere,
-anytime—for free.
+anytime---for free.
In 2008, while in a senior leadership role at WebAssign and looking at
ways to reduce the risk that came with relying on publishers, David
Harris began investigating open educational resources (OER) and
discovered Connexions. A year and a half later, Connexions received a
grant to help grow the use of OER so that it could meet the needs of
-students who couldn’t afford textbooks. David came on board to spearhead
+students who couldn't afford textbooks. David came on board to spearhead
this effort. Connexions became OpenStax CNX; the program to create open
textbooks became OpenStax College, now simply called OpenStax.
David brought with him a deep understanding of the best practices of
-publishing along with where publishers have inefficiencies. In David’s
+publishing along with where publishers have inefficiencies. In David's
view, peer review and high standards for quality are critically
important if you want to scale easily. Books have to have logical scope
and sequence, they have to exist as a whole and not in pieces, and they
courses in the nation. Today they are fast approaching that number.
There is data that proves the success of their original hypothesis on
how many students they could help and how much money they could help
-save.1 Professionally produced content scales rapidly. All with no sales
+save.[^OpenStax-1] Professionally produced content scales rapidly. All with no sales
force!
OpenStax textbooks are all Attribution (CC BY) licensed, and each
their use.
Teachers are invited to try out a single chapter from one of the
-textbooks with students. If that goes well, they’re encouraged to adopt
+textbooks with students. If that goes well, they're encouraged to adopt
the entire book. They can simply paste a URL into their course syllabus,
for free and unlimited access. And with the CC BY license, teachers are
free to delete chapters, make changes, and customize any book to fit
provides slide presentations, test banks, answer keys, and so on.
Institutions can stand out by offering students a lower-cost education
-through the use of OpenStax textbooks; there’s even a textbook-savings
+through the use of OpenStax textbooks; there's even a textbook-savings
calculator they can use to see how much students would save. OpenStax
-keeps a running list of institutions that have adopted their textbooks.2
+keeps a running list of institutions that have adopted their textbooks.[^OpenStax-2]
-Unlike traditional publishers’ monolithic approach of controlling
+Unlike traditional publishers' monolithic approach of controlling
intellectual property, distribution, and so many other aspects, OpenStax
has adopted a model that embraces open licensing and relies on an
extensive network of partners.
OpenStax has already published revisions of their titles, such as
Introduction to Sociology 2e, using these funds.
-In David’s view, this approach lets the market operate at peak
-efficiency. OpenStax’s partners don’t have to worry about developing
+In David's view, this approach lets the market operate at peak
+efficiency. OpenStax's partners don't have to worry about developing
textbook content, freeing them up from those development costs and
letting them focus on what they do best. With OpenStax textbooks
available at no cost, they can provide their services at a lower
-cost—not free, but still saving students money. OpenStax benefits not
+cost---not free, but still saving students money. OpenStax benefits not
only by receiving mission-support fees but through free publicity and
-marketing. OpenStax doesn’t have a sales force; partners are out there
+marketing. OpenStax doesn't have a sales force; partners are out there
showcasing their materials.
-OpenStax’s cost of sales to acquire a single student is very, very low
+OpenStax's cost of sales to acquire a single student is very, very low
and is a fraction of what traditional players in the market face. This
year, Tyton Partners is actually evaluating the costs of sales for an
OER effort like OpenStax in comparison with incumbents. David looks
no-returns policy. This is working well, since the sell-through of their
print titles is virtually a hundred percent.
-David thinks of the OpenStax model as “OER 2.0.” So what is OER 1.0?
+David thinks of the OpenStax model as "OER 2.0." So what is OER 1.0?
Historically in the OER field, many OER initiatives have been locally
-funded by institutions or government ministries. In David’s view, this
+funded by institutions or government ministries. In David's view, this
results in content that has high local value but is infrequently adopted
-nationally. It’s therefore difficult to show payback over a time scale
+nationally. It's therefore difficult to show payback over a time scale
that is reasonable.
OER 2.0 is about OER intended to be used and adopted on a national level
The process is similar for both models. First they look at the scope and
sequence of existing textbooks. They ask questions like what does the
customer need? Where are students having challenges? Then they identify
-potential authors and put them through a rigorous evaluation—only one in
-ten authors make it through. OpenStax selects a team of authors who come
-together to develop a template for a chapter and collectively write the
-first draft (or revise it, in the acquisitions model). (OpenStax doesn’t
-do books with just a single author as David says it risks the project
-going longer than scheduled.) The draft is peer-reviewed with no less
-than three reviewers per chapter. A second draft is generated, with
+potential authors and put them through a rigorous evaluation---only one
+in ten authors make it through. OpenStax selects a team of authors who
+come together to develop a template for a chapter and collectively write
+the first draft (or revise it, in the acquisitions model). (OpenStax
+doesn't do books with just a single author as David says it risks the
+project going longer than scheduled.) The draft is peer-reviewed with no
+less than three reviewers per chapter. A second draft is generated, with
artists producing illustrations and visuals to go along with the text.
The book is then copyedited to ensure grammatical correctness and a
singular voice. Finally, it goes into production and through a final
All the people involved in this process are paid. OpenStax does not rely
on volunteers. Writers, reviewers, illustrators, and editors are all
-paid an up-front fee—OpenStax does not use a royalty model. A
+paid an up-front fee---OpenStax does not use a royalty model. A
best-selling author might make more money under the traditional
publishing model, but that is only maybe 5 percent of all authors. From
-David’s perspective, 95 percent of all authors do better under the OER
+David's perspective, 95 percent of all authors do better under the OER
2.0 model, as there is no risk to them and they earn all the money up
front.
-David thinks of the Attribution license (CC BY) as the “innovation
-license.” It’s core to the mission of OpenStax, letting people use their
+David thinks of the Attribution license (CC BY) as the "innovation
+license." It's core to the mission of OpenStax, letting people use their
textbooks in innovative ways without having to ask for permission. It
frees up the whole market and has been central to OpenStax being able to
bring on partners. OpenStax sees a lot of customization of their
control and academic freedom.
Using CC BY is also a good example of using strategies that traditional
-publishers can’t. Traditional publishers rely on copyright to prevent
+publishers can't. Traditional publishers rely on copyright to prevent
others from making copies and heavily invest in digital rights
-management to ensure their books aren’t shared. By using CC BY, OpenStax
+management to ensure their books aren't shared. By using CC BY, OpenStax
avoids having to deal with digital rights management and its costs.
OpenStax books can be copied and shared over and over again. CC BY
changes the rules of engagement and takes advantage of traditional
OpenStax has primarily focused on introductory-level college courses
where there is high enrollment, but they are starting to think about
-verticals—a broad offering for a specific group or need. David thinks it
-would be terrific if OpenStax could provide access to free textbooks
+verticals---a broad offering for a specific group or need. David thinks
+it would be terrific if OpenStax could provide access to free textbooks
through the entire curriculum of a nursing degree, for example.
Finally, for OpenStax success is not just about the adoption of their
Commons, OpenStax is making it possible for every student who wants
access to education to get it.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. news.rice.edu/files/2016/01/0119-OPENSTAX-2016Infographic-lg-1tahxiu.jpg
-2. openstax.org/adopters
+[^OpenStax-1]: [](http://news.rice.edu/files/2016/01/0119-OPENSTAX-2016Infographic-lg-1tahxiu.jpg)
+[^OpenStax-2]: [](http://openstax.org/adopters)
## Amanda Palmer
-
-Amanda Palmer is a musician, artist, and writer. Based in the U.S.
-
-amandapalmer.net
-
-Revenue model: crowdfunding (subscription-based), pay-what-you-want,
-charging for physical copies (book and album sales), charg-ing for
-in-person version (performances), selling merchandise
-
-Interview date: December 15, 2015
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+>
+> Amanda Palmer is a musician, artist, and writer. Based in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://amandapalmer.net)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: crowdfunding (subscription-based), pay-what-you-want,
+> charging for physical copies (book and album sales), charg-ing for
+> in-person version (performances), selling merchandise
+>
+> **Interview date**: December 15, 2015
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
Since the beginning of her career, Amanda Palmer has been on what she
-calls a “journey with no roadmap,” continually experimenting to find new
-ways to sustain her creative work. 1
+calls a "journey with no roadmap," continually experimenting to find new
+ways to sustain her creative work.[^Amanda-Palmer-1]
In her best-selling book, The Art of Asking, Amanda articulates exactly
-what she has been and continues to strive for—“the ideal sweet spot . .
-. in which the artist can share freely and directly feel the
+what she has been and continues to strive for---"the ideal sweet spot .
+. . in which the artist can share freely and directly feel the
reverberations of their artistic gifts to the community, and make a
-living doing that.”
+living doing that."
While she seems to have successfully found that sweet spot for herself,
Amanda is the first to acknowledge there is no silver bullet. She thinks
the digital age is both an exciting and frustrating time for creators.
-“On the one hand, we have this beautiful shareability,” Amanda said. “On
-the other, you’ve got a bunch of confused artists wondering how to make
-money to buy food so we can make more art.”
+"On the one hand, we have this beautiful shareability," Amanda said. "On
+the other, you've got a bunch of confused artists wondering how to make
+money to buy food so we can make more art."
Amanda began her artistic career as a street performer. She would dress
up in an antique wedding gown, paint her face white, stand on a stack of
by her without stopping, but an essential few stopped to watch and drop
some money into her hat to show their appreciation. Rather than dwelling
on the majority of people who ignored her, she felt thankful for those
-who stopped. “All I needed was . . . some people,” she wrote in her
-book. “Enough people. Enough to make it worth coming back the next day,
+who stopped. "All I needed was . . . some people," she wrote in her
+book. "Enough people. Enough to make it worth coming back the next day,
enough people to help me make rent and put food on the table. Enough so
-I could keep making art.”
+I could keep making art."
Amanda has come a long way from her street-performing days, but her
-career remains dominated by that same sentiment—finding ways to reach
-“her crowd” and feeling gratitude when she does. With her band the
+career remains dominated by that same sentiment---finding ways to reach
+"her crowd" and feeling gratitude when she does. With her band the
Dresden Dolls, Amanda tried the traditional path of signing with a
-record label. It didn’t take for a variety of reasons, but one of them
-was that the label had absolutely no interest in Amanda’s view of
+record label. It didn't take for a variety of reasons, but one of them
+was that the label had absolutely no interest in Amanda's view of
success. They wanted hits, but making music for the masses was never
what Amanda and the Dresden Dolls set out to do.
After leaving the record label in 2008, she began experimenting with
different ways to make a living. She released music directly to the
-public without involving a middle man, releasing digital files on a “pay
-what you want” basis and selling CDs and vinyl. She also made money from
+public without involving a middle man, releasing digital files on a "pay
+what you want" basis and selling CDs and vinyl. She also made money from
live performances and merchandise sales. Eventually, in 2012 she decided
to try her hand at the sort of crowdfunding we know so well today. Her
Kickstarter project started with a goal of \$100,000, and she made \$1.2
base on Patreon, a crowdfunding site that allows artists to get
recurring donations from fans. More than eight thousand people have
signed up to support her so she can create music, art, and any other
-creative “thing” that she is inspired to make. The recurring pledges are
-made on a “per thing” basis. All of the content she makes is made freely
+creative "thing" that she is inspired to make. The recurring pledges are
+made on a "per thing" basis. All of the content she makes is made freely
available under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license (CC
BY-NC-SA).
even before she discovered Creative Commons. Amanda says the Dresden
Dolls used to get ten emails per week from fans asking if they could use
their music for different projects. They said yes to all of the
-requests, as long as it wasn’t for a completely for-profit venture. At
-the time, they used a short-form agreement written by Amanda herself. “I
-made everyone sign that contract so at least I wouldn’t be leaving the
+requests, as long as it wasn't for a completely for-profit venture. At
+the time, they used a short-form agreement written by Amanda herself. "I
+made everyone sign that contract so at least I wouldn't be leaving the
band vulnerable to someone later going on and putting our music in a
-Camel cigarette ad,” Amanda said. Once she discovered Creative Commons,
+Camel cigarette ad," Amanda said. Once she discovered Creative Commons,
adopting the licenses was an easy decision because it gave them a more
formal, standardized way of doing what they had been doing all along.
The NonCommercial licenses were a natural fit.
Amanda embraces the way her fans share and build upon her music. In The
-Art of Asking, she wrote that some of her fans’ unofficial videos using
+Art of Asking, she wrote that some of her fans' unofficial videos using
her music surpass the official videos in number of views on YouTube.
Rather than seeing this sort of thing as competition, Amanda celebrates
-it. “We got into this because we wanted to share the joy of music,” she
+it. "We got into this because we wanted to share the joy of music," she
said.
This is symbolic of how nearly everything she does in her career is
motivated by a desire to connect with her fans. At the start of her
career, she and the band would throw concerts at house parties. As the
gatherings grew, the line between fans and friends was completely
-blurred. “Not only did most our early fans know where I lived and where
-we practiced, but most of them had also been in my kitchen,” Amanda
+blurred. "Not only did most our early fans know where I lived and where
+we practiced, but most of them had also been in my kitchen," Amanda
wrote in The Art of Asking.
Even though her fan base is now huge and global, she continues to seek
spends hours in the signing line after shows. It helps that Amanda has
the kind of dynamic, engaging personality that instantly draws people to
her, but a big component of her ability to connect with people is her
-willingness to listen. “Listening fast and caring immediately is a skill
-unto itself,” Amanda wrote.
+willingness to listen. "Listening fast and caring immediately is a skill
+unto itself," Amanda wrote.
Another part of the connection fans feel with Amanda is how much they
know about her life. Rather than trying to craft a public persona or
image, she essentially lives her life as an open book. She has written
-openly about incredibly personal events in her life, and she isn’t
-afraid to be vulnerable. Having that kind of trust in her fans—the trust
-it takes to be truly honest—begets trust from her fans in return. When
-she meets fans for the first time after a show, they can legitimately
-feel like they know her.
+openly about incredibly personal events in her life, and she isn't
+afraid to be vulnerable. Having that kind of trust in her fans---the
+trust it takes to be truly honest---begets trust from her fans in
+return. When she meets fans for the first time after a show, they can
+legitimately feel like they know her.
-“With social media, we’re so concerned with the picture looking
+"With social media, we're so concerned with the picture looking
palatable and consumable that we forget that being human and showing the
flaws and exposing the vulnerability actually create a deeper connection
-than just looking fantastic,” Amanda said. “Everything in our culture is
+than just looking fantastic," Amanda said. "Everything in our culture is
telling us otherwise. But my experience has shown me that the risk of
-making yourself vulnerable is almost always worth it.”
+making yourself vulnerable is almost always worth it."
Not only does she disclose intimate details of her life to them, she
sleeps on their couches, listens to their stories, cries with them. In
short, she treats her fans like friends in nearly every possible way,
-even when they are complete strangers. This mentality—that fans are
-friends—is completely intertwined with Amanda’s success as an artist. It
-is also intertwined with her use of Creative Commons licenses. Because
-that is what you do with your friends—you share.
+even when they are complete strangers. This mentality---that fans are
+friends---is completely intertwined with Amanda's success as an artist.
+It is also intertwined with her use of Creative Commons licenses.
+Because that is what you do with your friends---you share.
After years of investing time and energy into building trust with her
fans, she has a strong enough relationship with them to ask for
-support—through pay-what-you-want donations, Kickstarter, Patreon, or
+support---through pay-what-you-want donations, Kickstarter, Patreon, or
even asking them to lend a hand at a concert. As Amanda explains it,
crowdfunding (which is really what all of these different things are) is
about asking for support from people who know and trust you. People who
feel personally invested in your success.
-“When you openly, radically trust people, they not only take care of
-you, they become your allies, your family,” she wrote. There really is a
+"When you openly, radically trust people, they not only take care of
+you, they become your allies, your family," she wrote. There really is a
feeling of solidarity within her core fan base. From the beginning,
Amanda and her band encouraged people to dress up for their shows. They
-consciously cultivated a feeling of belonging to their “weird little
-family.”
+consciously cultivated a feeling of belonging to their "weird little
+family."
This sort of intimacy with fans is not possible or even desirable for
-every creator. “I don’t take for granted that I happen to be the type of
-person who loves cavorting with strangers,” Amanda said. “I recognize
-that it’s not necessarily everyone’s idea of a good time. Everyone does
-it differently. Replicating what I have done won’t work for others if it
-isn’t joyful to them. It’s about finding a way to channel energy in a
-way that is joyful to you.”
+every creator. "I don't take for granted that I happen to be the type of
+person who loves cavorting with strangers," Amanda said. "I recognize
+that it's not necessarily everyone's idea of a good time. Everyone does
+it differently. Replicating what I have done won't work for others if it
+isn't joyful to them. It's about finding a way to channel energy in a
+way that is joyful to you."
Yet while Amanda joyfully interacts with her fans and involves them in
her work as much as possible, she does keep one job primarily to
-herself—writing the music. She loves the creativity with which her fans
-use and adapt her work, but she intentionally does not involve them at
-the first stage of creating her artistic work. And, of course, the songs
-and music are what initially draw people to Amanda Palmer. It is only
-once she has connected to people through her music that she can then
-begin to build ties with them on a more personal level, both in person
-and online. In her book, Amanda describes it as casting a net. It starts
-with the art and then the bond strengthens with human connection.
+herself---writing the music. She loves the creativity with which her
+fans use and adapt her work, but she intentionally does not involve them
+at the first stage of creating her artistic work. And, of course, the
+songs and music are what initially draw people to Amanda Palmer. It is
+only once she has connected to people through her music that she can
+then begin to build ties with them on a more personal level, both in
+person and online. In her book, Amanda describes it as casting a net. It
+starts with the art and then the bond strengthens with human connection.
For Amanda, the entire point of being an artist is to establish and
-maintain this connection. “It sounds so corny,” she said, “but my
+maintain this connection. "It sounds so corny," she said, "but my
experience in forty years on this planet has pointed me to an obvious
-truth—that connection with human beings feels so much better and more
+truth---that connection with human beings feels so much better and more
fulfilling than approaching art through a capitalist lens. There is no
more satisfying end goal than having someone tell you that what you do
-is genuinely of value to them.”
+is genuinely of value to them."
As she explains it, when a fan gives her a ten-dollar bill, usually what
they are saying is that the money symbolizes some deeper value the music
-provided them. For Amanda, art is not just a product; it’s a
+provided them. For Amanda, art is not just a product; it's a
relationship. Viewed from this lens, what Amanda does today is not that
different from what she did as a young street performer. She shares her
music and other artistic gifts. She shares herself. And then rather than
forcing people to help her, she lets them.
-Web link
+### Web link
-1. http://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2015/04/16/amanda-palmer-uncut-the-kickstarter-queen-on-spotify-patreon-and-taylor-swift/\#44e20ce46d67
+[^Amanda-Palmer-1]: [](http://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2015/04/16/amanda-palmer-uncut-the-kickstarter-queen-on-spotify-patreon-and-taylor-swift/\#44e20ce46d67)
## PLOS (Public Library of Science)
-
-PLOS (Public Library of Science) is a nonprofit that publishes a library
-of academic journals and other scientific literature. Founded in 2000 in
-the U.S.
-
-plos.org
-
-Revenue model: charging content creators an author processing charge to
-be featured in the journal
-
-Interview date: March 7, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Louise Page, publisher
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> PLOS (Public Library of Science) is a nonprofit that publishes a library
+> of academic journals and other scientific literature. Founded in 2000 in
+> the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://plos.org)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging content creators an author processing charge to
+> be featured in the journal
+>
+> **Interview date**: March 7, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Louise Page, publisher
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
The Public Library of Science (PLOS) began in 2000 when three leading
-scientists—Harold E. Varmus, Patrick O. Brown, and Michael Eisen—started
-an online petition. They were calling for scientists to stop submitting
-papers to journals that didn’t make the full text of their papers freely
-available immediately or within six months. Although tens of thousands
-signed the petition, most did not follow through. In August 2001,
-Patrick and Michael announced that they would start their own nonprofit
-publishing operation to do just what the petition promised. With
-start-up grant support from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, PLOS
-was launched to provide new open-access journals for biomedicine, with
-research articles being released under Attribution (CC BY) licenses.
+scientists---Harold E. Varmus, Patrick O. Brown, and Michael
+Eisen---started an online petition. They were calling for scientists to
+stop submitting papers to journals that didn't make the full text of
+their papers freely available immediately or within six months. Although
+tens of thousands signed the petition, most did not follow through. In
+August 2001, Patrick and Michael announced that they would start their
+own nonprofit publishing operation to do just what the petition
+promised. With start-up grant support from the Gordon and Betty Moore
+Foundation, PLOS was launched to provide new open-access journals for
+biomedicine, with research articles being released under Attribution (CC
+BY) licenses.
Traditionally, academic publishing begins with an author submitting a
manuscript to a publisher. After in-house technical and ethical
For Louise Page, the current publisher of PLOS, this traditional model
results in inequity. Access is restricted to those who can pay. Most
research is funded through government-appointed agencies, that is, with
-public funds. It’s unjust that the public who funded the research would
+public funds. It's unjust that the public who funded the research would
be required to pay again to access the results. Not everyone can afford
the ever-escalating subscription fees publishers charge, especially when
library budgets are being reduced. Restricting access to the results of
publication. Rather than charge a subscription fee to access the
journal, PLOS decided to turn the model on its head and charge a
publication fee, known as an article-processing charge. This up-front
-fee, generally paid by the funder of the research or the author’s
+fee, generally paid by the funder of the research or the author's
institution, covers the expenses such as editorial oversight,
peer-review management, journal production, online hosting, and support
for discovery. Fees are per article and are billed upon acceptance for
Calculating the article-processing charge involves taking all the costs
associated with publishing the journal and determining a cost per
-article that collectively recovers costs. For PLOS’s journals in
+article that collectively recovers costs. For PLOS's journals in
biology, medicine, genetics, computational biology, neglected tropical
diseases, and pathogens, the article-processing charge ranges from
\$2,250 to \$2,900. Article-publication charges for PLOS ONE, a journal
PLOS believes that lack of funds should not be a barrier to publication.
Since its inception, PLOS has provided fee support for individuals and
-institutions to help authors who can’t afford the article-processing
+institutions to help authors who can't afford the article-processing
charges.
Louise identifies marketing as one area of big difference between PLOS
and convince customers to subscribe. Restricting access to subscribers
means that tools for managing access control are necessary. They spend
millions of dollars on access-control systems, staff to manage them, and
-sales staff. With PLOS’s open-access publishing, there’s no need for
+sales staff. With PLOS's open-access publishing, there's no need for
these massive expenses; the articles are free, open, and accessible to
all upon publication. Additionally, traditional publishers tend to spend
more on marketing to libraries, who ultimately pay the subscription
there is always a trade-off with scale, as the bigger the volume of
articles, the more time the approval process inevitably takes.
-Peer review is another part of the process that could change. It’s
+Peer review is another part of the process that could change. It's
possible to redefine what peer review actually is, when to review, and
what constitutes the final article for publication. Louise talked about
the potential to shift to an open-review process, placing the emphasis
-on transparency rather than double-blind reviews. Louise thinks we’re
-moving into a direction where it’s actually beneficial for an author to
+on transparency rather than double-blind reviews. Louise thinks we're
+moving into a direction where it's actually beneficial for an author to
know who is reviewing their paper and for the reviewer to know their
review will be public. An open-review process can also ensure everyone
gets credit; right now, credit is limited to the publisher and author.
Louise says research with negative outcomes is almost as important as
positive results. If journals published more research with negative
-outcomes, we’d learn from what didn’t work. It could also reduce how
+outcomes, we'd learn from what didn't work. It could also reduce how
much the research wheel gets reinvented around the world.
Another adjustable practice is the sharing of articles at early preprint
Other researches may see findings the preprint author has not yet
thought of. However, preprints help researchers get their discoveries
out early and establish precedence. A big challenge is that researchers
-don’t have a lot of time to comment on preprints.
+don't have a lot of time to comment on preprints.
What constitutes a journal article could also change. The idea of a
research article as printed, bound, and in a library stack is outdated.
As journals scale up, and new journals are introduced, more and more
information is being pushed out to readers, making the experience feel
like drinking from a fire hose. To help mitigate this, PLOS aggregates
-and curates content from PLOS journals and their network of blogs.1 It
+and curates content from PLOS journals and their network of blogs.[^PLOS-(Public-Library-of-Science)-1] It
also offers something called Article-Level Metrics, which helps users
assess research most relevant to the field itself, based on indicators
like usage, citations, social bookmarking and dissemination activity,
-media and blog coverage, discussions, and ratings.2 Louise believes that
+media and blog coverage, discussions, and ratings.[^PLOS-(Public-Library-of-Science)-2] Louise believes that
the journal model could evolve to provide a more friendly and
interactive user experience, including a way for readers to communicate
with authors.
making research discoverable, available, and reproducible for the
advancement of science.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. collections.plos.org
-2. plos.org/article-level-metrics
+[^PLOS-(Public-Library-of-Science)-1]: [](http://collections.plos.org)
+[^PLOS-(Public-Library-of-Science)-2]: [](http://plos.org/article-level-metrics)
## Rijksmuseum
-
-The Rijksmuseum is a Dutch national museum dedicated to art and history.
-Founded in 1800 in the Netherlands
-
-www.rijksmuseum.nl
-
-Revenue model: grants and government funding, charging for in-person
-version
-(museum admission), selling merchandise
-
-Interview date: December 11, 2015
-
-Interviewee: Lizzy Jongma, the data manager of the collections
-information department
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> The Rijksmuseum is a Dutch national museum dedicated to art and history.
+> Founded in 1800 in the Netherlands
+>
+> [](http://www.rijksmuseum.nl)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: grants and government funding, charging for in-person
+> version
+> (museum admission), selling merchandise
+>
+> **Interview date**: December 11, 2015
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Lizzy Jongma, the data manager of the collections
+> information department
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
The Rijksmuseum, a national museum in the Netherlands dedicated to art
and history, has been housed in its current building since 1885. The
By the time Lizzy Jongma joined the Rijksmuseum in 2011 as a data
manager, staff were fed up with the situation the museum was in. They
-also realized that even with the new and larger space, it still wouldn’t
-be able to show very much of the whole collection—eight thousand of over
-one million works representing just 1 percent. Staff began exploring
-ways to express themselves, to have something to show for all of the
-work they had been doing. The Rijksmuseum is primarily funded by Dutch
-taxpayers, so was there a way for the museum provide benefit to the
-public while it was closed? They began thinking about sharing
-Rijksmuseum’s collection using information technology. And they put up a
+also realized that even with the new and larger space, it still wouldn't
+be able to show very much of the whole collection---eight thousand of
+over one million works representing just 1 percent. Staff began
+exploring ways to express themselves, to have something to show for all
+of the work they had been doing. The Rijksmuseum is primarily funded by
+Dutch taxpayers, so was there a way for the museum provide benefit to
+the public while it was closed? They began thinking about sharing
+Rijksmuseum's collection using information technology. And they put up a
card-catalog like database of the entire collection online.
It was effective but a bit boring. It was just data. A hackathon they
Rijksmuseum collection? That eventually led to why not put the whole
collection online?
-Then, Lizzy says, Europeana came along. Europeana is Europe’s digital
-library, museum, and archive for cultural heritage.1 As an online portal
+Then, Lizzy says, Europeana came along. Europeana is Europe's digital
+library, museum, and archive for cultural heritage.[^Rijksmuseum-1] As an online portal
to museum collections all across Europe, Europeana had become an
important online platform. In October 2010 Creative Commons released CC0
and its public-domain mark as tools people could use to identify works
scary, but at the same time it stimulated even more discussion on
whether the Rijksmuseum should follow suit.
-They realized that they don’t “own” the collection and couldn’t
+They realized that they don't "own" the collection and couldn't
realistically monitor and enforce compliance with the restrictive
licensing terms they currently had in place. For example, many copies
-and versions of Vermeer’s Milkmaid (part of their collection) were
+and versions of Vermeer's Milkmaid (part of their collection) were
already online, many of them of very poor quality. They could spend time
-and money policing its use, but it would probably be futile and wouldn’t
-make people stop using their images online. They ended up thinking it’s
+and money policing its use, but it would probably be futile and wouldn't
+make people stop using their images online. They ended up thinking it's
an utter waste of time to hunt down people who use the Rijksmuseum
collection. And anyway, restricting access meant the people they were
frustrating the most were schoolkids.
Releasing these high-quality images for free reduced the number of
poor-quality images that were proliferating. The high-quality image of
-Vermeer’s Milkmaid, for example, is downloaded two to three thousand
+Vermeer's Milkmaid, for example, is downloaded two to three thousand
times a month. On the Internet, images from a source like the
Rijksmuseum are more trusted, and releasing them with a Creative Commons
CC0 means they can easily be found in other platforms. For example,
Rijksmuseum images are now used in thousands of Wikipedia articles,
receiving ten to eleven million views per month. This extends
-Rijksmuseum’s reach far beyond the scope of its website. Sharing these
-images online creates what Lizzy calls the “Mona Lisa effect,” where a
+Rijksmuseum's reach far beyond the scope of its website. Sharing these
+images online creates what Lizzy calls the "Mona Lisa effect," where a
work of art becomes so famous that people want to see it in real life by
visiting the actual museum.
the Rijksmuseum.
As museums create a digital presence for themselves and put up digital
-representations of their collection online, there’s frequently a worry
+representations of their collection online, there's frequently a worry
that it will lead to a drop in actual physical visits. For the
Rijksmuseum, this has not turned out to be the case. Lizzy told us the
Rijksmuseum used to get about one million visitors a year before closing
and now gets more than two million a year. Making the collection
available online has generated publicity and acts as a form of
marketing. The Creative Commons mark encourages reuse as well. When the
-image is found on protest leaflets, milk cartons, and children’s toys,
+image is found on protest leaflets, milk cartons, and children's toys,
people also see what museum the image comes from and this increases the
-museum’s visibility.
+museum's visibility.
In 2011 the Rijksmuseum received €1 million from the Dutch lottery to
create a new web presence that would be different from any other
-museum’s. In addition to redesigning their main website to be mobile
+museum's. In addition to redesigning their main website to be mobile
friendly and responsive to devices like the iPad, the Rijksmuseum also
created the Rijksstudio, where users and artists could use and do
-various things with the Rijksmuseum collection.2
+various things with the Rijksmuseum collection.[^Rijksmuseum-2]
The Rijksstudio gives users access to over two hundred thousand
high-quality digital representations of masterworks from the collection.
Users can zoom in to any work and even clip small parts of images they
-like. Rijksstudio is a bit like Pinterest. You can “like” works and
+like. Rijksstudio is a bit like Pinterest. You can "like" works and
compile your personal favorites, and you can share them with friends or
download them free of charge. All the images in the Rijksstudio are
copyright and royalty free, and users are encouraged to use them as they
Some contemporary artists who have works in the Rijksmuseum collection
contacted them to ask why their works were not included in the
-Rijksstudio. The answer was that contemporary artists’ works are still
+Rijksstudio. The answer was that contemporary artists' works are still
bound by copyright. The Rijksmuseum does encourage contemporary artists
to use a Creative Commons license for their works, usually a CC BY-SA
license
The line between creative and commercial can be blurry. As Lizzy says,
even Rembrandt was commercial, making his livelihood from selling his
paintings. The Rijksmuseum encourages entrepreneurial commercial use of
-the images in Rijksstudio. They’ve even partnered with the DIY
+the images in Rijksstudio. They've even partnered with the DIY
marketplace Etsy to inspire people to sell their creations. One great
example you can find on Etsy is a kimono designed by Angie Johnson, who
used an image of an elaborate cabinet along with an oil painting by Jan
-Asselijn called The Threatened Swan.3
+Asselijn called The Threatened Swan.[^Rijksmuseum-3]
In 2013 the Rijksmuseum organized their first high-profile design
-competition, known as the Rijksstudio Award.4 With the call to action
+competition, known as the Rijksstudio Award.[^Rijksmuseum-4] With the call to action
Make Your Own Masterpiece, the competition invites the public to use
Rijksstudio images to make new creative designs. A jury of renowned
designers and curators selects ten finalists and three winners. The
attracted a staggering 892 top-class entries. Some award winners end up
with their work sold through the Rijksmuseum store, such as the 2014
entry featuring makeup based on a specific color scheme of a work of
-art.5 The Rijksmuseum has been thrilled with the results. Entries range
+art.[^Rijksmuseum-5] The Rijksmuseum has been thrilled with the results. Entries range
from the fun to the weird to the inspirational. The third international
edition of the Rijksstudio Award started in September 2016.
Going with a more open business model generated lots of publicity for
the Rijksmuseum. They were one of the first museums to open up their
collection (that is, give free access) with high-quality images. This
-strategy, along with the many improvements to the Rijksmuseum’s website,
+strategy, along with the many improvements to the Rijksmuseum's website,
dramatically increased visits to their website from thirty-five thousand
visits per month to three hundred thousand.
For the Rijksmuseum, adopting an open business model was scary. They
came up with many worst-case scenarios, imagining all kinds of awful
-things people might do with the museum’s works. But Lizzy says those
-fears did not come true because “ninety-nine percent of people have
-respect for great art.” Many museums think they can make a lot of money
-by selling things related to their collection. But in Lizzy’s
+things people might do with the museum's works. But Lizzy says those
+fears did not come true because "ninety-nine percent of people have
+respect for great art." Many museums think they can make a lot of money
+by selling things related to their collection. But in Lizzy's
experience, museums are usually bad at selling things, and sometimes
efforts to generate a small amount of money block something much
-bigger—the real value that the collection has. For Lizzy, clinging to
+bigger---the real value that the collection has. For Lizzy, clinging to
small amounts of revenue is being penny-wise but pound-foolish. For the
Rijksmuseum, a key lesson has been to never lose sight of its vision for
the collection. Allowing access to and use of their collection has
-generated great promotional value—far more than the previous practice of
-charging fees for access and use. Lizzy sums up their experience: “Give
-away; get something in return. Generosity makes people happy to join you
-and help out.”
+generated great promotional value---far more than the previous practice
+of charging fees for access and use. Lizzy sums up their experience:
+"Give away; get something in return. Generosity makes people happy to
+join you and help out."
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. www.europeana.eu/portal/en
-2. www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio
-3. www.etsy.com/ca/listing/175696771/fringe-kimono-silk-kimono-kimono-robe
-4. www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio-award; the 2014 award:
- www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio-award-2014; the 2015 award:
- www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio-award-2015
-5. www.rijksmuseum.nl/nl/rijksstudio/142328--nominees-rijksstudio-award/creaties/ba595afe-452d-46bd-9c8c-48dcbdd7f0a4
+[^Rijksmuseum-1]: [](http://www.europeana.eu/portal/en)
+[^Rijksmuseum-2]: [](http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio)
+[^Rijksmuseum-3]: [](http://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/175696771/fringe-kimono-silk-kimono-kimono-robe)
+[^Rijksmuseum-4]: [](http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio-award); the 2014 award:
+ [](http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio-award-2014); the 2015 award:
+ [](http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio-award-2015)
+[^Rijksmuseum-5]: [](http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/nl/rijksstudio/142328\--nominees-rijksstudio-award/creaties/ba595afe-452d-46bd-9c8c-48dcbdd7f0a4)
## Shareable
-
-Shareable is an online magazine about sharing. Founded in 2009 in the
-U.S.
-
-www.shareable.net
-
-Revenue model: grant funding, crowdfunding (project-based), donations,
-sponsorships
-
-Interview date: February 24, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Neal Gorenflo, cofounder and executive editor
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+>
+> Shareable is an online magazine about sharing. Founded in 2009 in the
+> U.S.
+>
+> [](http://www.shareable.net)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: grant funding, crowdfunding (project-based), donations,
+> sponsorships
+>
+> **Interview date**: February 24, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Neal Gorenflo, cofounder and executive editor
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
In 2013, Shareable faced an impasse. The nonprofit online publication
had helped start a sharing movement four years prior, but over time,
they watched one part of the movement stray from its ideals. As giants
like Uber and Airbnb gained ground, attention began to center on the
-“sharing economy” we know now—profit-driven, transactional, and loaded
+"sharing economy" we know now---profit-driven, transactional, and loaded
with venture-capital money. Leaders of corporate start-ups in this
domain invited Shareable to advocate for them. The magazine faced a
choice: ride the wave or stand on principle.
As an organization, Shareable decided to draw a line in the sand. In
2013, the cofounder and executive editor Neal Gorenflo wrote an opinion
-piece in the PandoDaily that charted Shareable’s new critical stance on
+piece in the PandoDaily that charted Shareable's new critical stance on
the Silicon Valley version of the sharing economy, while contrasting it
with aspects of the real sharing economy like open-source software,
participatory budgeting (where citizens decide how a public budget is
-spent), cooperatives, and more. He wrote, “It’s not so much that
-collaborative consumption is dead, it’s more that it risks dying as it
-gets absorbed by the ‘Borg.’”
+spent), cooperatives, and more. He wrote, "It's not so much that
+collaborative consumption is dead, it's more that it risks dying as it
+gets absorbed by the 'Borg.'"
Neal said their public critique of the corporate sharing economy defined
what Shareable was and is. He does not think the magazine would still be
-around had they chosen differently. “We would have gotten another type
-of audience, but it would have spelled the end of us,” he said. “We are
+around had they chosen differently. "We would have gotten another type
+of audience, but it would have spelled the end of us," he said. "We are
a small, mission-driven organization. We would never have been able to
-weather the criticism that Airbnb and Uber are getting now.”
+weather the criticism that Airbnb and Uber are getting now."
Interestingly, impassioned supporters are only a small sliver of
-Shareable’s total audience. Most are casual readers who come across a
+Shareable's total audience. Most are casual readers who come across a
Shareable story because it happens to align with a project or interest
they have. But choosing principles over the possibility of riding the
coattails of the major corporate players in the sharing space saved
-Shareable’s credibility. Although they became detached from the
+Shareable's credibility. Although they became detached from the
corporate sharing economy, the online magazine became the voice of the
-“real sharing economy” and continued to grow their audience.
+"real sharing economy" and continued to grow their audience.
Shareable is a magazine, but the content they publish is a means to
furthering their role as a leader and catalyst of a movement. Shareable
-became a leader in the movement in 2009. “At that time, there was a
+became a leader in the movement in 2009. "At that time, there was a
sharing movement bubbling beneath the surface, but no one was connecting
-the dots,” Neal said. “We decided to step into that space and take on
-that role.” The small team behind the nonprofit publication truly
+the dots," Neal said. "We decided to step into that space and take on
+that role." The small team behind the nonprofit publication truly
believed sharing could be central to solving some of the major problems
-human beings face—resource inequality, social isolation, and global
+human beings face---resource inequality, social isolation, and global
warming.
They have worked hard to find ways to tell stories that show different
-metrics for success. “We wanted to change the notion of what constitutes
-the good life,” Neal said. While they started out with a very broad
+metrics for success. "We wanted to change the notion of what constitutes
+the good life," Neal said. While they started out with a very broad
focus on sharing generally, today they emphasize stories about the
-physical commons like “sharing cities” (i.e., urban areas managed in a
+physical commons like "sharing cities" (i.e., urban areas managed in a
sustainable, cooperative way), as well as digital platforms that are run
democratically. They particularly focus on how-to content that help
their readers make changes in their own lives and communities.
-More than half of Shareable’s stories are written by paid journalists
-that are contracted by the magazine. “Particularly in content areas that
+More than half of Shareable's stories are written by paid journalists
+that are contracted by the magazine. "Particularly in content areas that
are a priority for us, we really want to go deep and control the
-quality,” Neal said. The rest of the content is either contributed by
+quality," Neal said. The rest of the content is either contributed by
guest writers, often for free, or written by other publications from
their network of content publishers. Shareable is a member of the Post
Growth Alliance, which facilitates the sharing of content and audiences
among a large and growing group of mostly nonprofits. Each organization
gets a chance to present stories to the group, and the organizations can
-use and promote each other’s stories. Much of the content created by the
+use and promote each other's stories. Much of the content created by the
network is licensed with Creative Commons.
-All of Shareable’s original content is published under the Attribution
+All of Shareable's original content is published under the Attribution
license (CC BY), meaning it can be used for any purpose as long as
credit is given to Shareable. Creative Commons licensing is aligned with
-Shareable’s vision, mission, and identity. That alone explains the
-organization’s embrace of the licenses for their content, but Neal also
-believes CC licensing helps them increase their reach. “By using CC
-licensing,” he said, “we realized we could reach far more people through
+Shareable's vision, mission, and identity. That alone explains the
+organization's embrace of the licenses for their content, but Neal also
+believes CC licensing helps them increase their reach. "By using CC
+licensing," he said, "we realized we could reach far more people through
a formal and informal network of republishers or affiliates. That has
-definitely been the case. It’s hard for us to measure the reach of other
+definitely been the case. It's hard for us to measure the reach of other
media properties, but most of the outlets who republish our work have
-much bigger audiences than we do.”
+much bigger audiences than we do."
In addition to their regular news and commentary online, Shareable has
also experimented with book publishing. In 2012, they worked with a
traditional publisher to release Share or Die: Voices of the Get Lost
Generation in an Age of Crisis. The CC-licensed book was available in
-print form for purchase or online for free. To this day, the book—along
-with their CC-licensed guide Policies for Shareable Cities—are two of
-the biggest generators of traffic on their website.
+print form for purchase or online for free. To this day, the
+book---along with their CC-licensed guide Policies for Shareable
+Cities---are two of the biggest generators of traffic on their website.
In 2016, Shareable self-published a book of curated Shareable stories
called How to: Share, Save Money and Have Fun. The book was available
For Shareable, success is very much about their impact on the world.
This is true for Neal, but also for everyone who works for Shareable.
-“We attract passionate people,” Neal said. At times, that means
+"We attract passionate people," Neal said. At times, that means
employees work so hard they burn out. Neal tries to stress to the
Shareable team that another part of success is having fun and taking
-care of yourself while you do something you love. “A central part of
+care of yourself while you do something you love. "A central part of
human beings is that we long to be on a great adventure with people we
-love,” he said. “We are a species who look over the horizon and imagine
-and create new worlds, but we also seek the comfort of hearth and home.”
+love," he said. "We are a species who look over the horizon and imagine
+and create new worlds, but we also seek the comfort of hearth and home."
In 2013, Shareable ran its first crowdfunding campaign to launch their
Sharing Cities Network. Neal said at first they were on pace to fail
spectacularly. They called in their advisers in a panic and asked for
-help. The advice they received was simple—“Sit your ass in a chair and
-start making calls.” That’s exactly what they did, and they ended up
+help. The advice they received was simple---"Sit your ass in a chair and
+start making calls." That's exactly what they did, and they ended up
reaching their \$50,000 goal. Neal said the campaign helped them reach
new people, but the vast majority of backers were people in their
existing base.
Shareable began hosting events in 2010. These events were designed to
bring the sharing community together. But over time they realized they
could reach far more people if they helped their readers to host their
-own events. “If we wanted to go big on a conference, there was a huge
+own events. "If we wanted to go big on a conference, there was a huge
risk and huge staffing needs, plus only a fraction of our community
-could travel to the event,” Neal said. Enabling others to create their
+could travel to the event," Neal said. Enabling others to create their
own events around the globe allowed them to scale up their work more
effectively and reach far more people. Shareable has catalyzed three
hundred different events reaching over twenty thousand people since
for people take the ideas and adapt them to their own communities.
## Siyavula
-
-Siyavula is a for-profit educational-technology company that creates
-textbooks and integrated learning experiences. Founded in 2012 in South
-Africa.
-
-www.siyavula.com
-
-Revenue model: charging for custom services, sponsorships
-
-Interview date: April 5, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Mark Horner, CEO
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> Siyavula is a for-profit educational-technology company that creates
+> textbooks and integrated learning experiences. Founded in 2012 in South
+> Africa.
+>
+> [](http://www.siyavula.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for custom services, sponsorships
+>
+> **Interview date**: April 5, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Mark Horner, CEO
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
Openness is a key principle for Siyavula. They believe that every
learner and teacher should have access to high-quality educational
mathematics and science subjects for grades 4 to 12 in South Africa.
In terms of creating an open business model that involves Creative
-Commons, Siyavula—and its founder, Mark Horner—have been around the
+Commons, Siyavula---and its founder, Mark Horner---have been around the
block a few times. Siyavula has significantly shifted directions and
-strategies to survive and prosper. Mark says it’s been very organic.
+strategies to survive and prosper. Mark says it's been very organic.
It all started in 2002, when Mark and several other colleagues at the
University of Cape Town in South Africa founded the Free High School
-Science Texts project. Most students in South Africa high schools didn’t
+Science Texts project. Most students in South Africa high schools didn't
have access to high-quality, comprehensive science and math textbooks,
so Mark and his colleagues set out to write them and make them freely
available.
As physicists, Mark and his colleagues were advocates of open-source
software. To make the books open and free, they adopted the Free
-Software Foundation’s GNU Free Documentation License.1 They chose LaTeX,
+Software Foundation's GNU Free Documentation License.[^Siyavula-1] They chose LaTeX,
a typesetting program used to publish scientific documents, to author
the books. Over a period of five years, the Free High School Science
Texts project produced math and physical-science textbooks for grades 10
In 2007, the Shuttleworth Foundation offered funding support to make the
textbooks available for trial use at more schools. Surveys before and
after the textbooks were adopted showed there were no substantial
-criticisms of the textbooks’ pedagogical content. This pleased both the
+criticisms of the textbooks' pedagogical content. This pleased both the
authors and Shuttleworth; Mark remains incredibly proud of this
accomplishment.
But the development of new textbooks froze at this stage. Mark shifted
-his focus to rural schools, which didn’t have textbooks at all, and
+his focus to rural schools, which didn't have textbooks at all, and
looked into the printing and distribution options. A few sponsors came
on board but not enough to meet the need.
open-education activists for a small but lively meeting in Cape Town.
One result was the Cape Town Open Education Declaration, a statement of
principles, strategies, and commitment to help the open-education
-movement grow.2 Shuttleworth also invited Mark to run a project writing
-open content for all subjects for K–12 in English. That project became
+movement grow.[^Siyavula-2] Shuttleworth also invited Mark to run a project writing
+open content for all subjects for K--12 in English. That project became
Siyavula.
They wrote six original textbooks. A small publishing company offered
-Shuttleworth the option to buy out the publisher’s existing K–9 content
+Shuttleworth the option to buy out the publisher's existing K--9 content
for every subject in South African schools in both English and
Afrikaans. A deal was struck, and all the acquired content was licensed
with Creative Commons, significantly expanding the collection beyond the
six original books.
Mark wanted to build out the remaining curricula collaboratively through
-communities of practice—that is, with fellow educators and writers.
+communities of practice---that is, with fellow educators and writers.
Although sharing is fundamental to teaching, there can be a few
challenges when you create educational resources collectively. One
concern is legal. It is standard practice in education to copy diagrams
-and snippets of text, but of course this doesn’t always comply with
-copyright law. Another concern is transparency. Sharing what you’ve
+and snippets of text, but of course this doesn't always comply with
+copyright law. Another concern is transparency. Sharing what you've
authored means everyone can see it and opens you up to criticism. To
alleviate these concerns, Mark adopted a team-based approach to
authoring and insisted the curricula be based entirely on resources with
Not only did Mark want the resources to be shareable, he wanted all
teachers to be able to remix and edit the content. Mark and his team had
to come up with an open editable format and provide tools for editing.
-They ended up putting all the books they’d acquired and authored on a
-platform called Connexions.3 Siyavula trained many teachers to use
+They ended up putting all the books they'd acquired and authored on a
+platform called Connexions.[^Siyavula-3] Siyavula trained many teachers to use
Connexions, but it proved to be too complex and the textbooks were
rarely edited.
Then the Shuttleworth Foundation decided to completely restructure its
work as a foundation into a fellowship model (for reasons completely
-unrelated to Siyavula). As part of that transition in 2009–10, Mark
+unrelated to Siyavula). As part of that transition in 2009--10, Mark
inherited Siyavula as an independent entity and took ownership over it
as a Shuttleworth fellow.
Africa would give their brand huge exposure and could drive vast amounts
of traffic to their website. In addition to print books, Siyavula could
also make the books available on their website, making it possible for
-learners to access them using any device—computer, tablet, or mobile
+learners to access them using any device---computer, tablet, or mobile
phone.
Mark and his team began imagining what they could develop beyond what
was in the textbooks as a service they charge for. One key thing you
-can’t do well in a printed textbook is demonstrate solutions. Typically,
+can't do well in a printed textbook is demonstrate solutions. Typically,
a one-line answer is given at the end of the book but nothing on the
process for arriving at that solution. Mark and his team developed
practice items and detailed solutions, giving learners plenty of
-opportunity to test out what they’ve learned. Furthermore, an algorithm
+opportunity to test out what they've learned. Furthermore, an algorithm
could adapt these practice items to the individual needs of each
learner. They called this service Intelligent Practice and embedded
links to it in the open textbooks.
wait, schools who could afford it provided students with a different
textbook. The Siyavula books were eventually distributed, but with
well-off schools mainly using a different book, the primary market for
-Siyavula’s Intelligent Practice service inadvertently became low-income
+Siyavula's Intelligent Practice service inadvertently became low-income
learners.
-Siyavula’s site did see a dramatic increase in traffic. They got five
+Siyavula's site did see a dramatic increase in traffic. They got five
hundred thousand visitors per month to their math site and the same
number to their science site. Two-fifths of the traffic was reading on a
-“feature phone” (a nonsmartphone with no apps). People on basic phones
+"feature phone" (a nonsmartphone with no apps). People on basic phones
were reading math and science on a two-inch screen at all hours of the
day. To Mark, it was quite amazing and spoke to a need they were
servicing.
credit card. This proved problematic, especially for those in the
low-income demographic, as credit cards were not prevalent. Mark says
Siyavula got a harsh business-model lesson early on. As he describes it,
-it’s not just about product, but how you sell it, who the market is,
+it's not just about product, but how you sell it, who the market is,
what the price is, and what the barriers to entry are.
-Mark describes this as the first version of Siyavula’s business model:
+Mark describes this as the first version of Siyavula's business model:
open textbooks serving as marketing material and driving traffic to your
site, where you can offer a related service and convert some people into
a paid customer.
-For Mark a key decision for Siyavula’s business was to focus on how they
-can add value on top of their basic service. They’ll charge only if they
-are adding unique value. The actual content of the textbook isn’t unique
+For Mark a key decision for Siyavula's business was to focus on how they
+can add value on top of their basic service. They'll charge only if they
+are adding unique value. The actual content of the textbook isn't unique
at all, so Siyavula sees no value in locking it down and charging for
it. Mark contrasts this with traditional publishers who charge over and
over again for the same content without adding value.
-Version two of Siyavula’s business model was a big, ambitious idea—scale
-up. They also decided to sell the Intelligent Practice service to
-schools directly. Schools can subscribe on a per-student, per-subject
-basis. A single subscription gives a learner access to a single subject,
-including practice content from every grade available for that subject.
-Lower subscription rates are provided when there are over two hundred
-students, and big schools have a price cap. A 40 percent discount is
-offered to schools where both the science and math departments
-subscribe.
+Version two of Siyavula's business model was a big, ambitious
+idea---scale up. They also decided to sell the Intelligent Practice
+service to schools directly. Schools can subscribe on a per-student,
+per-subject basis. A single subscription gives a learner access to a
+single subject, including practice content from every grade available
+for that subject. Lower subscription rates are provided when there are
+over two hundred students, and big schools have a price cap. A 40
+percent discount is offered to schools where both the science and math
+departments subscribe.
Teachers get a dashboard that allows them to monitor the progress of an
-entire class or view an individual learner’s results. They can see the
+entire class or view an individual learner's results. They can see the
questions that learners are working on, identify areas of difficulty,
and be more strategic in their teaching. Students also have their own
-personalized dashboard, where they can view the sections they’ve
-practiced, how many points they’ve earned, and how their performance is
+personalized dashboard, where they can view the sections they've
+practiced, how many points they've earned, and how their performance is
improving.
Based on the success of this effort, Siyavula decided to substantially
In partnership with, and sponsored by, the Sasol Inzalo Foundation,
Siyavula produced a series of natural sciences and technology workbooks
for grades 4 to 6 called Thunderbolt Kids that uses a fun comic-book
-style.4 It’s a complete curriculum that also comes with teacher’s guides
+style.[^Siyavula-4] It's a complete curriculum that also comes with teacher's guides
and other resources.
Through this experience, Siyavula learned they could get sponsors to
visible on books distributed to over one million students.
The Siyavula books that are reviewed, approved, and branded by the
-government are freely and openly available on Siyavula’s website under
-an Attribution-NoDerivs license (CC BY-ND) —NoDerivs means that these
+government are freely and openly available on Siyavula's website under
+an Attribution-NoDerivs license (CC BY-ND) ---NoDerivs means that these
books cannot be modified. Non-government-branded books are available
under an Attribution license (CC BY), allowing others to modify and
redistribute the books.
textbooks even more, the South African government changed its textbook
policy. To save costs, the government declared there would be only one
authorized textbook for each grade and each subject. There was no
-guarantee that Siyavula’s would be chosen. This scared away potential
+guarantee that Siyavula's would be chosen. This scared away potential
sponsors.
Rather than producing more textbooks, Siyavula focused on improving its
Intelligent Practice technology for its existing books. Mark calls this
-version three of Siyavula’s business model—focusing on the technology
+version three of Siyavula's business model---focusing on the technology
that provides the revenue-generating service and generating more users
of this service. Version three got a significant boost in 2014 with an
investment by the Omidyar Network (the philanthropic venture started by
Practice collects.
Siyavula is a for-profit business but one with a social mission. Their
-shareholders’ agreement lists lots of requirements around openness for
+shareholders' agreement lists lots of requirements around openness for
Siyavula, including stipulations that content always be put under an
-open license and that they can’t charge for something that people
+open license and that they can't charge for something that people
volunteered to do for them. They believe each individual should have
access to the resources and support they need to achieve the education
they deserve. Having educational resources openly licensed with Creative
Siyavula may have been around the block a few times, but both he and the
company are stronger for it.
-Web links
-
-1. www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl
-2. www.capetowndeclaration.org
-3. cnx.org
-4. www.siyavula.com/products-primary-school.html
-
-## Sparkfun
-
-SparkFun is an online electronics retailer specializing in open
-hardware. Founded in 2003 in the U.S.
-
-www.sparkfun.com
-
-Revenue model: charging for physical copies (electronics sales)
-
-Interview date: February 29, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Nathan Seidle, founder
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+### Web links
+
+[^Siyavula-1]: [](http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl)
+[^Siyavula-2]: [](http://www.capetowndeclaration.org)
+[^Siyavula-3]: [](http://cnx.org)
+[^Siyavula-4]: [](http://www.siyavula.com/products-primary-school.html)
+
+## SparkFun
+>
+> SparkFun is an online electronics retailer specializing in open
+> hardware. Founded in 2003 in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://www.sparkfun.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging for physical copies (electronics sales)
+>
+> **Interview date**: February 29, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Nathan Seidle, founder
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
SparkFun founder and former CEO Nathan Seidle has a picture of himself
holding up a clone of a SparkFun product in an electronics market in
came across their LilyPad wearable technology being made by someone
else. His reaction was glee.
-“Being copied is the greatest earmark of flattery and success,” Nathan
-said. “I thought it was so cool that they were selling to a market we
+"Being copied is the greatest earmark of flattery and success," Nathan
+said. "I thought it was so cool that they were selling to a market we
were never going to get access to otherwise. It was evidence of our
-impact on the world.”
+impact on the world."
This worldview runs through everything SparkFun does. SparkFun is an
electronics manufacturer. The company sells its products directly to the
can make their products on their own. Being copied is part of the
design.
-Nathan believes open licensing is good for the world. “It touches on our
-natural human instinct to share,” he said. But he also strongly believes
+Nathan believes open licensing is good for the world. "It touches on our
+natural human instinct to share," he said. But he also strongly believes
it makes SparkFun better at what they do. They encourage copying, and
their products are copied at a very fast rate, often within ten to
twelve weeks of release. This forces the company to compete on something
other than product design, or what most commonly consider their
intellectual property.
-“We compete on business principles,” Nathan said. “Claiming your
+"We compete on business principles," Nathan said. "Claiming your
territory with intellectual property allows you to get comfy and rest on
-your laurels. It gives you a safety net. We took away that safety net.”
+your laurels. It gives you a safety net. We took away that safety net."
The result is an intense company-wide focus on product development and
-improvement. “Our products are so much better than they were five years
-ago,” Nathan said. “We used to just sell products. Now it’s a product
+improvement. "Our products are so much better than they were five years
+ago," Nathan said. "We used to just sell products. Now it's a product
plus a video, a seventeen-page hookup guide, and example firmware on
three different platforms to get you up and running faster. We have
gotten better because we had to in order to compete. As painful as it is
-for us, it’s better for the customers.”
+for us, it's better for the customers."
SparkFun parts are available on eBay for lower prices. But people come
directly to SparkFun because SparkFun makes their lives easier. The
example code works; there is a service number to call; they ship
replacement parts the day they get a service call. They invest heavily
-in service and support. “I don’t believe businesses should be competing
-with IP \[intellectual property\] barriers,” Nathan said. “This is the
-stuff they should be competing on.”
+in service and support. "I don't believe businesses should be competing
+with IP \[intellectual property\] barriers," Nathan said. "This is the
+stuff they should be competing on."
-SparkFun’s company history began in Nathan’s college dorm room. He spent
+SparkFun's company history began in Nathan's college dorm room. He spent
a lot of time experimenting with and building electronics, and he
-realized there was a void in the market. “If you wanted to place an
-order for something,” he said, “you first had to search far and wide to
-find it, and then you had to call or fax someone.” In 2003, during his
-third year of college, he registered sparkfun.com and started reselling
+realized there was a void in the market. "If you wanted to place an
+order for something," he said, "you first had to search far and wide to
+find it, and then you had to call or fax someone." In 2003, during his
+third year of college, he registered [](http://sparkfun.com) and started reselling
products out of his bedroom. After he graduated, he started making and
selling his own products.
Once he started designing his own products, he began putting the
software and schematics online to help with technical support. After
doing some research on licensing options, he chose Creative Commons
-licenses because he was drawn to the “human-readable deeds” that explain
+licenses because he was drawn to the "human-readable deeds" that explain
the licensing terms in simple terms. SparkFun still uses CC licenses for
all of the schematics and firmware for the products they create.
The company has grown from a solo project to a corporation with 140
employees. In 2015, SparkFun earned \$33 million in revenue. Selling
components and widgets to hobbyists, professionals, and artists remains
-a major part of SparkFun’s business. They sell their own products, but
+a major part of SparkFun's business. They sell their own products, but
they also partner with Arduino (also profiled in this book) by
-manufacturing boards for resale using Arduino’s brand.
+manufacturing boards for resale using Arduino's brand.
SparkFun also has an educational department dedicated to creating a
hands-on curriculum to teach students about electronics using
more recent focus on introducing young people to technology is a natural
extension of their core business.
-“We have the burden and opportunity to educate the next generation of
-technical citizens,” Nathan said. “Our goal is to affect the lives of
-three hundred and fifty thousand high school students by 2020.”
+"We have the burden and opportunity to educate the next generation of
+technical citizens," Nathan said. "Our goal is to affect the lives of
+three hundred and fifty thousand high school students by 2020."
-The Creative Commons license underlying all of SparkFun’s products is
+The Creative Commons license underlying all of SparkFun's products is
central to this mission. The license not only signals a willingness to
share, but it also expresses a desire for others to get in and tinker
with their products, both to learn and to make their products better.
SparkFun uses the Attribution-ShareAlike license (CC BY-SA), which is a
-“copyleft” license that allows people to do anything with the content as
+"copyleft" license that allows people to do anything with the content as
long as they provide credit and make any adaptations available under the
same licensing terms.
thousand to two thousand customers and other technology enthusiasts from
around the area to race their own self-created bots against each other,
participate in training workshops, and socialize. From a business
-perspective, Nathan says it’s a terrible idea. But they don’t hold the
-event for business reasons. “The reason we do it is because I get to
+perspective, Nathan says it's a terrible idea. But they don't hold the
+event for business reasons. "The reason we do it is because I get to
travel and have interactions with our customers all the time, but most
-of our employees don’t,” he said. “This event gives our employees the
-opportunity to get face-to-face contact with our customers.” The event
+of our employees don't," he said. "This event gives our employees the
+opportunity to get face-to-face contact with our customers." The event
infuses their work with a human element, which makes it more meaningful.
Nathan has worked hard to imbue a deeper meaning into the work SparkFun
does. The company is, of course, focused on being fiscally responsible,
-but they are ultimately driven by something other than money. “Profit is
-not the goal; it is the outcome of a well-executed plan,” Nathan said.
-“We focus on having a bigger impact on the world.” Nathan believes they
-get some of the brightest and most amazing employees because they aren’t
+but they are ultimately driven by something other than money. "Profit is
+not the goal; it is the outcome of a well-executed plan," Nathan said.
+"We focus on having a bigger impact on the world." Nathan believes they
+get some of the brightest and most amazing employees because they aren't
singularly focused on the bottom line.
The company is committed to transparency and shares all of its
financials with its employees. They also generally strive to avoid being
another soulless corporation. They actively try to reveal the humans
behind the company, and they work to ensure people coming to their site
-don’t find only unchanging content.
+don't find only unchanging content.
-SparkFun’s customer base is largely made up of industrious electronics
+SparkFun's customer base is largely made up of industrious electronics
enthusiasts. They have customers who are regularly involved in the
-company’s customer support, independently responding to questions in
+company's customer support, independently responding to questions in
forums and product-comment sections. Customers also bring product ideas
to the company. SparkFun regularly sifts through suggestions from
-customers and tries to build on them where they can. “From the
-beginning, we have been listening to the community,” Nathan said.
-“Customers would identify a pain point, and we would design something to
-address it.”
+customers and tries to build on them where they can. "From the
+beginning, we have been listening to the community," Nathan said.
+"Customers would identify a pain point, and we would design something to
+address it."
However, this sort of customer engagement does not always translate to
-people actively contributing to SparkFun’s projects. The company has a
+people actively contributing to SparkFun's projects. The company has a
public repository of software code for each of its devices online. On a
particularly active project, there will only be about two dozen people
contributing significant improvements. The vast majority of projects are
-relatively untouched by the public. “There is a theory that if you
-open-source it, they will come,” Nathan said. “That’s not really true.”
+relatively untouched by the public. "There is a theory that if you
+open-source it, they will come," Nathan said. "That's not really true."
Rather than focusing on cocreation with their customers, SparkFun
instead focuses on enabling people to copy, tinker, and improve products
on their own. They heavily invest in tutorials and other material
designed to help people understand how the products work so they can fix
-and improve things independently. “What gives me joy is when people take
+and improve things independently. "What gives me joy is when people take
open-source layouts and then build their own circuit boards from our
-designs,” Nathan said.
+designs," Nathan said.
Obviously, opening up the design of their products is a necessary step
if their goal is to empower the public. Nathan also firmly believes it
they set out to be.
## TeachAIDS
-
-TeachAIDS is a nonprofit that creates educational materials designed to
-teach people around the world about HIV and AIDS. Founded in 2005 in the
-U.S.
-
-teachaids.org
-
-Revenue model: sponsorships
-
-Interview date: March 24, 2016
-
-Interviewees: Piya Sorcar, the CEO, and Shuman Ghosemajumder, the chair
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+>
+> TeachAIDS is a nonprofit that creates educational materials designed to
+> teach people around the world about HIV and AIDS. Founded in 2005 in the
+> U.S.
+>
+> [](http://teachaids.org)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: sponsorships
+>
+> **Interview date**: March 24, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewees**: Piya Sorcar, the CEO, and Shuman Ghosemajumder, the chair
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
TeachAIDS is an unconventional media company with a conventional revenue
model. Like most media companies, they are subsidized by advertising.
In late 2005, Piya and her team used research-based design to create new
educational materials and worked with local partners in India to help
distribute them. As soon as the animated software was posted online,
-Piya’s team started receiving requests from individuals and governments
-who were interested in bringing this model to more countries. “We
+Piya's team started receiving requests from individuals and governments
+who were interested in bringing this model to more countries. "We
realized fairly quickly that educating large populations about a topic
that was considered taboo would be challenging. We began by identifying
optimal local partners and worked toward creating an effective,
-culturally appropriate education,” Piya said.
+culturally appropriate education," Piya said.
-Very shortly after the initial release, Piya’s team decided to spin the
+Very shortly after the initial release, Piya's team decided to spin the
endeavor into an independent nonprofit out of Stanford University. They
also decided to use Creative Commons licenses on the materials.
to preserve the integrity of the medical information in the content.
They chose the Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license (CC BY-NC-ND),
which essentially gives the public the right to distribute only verbatim
-copies of the content, and for noncommercial purposes. “We wanted
-attribution for TeachAIDS, and we couldn’t stand by derivatives without
-vetting them,” the cofounder and chair Shuman Ghosemajumder said. “It
+copies of the content, and for noncommercial purposes. "We wanted
+attribution for TeachAIDS, and we couldn't stand by derivatives without
+vetting them," the cofounder and chair Shuman Ghosemajumder said. "It
was almost a no-brainer to go with a CC license because it was a
plug-and-play solution to this exact problem. It has allowed us to scale
our materials safely and quickly worldwide while preserving our content
-and protecting us at the same time.”
+and protecting us at the same time."
Choosing a license that does not allow adaptation of the content was an
outgrowth of the careful precision with which TeachAIDS crafts their
content. The organization invests heavily in research and testing to
-determine the best method of conveying the information. “Creating
-high-quality content is what matters most to us,” Piya said. “Research
-drives everything we do.”
+determine the best method of conveying the information. "Creating
+high-quality content is what matters most to us," Piya said. "Research
+drives everything we do."
One important finding was that people accept the message best when it
comes from familiar voices they trust and admire. To achieve this,
undertaken entirely by people who are specifically brought on to help
with a particular project, rather than ongoing staff. The final product
they create is designed to require zero training for people to implement
-in practice. “In our research, we found we can’t depend on people
+in practice. "In our research, we found we can't depend on people
passing on the information correctly, even if they have the best of
-intentions,” Piya said. “We need materials where you can push play and
-they will work.”
+intentions," Piya said. "We need materials where you can push play and
+they will work."
-Piya’s team was able to produce all of these versions over several years
+Piya's team was able to produce all of these versions over several years
with a head count that never exceeded eight full-time employees. The
organization is able to reduce costs by relying heavily on volunteers
and in-kind donations. Nevertheless, the nonprofit needed a sustainable
revenue model to subsidize content creation and physical distribution of
the materials. Charging even a low price was simply not an option.
-“Educators from various nonprofits around the world were just creating
-their own materials using whatever they could find for free online,”
-Shuman said. “The only way to persuade them to use our highly effective
-model was to make it completely free.”
+"Educators from various nonprofits around the world were just creating
+their own materials using whatever they could find for free online,"
+Shuman said. "The only way to persuade them to use our highly effective
+model was to make it completely free."
Like many content creators offering their work for free, they settled on
advertising as a funding model. But they were extremely careful not to
specific project. Instead, sponsorships are structured as unrestricted
donations to the nonprofit. This gives the nonprofit more stability, but
even more importantly, it enables them to subsidize projects being
-localized for an area with no sponsors. “If we just created versions
+localized for an area with no sponsors. "If we just created versions
based on where we could get sponsorships, we would only have materials
-for wealthier countries,” Shuman said.
+for wealthier countries," Shuman said.
-As of 2016, TeachAIDS has dozens of sponsors. “When we go into a new
-country, various companies hear about us and reach out to us,” Piya
-said. “We don’t have to do much to find or attract them.” They believe
+As of 2016, TeachAIDS has dozens of sponsors. "When we go into a new
+country, various companies hear about us and reach out to us," Piya
+said. "We don't have to do much to find or attract them." They believe
the sponsorships are easy to sell because they offer so much value to
sponsors. TeachAIDS sponsorships give corporations the chance to reach
new eyeballs with their brand, but at a much lower cost than other
Importantly, the value to corporate sponsors goes beyond commercial
considerations. As a nonprofit with a clearly articulated social
-mission, corporate sponsorships are donations to a cause. “This is
-something companies can be proud of internally,” Shuman said. Some
+mission, corporate sponsorships are donations to a cause. "This is
+something companies can be proud of internally," Shuman said. Some
companies have even built publicity campaigns around the fact that they
have sponsored these initiatives.
-The core mission of TeachAIDS—ensuring global access to life-saving
-education—is at the root of everything the organization does. It
+The core mission of TeachAIDS---ensuring global access to life-saving
+education---is at the root of everything the organization does. It
underpins the work; it motivates the funders. The CC license on the
materials they create furthers that mission, allowing them to safely and
-quickly scale their materials worldwide. “The Creative Commons license
-has been a game changer for TeachAIDS,” Piya said.
+quickly scale their materials worldwide. "The Creative Commons license
+has been a game changer for TeachAIDS," Piya said.
## Tribe of Noise
-
-Tribe of Noise is a for-profit online music platform serving the film,
-TV, video, gaming, and in-store-media industries. Founded in 2008 in the
-Netherlands.
-
-www.tribeofnoise.com
-
-Revenue model: charging a transaction fee
-
-Interview date: January 26, 2016
-
-Interviewee: Hessel van Oorschot, cofounder
-
-Profile written by Paul Stacey
+>
+> Tribe of Noise is a for-profit online music platform serving the film,
+> TV, video, gaming, and in-store-media industries. Founded in 2008 in the
+> Netherlands.
+>
+> [](http://www.tribeofnoise.com)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: charging a transaction fee
+>
+> **Interview date**: January 26, 2016
+>
+> **Interviewee**: Hessel van Oorschot, cofounder
+>
+> Profile written by Paul Stacey
In the early 2000s, Hessel van Oorschot was an entrepreneur running a
business where he coached other midsize entrepreneurs how to create an
They hired two lawyers to investigate further, and while they uncovered
five or six examples, Hessel found the business models lacking. The
lawyers expressed interest in being their legal team should they decide
-to pursue this as an entrepreneurial opportunity. Hessel says, “When
+to pursue this as an entrepreneurial opportunity. Hessel says, "When
lawyers are interested in a venture like this, you might have something
-special.” So after some more research, in early 2008, Hessel and Sandra
+special." So after some more research, in early 2008, Hessel and Sandra
decided to build a platform.
Building a platform posed a real chicken-and-egg problem. The platform
quality, good-listening music but not necessarily hits, a bit like a
radio show without the DJ. This opened a new opportunity for Tribe of
Noise. They started their In-store Music Service, using music (licensed
-with CC BY-SA) uploaded by the Tribe of Noise community of musicians.1
+with CC BY-SA) uploaded by the Tribe of Noise community of musicians.[^Tribe-of-Noise-1]
In most countries, artists, authors, and musicians join a collecting
society that manages the licensing and helps collect the royalties.
repertoire. Hessel and his legal team reached out to collecting
societies, starting with those in the Netherlands. What would be the
best legal way forward that would respect the wishes of composers and
-musicians who’d be interested in trying out new models like the In-store
+musicians who'd be interested in trying out new models like the In-store
Music Service? Collecting societies at first were hesitant and said no,
but Tribe of Noise persisted arguing that they primarily work with
unknown artists and provide them exposure in parts of the world where
-they don’t get airtime normally and a source of revenue—and this
-convinced them that it was OK. However, Hessel says, “We are still
-fighting for a good cause every single day.”
+they don't get airtime normally and a source of revenue---and this
+convinced them that it was OK. However, Hessel says, "We are still
+fighting for a good cause every single day."
Instead of building a large sales force, Tribe of Noise partnered with
big organizations who have lots of clients and can act as a kind of
Tribe of Noise reseller. The largest telecom network in the Netherlands,
-for example, sells Tribe’s In-store Music Service subscriptions to their
+for example, sells Tribe's In-store Music Service subscriptions to their
business clients, which include fashion retailers and fitness centers.
They have a similar deal with the leading trade association representing
-hotels and restaurants in the country. Hessel hopes to “copy and paste”
+hotels and restaurants in the country. Hessel hopes to "copy and paste"
this service into other countries where collecting societies understand
what you can do with Creative Commons. Outside of the Netherlands, early
adoptions have happened in Scandinavia, Belgium, and the U.S.
-Tribe of Noise doesn’t pay the musicians up front; they get paid when
-their music ends up in Tribe of Noise’s in-store music channels. The
-musicians’ share is 42.5 percent. It’s not uncommon in a traditional
+Tribe of Noise doesn't pay the musicians up front; they get paid when
+their music ends up in Tribe of Noise's in-store music channels. The
+musicians' share is 42.5 percent. It's not uncommon in a traditional
model for the artist to get only 5 to 10 percent, so a share of over 40
-percent is a significantly better deal. Here’s how they give an example
+percent is a significantly better deal. Here's how they give an example
on their website:
A few of your songs \[licensed with CC BY-SA\], for example five in
total, are selected for a bespoke in-store music channel broadcasting at
a large retailer with 1,000 stores nationwide. In this case the overall
-playlist contains 350 songs so the musician’s share is 5/350 = 1.43%.
+playlist contains 350 songs so the musician's share is 5/350 = 1.43%.
The license fee agreed with this retailer is US\$12 per month per
play-out. So if 42.5% is shared with the Tribe musicians in this
playlist and your share is 1.43%, you end up with US\$12 \* 1000 stores
-\* 0.425 \* 0.0143 = US\$73 per month.2
+\* 0.425 \* 0.0143 = US\$73 per month.[^Tribe-of-Noise-2]
Tribe of Noise has another model that does not involve Creative Commons.
In a survey with members, most said they liked the exposure using
that happened the CC BY-SA license would preclude them getting rich off
the sale of that song.
-Hessel’s legal team took this feedback and created a second model and
+Hessel's legal team took this feedback and created a second model and
separate area of the platform called Tribe of Noise Pro. Songs uploaded
-to Tribe of Noise Pro aren’t Creative Commons licensed; Tribe of Noise
-has instead created a “nonexclusive exploitation” contract, similar to a
+to Tribe of Noise Pro aren't Creative Commons licensed; Tribe of Noise
+has instead created a "nonexclusive exploitation" contract, similar to a
Creative Commons license but allowing musicians to opt out whenever they
want. When you opt out, Tribe of Noise agrees to take your music off the
Tribe of Noise platform within one to two months. This lets the musician
reuse their song for a better deal.
Tribe of Noise Pro is primarily geared toward media makers who are
-looking for music. If they buy a license from this catalog, they don’t
+looking for music. If they buy a license from this catalog, they don't
have to state the name of the creator; they just license the song for a
specific amount. This is a big plus for media makers. And musicians can
pull their repertoire at any time. Hessel sees this as a more direct and
clean deal.
Lots of Tribe of Noise musicians upload songs to both Tribe of Noise Pro
-and the community area of Tribe of Noises. There aren’t that many
+and the community area of Tribe of Noises. There aren't that many
artists who upload only to Tribe of Noise Pro, which has a smaller
repertoire of music than the community area.
BY-SA and opting in others with collecting societies like
ASCAP or BMI.
-It’s not uncommon for performance-rights organizations, record labels,
+It's not uncommon for performance-rights organizations, record labels,
or music publishers to sign contracts with musicians based on
exclusivity. Such an arrangement prevents those musicians from uploading
their music to Tribe of Noise. In the United States, you can have a
represent. So far, Tribe of Noise has been able to make all this work
without litigation.
-For Hessel the key to Tribe of Noise’s success is trust. The fact that
+For Hessel the key to Tribe of Noise's success is trust. The fact that
Creative Commons licenses work the same way all over the world and have
been translated into all languages really helps build that trust. Tribe
of Noise believes in creating a model where they work together with
musicians. They can only do that if they have a live and kicking
community, with people who think that the Tribe of Noise team has their
best interests in mind. Creative Commons makes it possible to create a
-new business model for music, a model that’s based on trust.
+new business model for music, a model that's based on trust.
-Web links
+### Web links
-1. www.instoremusicservice.com
-2. www.tribeofnoise.com/info\_instoremusic.php
+[^Tribe-of-Noise-1]: [](http://www.instoremusicservice.com)
+[^Tribe-of-Noise-2]: [](http://www.tribeofnoise.com/info\_instoremusic.php)
## Wikimedia Foundation
-
-The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization that hosts
-Wikipedia and its sister projects. Founded in 2003 in the U.S.
-
-wikimediafoundation.org
-
-Revenue model: donations
-
-Interview date: December 18, 2015
-
-Interviewees: Luis Villa, former Chief Officer of Community Engagement,
-and Stephen LaPorte, legal counsel
-
-Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
+>
+> The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization that hosts
+> Wikipedia and its sister projects. Founded in 2003 in the U.S.
+>
+> [](http://wikimediafoundation.org)
+>
+> **Revenue model**: donations
+>
+> **Interview date**: December 18, 2015
+>
+> **Interviewees**: Luis Villa, former Chief Officer of Community Engagement,
+> and Stephen LaPorte, legal counsel
+>
+> Profile written by Sarah Hinchliff Pearson
Nearly every person with an online presence knows Wikipedia.
people to reuse and adapt it for any purpose.
As of December 2016, there were more than forty-two million articles in
-the 295 language editions of the online encyclopedia, according to—what
-else?—the Wikipedia article about Wikipedia.
+the 295 language editions of the online encyclopedia, according
+to---what else?---the Wikipedia article about Wikipedia.
The Wikimedia Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization that
owns the Wikipedia domain name and hosts the site, along with many other
national), groups focused on a particular theme, user groups, and many
thousands who are not connected to a particular organization.
-As Wikimedia legal counsel Stephen LaPorte told us, “There is a common
-saying that Wikipedia works in practice but not in theory.” While it
+As Wikimedia legal counsel Stephen LaPorte told us, "There is a common
+saying that Wikipedia works in practice but not in theory." While it
undoubtedly has its challenges and flaws, Wikipedia and its sister
projects are a striking testament to the power of human collaboration.
Because of its extraordinary breadth and scope, it does feel a bit like
a unicorn. Indeed, there is nothing else like Wikipedia. Still, much of
-what makes the projects successful—community, transparency, a strong
-mission, trust—are consistent with what it takes to be successfully Made
-with Creative Commons more generally. With Wikipedia, everything just
-happens at an unprecedented scale.
+what makes the projects successful---community, transparency, a strong
+mission, trust---are consistent with what it takes to be successfully
+Made with Creative Commons more generally. With Wikipedia, everything
+just happens at an unprecedented scale.
The story of Wikipedia has been told many times. For our purposes, it is
enough to know the experiment started in 2001 at a small scale, inspired
Wikipedia, and nearly fifteen thousand edits are made every hour.
The nature of the content the community creates is ideal for
-asynchronous cocreation. “An encyclopedia is something where incremental
-community improvement really works,” Luis Villa, former Chief Officer of
+asynchronous cocreation. "An encyclopedia is something where incremental
+community improvement really works," Luis Villa, former Chief Officer of
Community Engagement, told us. The rules and processes that govern
cocreation on Wikipedia and its sister projects are all community-driven
and vary by language edition. There are entire books written on the
account on their system. The extensive peer-review process includes
elaborate systems to resolve disputes, methods for managing particularly
controversial subject areas, talk pages explaining decisions, and much,
-much more. The Wikimedia Foundation’s decision to leave governance of
-the projects to the community is very deliberate. “We look at the things
+much more. The Wikimedia Foundation's decision to leave governance of
+the projects to the community is very deliberate. "We look at the things
that the community can do well, and we want to let them do those
-things,” Stephen told us. Instead, the foundation focuses its time and
+things," Stephen told us. Instead, the foundation focuses its time and
resources on what the community cannot do as effectively, like the
software engineering that supports the technical infrastructure of the
-sites. In 2015-16, about half of the foundation’s budget went to direct
+sites. In 2015-16, about half of the foundation's budget went to direct
support for the Wikimedia sites.
Some of that is directed at servers and general IT support, but the
foundation also invests a significant amount on architecture designed to
-help the site function as effectively as possible. “There is a
+help the site function as effectively as possible. "There is a
constantly evolving system to keep the balance in place to avoid
-Wikipedia becoming the world’s biggest graffiti wall,” Luis said.
+Wikipedia becoming the world's biggest graffiti wall," Luis said.
Depending on how you measure it, somewhere between 90 to 98 percent of
edits to Wikipedia are positive. Some portion of that success is
attributable to the tools Wikimedia has in place to try to incentivize
-good actors. “The secret to having any healthy community is bringing
-back the right people,” Luis said. “Vandals tend to get bored and go
+good actors. "The secret to having any healthy community is bringing
+back the right people," Luis said. "Vandals tend to get bored and go
away. That is partially our model working, and partially just human
-nature.” Most of the time, people want to do the right thing.
+nature." Most of the time, people want to do the right thing.
Wikipedia not only relies on good behavior within its community and on
its sites, but also by everyone else once the content leaves Wikipedia.
for any purpose and modified so long as credit is given and anything new
is shared back with the public under the same license. In theory, that
means anyone can copy the content and start a new Wikipedia. But as
-Stephen explained, “Being open has only made Wikipedia bigger and
+Stephen explained, "Being open has only made Wikipedia bigger and
stronger. The desire to protect is not always what is best for
-everyone.”
+everyone."
Of course, the primary reason no one has successfully co-opted Wikipedia
is that copycat efforts do not have the Wikipedia community to sustain
what they do. Wikipedia is not simply a source of up-to-the-minute
-content on every given topic—it is also a global patchwork of humans
+content on every given topic---it is also a global patchwork of humans
working together in a million different ways, in a million different
capacities, for a million different reasons. While many have tried to
guess what makes Wikipedia work as well it does, the fact is there is no
-single explanation. “In a movement as large as ours, there is an
-incredible diversity of motivations,” Stephen said. For example, there
+single explanation. "In a movement as large as ours, there is an
+incredible diversity of motivations," Stephen said. For example, there
is one editor of the English Wikipedia edition who has corrected a
single grammatical error in articles more than forty-eight thousand
-times.1 Only a fraction of Wikipedia users are also editors. But editing
-is not the only way to contribute to Wikipedia. “Some donate text, some
-donate images, some donate financially,” Stephen told us. “They are all
-contributors.”
+times.[^Wikimedia-Foundation-1] Only a fraction of Wikipedia users are also editors. But editing
+is not the only way to contribute to Wikipedia. "Some donate text, some
+donate images, some donate financially," Stephen told us. "They are all
+contributors."
But the vast majority of us who use Wikipedia are not contributors; we
are passive readers. The Wikimedia Foundation survives primarily on
Any given edit on Wikipedia could be motivated by nearly an infinite
number of reasons. But the social mission of the project is what binds
-the global community together. “Wikipedia is an example of how a mission
-can motivate an entire movement,” Stephen told us.
+the global community together. "Wikipedia is an example of how a mission
+can motivate an entire movement," Stephen told us.
-Of course, what results from that movement is one of the Internet’s
-great public resources. “The Internet has a lot of businesses and
+Of course, what results from that movement is one of the Internet's
+great public resources. "The Internet has a lot of businesses and
stores, but it is missing the digital equivalent of parks and open
-public spaces,” Stephen said. “Wikipedia has found a way to be that open
-public space.”
+public spaces," Stephen said. "Wikipedia has found a way to be that open
+public space."
-Web link
+### Web link
-1. gimletmedia.com/episode/14-the-art-of-making-and-fixing-mistakes/
+[^Wikimedia-Foundation-1]: [](http://gimletmedia.com/episode/14-the-art-of-making-and-fixing-mistakes/)
-## Bibliography
+# Bibliography
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American Revolution; Democratizing Wealth and Building a
Community-Sustaining Economy from the Ground Up. White River Junction,
VT: Chelsea Green, 2013.
-Anderson, Chris. Free: How Today’s Smartest Businesses Profit by Giving
+Anderson, Chris. Free: How Today's Smartest Businesses Profit by Giving
Something for Nothing, reprint with new preface. New York: Hyperion,
2010.
-———. Makers: The New Industrial Revolution. New York: Signal, 2012.
+---------. Makers: The New Industrial Revolution. New York: Signal,
+2012.
Ariely, Dan. Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our
Decisions. Rev. ed. New York: Harper Perennial, 2010.
-Bacon, Jono. The Art of Community. 2nd ed. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly
+Bacon, Jono. The Art of Community. 2nd ed. Sebastopol, CA: O'Reilly
Media, 2012.
Benkler, Yochai. The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production
Transforms Markets and Freedom. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006.
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+[](http://www.benkler.org/Benkler\_Wealth\_Of\_Networks.pdf) (licensed under CC
BY-NC-SA).
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+[](http://thenextsystem.org/commoning-as-a-transformative-social-paradigm/).
-———. Think Like a Commoner: A Short Introduction to the Life of the
-Commons. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society, 2014.
+---------. Think Like a Commoner: A Short Introduction to the Life of
+the Commons. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society, 2014.
Bollier, David, and Pat Conaty. Democratic Money and Capital for the
Commons: Strategies for Transforming Neoliberal Finance through
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-information, see bollier.org/blog/democratic-money-and-capital-commons.
+[](http://bollier.org/democratic-money-and-capital-commons-report-pdf). For more
+information, see [](http://bollier.org/blog/democratic-money-and-capital-commons).
Bollier, David, and Silke Helfrich, eds. The Wealth of the Commons: A
World Beyond Market and State. Amherst, MA: Levellers Press, 2012.
-Botsman, Rachel, and Roo Rogers. What’s Mine Is Yours: The Rise of
+Botsman, Rachel, and Roo Rogers. What's Mine Is Yours: The Rise of
Collaborative Consumption. New York: Harper Business, 2010.
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Haven: Yale University Press, 2008.
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System in Tune with Nature and Community. Oakland, CA: Berrett-Koehler,
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Innovation Landscape. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2006.
-———. Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating and Profiting from
-Technology. Boston: Harvard Business Review Press, 2006.
+---------. Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating and
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+[](http://www.labgov.it/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/Bologna-Regulation-on-collaboration-between-citizens-and-the-city-for-the-cure-and-regeneration-of-urban-commons1.pdf).
-Cole, Daniel H. “Learning from Lin: Lessons and Cautions from the
-Natural Commons for the Knowledge Commons.” Chap. 2 in Frischmann,
+Cole, Daniel H. "Learning from Lin: Lessons and Cautions from the
+Natural Commons for the Knowledge Commons." Chap. 2 in Frischmann,
Madison, and Strandburg, Governing Knowledge Commons.
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-Commons, 2015. stateof.creativecommons.org/2015/.
+Commons, 2015. [](http://stateof.creativecommons.org/2015/).
-Doctorow, Cory. Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free: Laws for the
-Internet Age. San Francisco: McSweeney’s, 2014.
+Doctorow, Cory. Information Doesn't Want to Be Free: Laws for the
+Internet Age. San Francisco: McSweeney's, 2014.
-Eckhardt, Giana, and Fleura Bardhi. “The Sharing Economy Isn’t about
-Sharing at All.” Harvard Business Review, January 28, 2015.
-hbr.org/2015/01/the-sharing-economy-isnt-about-sharing-at-all.
+Eckhardt, Giana, and Fleura Bardhi. "The Sharing Economy Isn't about
+Sharing at All." Harvard Business Review, January 28, 2015.
+[](http://hbr.org/2015/01/the-sharing-economy-isnt-about-sharing-at-all).
Elliott, Patricia W., and Daryl H. Hepting, eds. (2015). Free Knowledge:
Confronting the Commodification of Human Discovery. Regina, SK:
University of Regina Press, 2015.
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+[](http://uofrpress.ca/publications/Free-Knowledge) (licensed under CC BY-NC-ND).
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Hoover. New York: Portfolio, 2014.
-Farley, Joshua, and Ida Kubiszewski. “The Economics of Information in a
-Post-Carbon Economy.” Chap. 11 in Elliott and Hepting, Free Knowledge.
+Farley, Joshua, and Ida Kubiszewski. "The Economics of Information in a
+Post-Carbon Economy." Chap. 11 in Elliott and Hepting, Free Knowledge.
-Foster, William Landes, Peter Kim, and Barbara Christiansen. “Ten
-Nonprofit Funding Models.” Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring
-2009. ssir.org/articles/entry/ten\_nonprofit\_funding\_models.
+Foster, William Landes, Peter Kim, and Barbara Christiansen. "Ten
+Nonprofit Funding Models." Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring
+2009. [](http://ssir.org/articles/entry/ten\_nonprofit\_funding\_models).
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2014.
Frischmann, Brett M., Michael J. Madison, and Katherine J. Strandburg.
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+"Governing Knowledge Commons." Chap. 1 in Frischmann, Madison, and
Strandburg, Governing Knowledge Commons.
Gansky, Lisa. The Mesh: Why the Future of Business Is Sharing. Reprint
Hyde, Lewis. Common as Air: Revolution, Art, and Ownership. New York:
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2010.
-———. The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World. 2nd
+---------. The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World. 2nd
Vintage Books edition. New York: Vintage Books, 2007.
Kelley, Tom, and David Kelley. Creative Confidence: Unleashing the
Kelly, Marjorie. Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership Revolution;
Journeys to a Generative Economy. San Francisco:
-
Berrett-Koehler, 2012.
Kleon, Austin. Show Your Work: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get
Discovered. New York: Workman, 2014.
-———. Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You about Being
+---------. Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You about Being
Creative. New York: Workman, 2012.
Kramer, Bryan. Shareology: How Sharing Is Powering the Human Economy.
New York: Morgan James, 2016.
-Lee, David. “Inside Medium: An Attempt to Bring Civility to the
-Internet.” BBC News, March 3, 2016. www.bbc.com/news/technology-35709680
+Lee, David. "Inside Medium: An Attempt to Bring Civility to the
+Internet." BBC News, March 3, 2016. [](http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-35709680)
Lessig, Lawrence. Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid
Economy. New York: Penguin Press, 2008.
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People Share Online? New York: New York Times Customer Insight Group,
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+2011. [](http://www.iab.net/media/file/POSWhitePaper.pdf).
Osterwalder, Alex, and Yves Pigneur. Business Model Generation. Hoboken,
NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2010. A preview of the book is available at
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+[](http://strategyzer.com/books/business-model-generation).
Osterwalder, Alex, Yves Pigneur, Greg Bernarda, and Adam Smith. Value
Proposition Design. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2014. A preview of
-the book is available at strategyzer.com/books/value-proposition-design.
+the book is available at [](http://strategyzer.com/books/value-proposition-design).
Palmer, Amanda. The Art of Asking: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and
Let People Help. New York: Grand Central, 2014.
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Make Available Their Highest Quality Material without Restrictions, and
What Are the Results? The Hague, Netherlands: Europeana Foundation,
-2014. pro.europeana.eu/publication/democratising-the-rijksmuseum
+2014. [](http://pro.europeana.eu/publication/democratising-the-rijksmuseum)
(licensed under CC BY-SA).
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Australia: Commons Transition Coalition, 2016.
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+[](http://www.academia.edu/27143172/The\_City\_as\_Commons\_a\_Policy\_Reader)
(licensed under CC BY-NC-ND).
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+Source by an Accidental Revolutionary. Rev. ed. Sebastopol, CA: O'Reilly
+Media, 2001. See esp. "The Magic Cauldron."
+[](http://www.catb.org/esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/).
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+Ries, Eric. The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous
Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses. New York: Crown
Business, 2011.
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the Enemy of Prosperity. New York: Portfolio, 2016.
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+Sandel, Michael J. What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets.
New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2012.
Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers into
Collaborators. London, England: Penguin Books, 2010.
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+Slee, Tom. What's Yours Is Mine: Against the Sharing Economy. New York:
OR Books, 2015.
Stephany, Alex. The Business of Sharing: Making in the New Sharing
Design Now: Why Design Cannot Remain Exclusive. Amsterdam: BIS
Publishers, with Creative Commons Netherlands; Premsela, the Netherlands
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Performance. Boston: Harvard Business Review Press, 2015.
-## Acknowledgments
+# Acknowledgments
We extend special thanks to Creative Commons CEO Ryan Merkley, the
Creative Commons Board, and all of our Creative Commons colleagues for
Stevens, Jamil Khatib, Jane Finette, Jason Blasso, Jason E. Barkeloo,
Jay M Williams, Jean-Philippe Turcotte, Jeanette Frey, Jeff De Cagna,
Jérôme Mizeret, Jessica Dickinson Goodman, Jessy Kate Schingler, Jim
-O’Flaherty, Jim Pellegrini, Jiří Marek, Jo Allum, Joachim von Goetz,
+O'Flaherty, Jim Pellegrini, Jiří Marek, Jo Allum, Joachim von Goetz,
Johan Adda, John Benfield, John Bevan, Jonas Öberg, Jonathan Lin, JP
Rangaswami, Juan Carlos Belair, Justin Christian, Justin Szlasa, Kate
Chapman, Kate Stewart, Kellie Higginbottom, Kendra Byrne, Kevin Coates,
Procter, Adam Quirk, Adam Rory Porter, Adam Simmons, Adam Tinworth, Adam
Zimmerman, Adrian Ho, Adrian Smith, Adriane Ruzak, Adriano Loconte, Al
Sweigart, Alain Imbaud, Alan Graham, Alan M. Ford, Alan Swithenbank,
-Alan Vonlanthen, Albert O’Connor, Alec Foster, Alejandro Suarez Cebrian,
+Alan Vonlanthen, Albert O'Connor, Alec Foster, Alejandro Suarez Cebrian,
Aleks Degtyarev, Alex Blood, Alex C. Ion, Alex Ross Shaw, Alexander
Bartl, Alexander Brown, Alexander Brunner, Alexander Eliesen, Alexander
Hawson, Alexander Klar, Alexander Neumann, Alexander Plaum, Alexander
Wallevik, BK Bitner, Bo Ilsøe Hansen, Bo Sprotte Kofod, Bob Doran, Bob
Recny, Bob Stuart, Bonnie Chiu, Boris Mindzak, Boriss Lariushin, Borjan
Tchakaloff, Brad Kik, Braden Hassett, Bradford Benn, Bradley Keyes,
-Bradley L’Herrou, Brady Forrest, Brandon McGaha, Branka Tokic, Brant
-Anderson, Brenda Sullivan, Brendan O’Brien, Brendan Schlagel, Brett
+Bradley L'Herrou, Brady Forrest, Brandon McGaha, Branka Tokic, Brant
+Anderson, Brenda Sullivan, Brendan O'Brien, Brendan Schlagel, Brett
Abbott, Brett Gaylor, Brian Dysart, Brian Lampl, Brian Lipscomb, Brian
S. Weis, Brian Schrader, Brian Walsh, Brian Walsh, Brooke Dukes, Brooke
Schreier Ganz, Bruce Lerner, Bruce Wilson, Bruno Boutot, Bruno Girin,
Mailloux, Carolyn Hinchliff, Carolyn Rude, Carrie Cousins, Carrie
Watkins, Casey Hunt, Casey Milford, Casey Powell Shorthouse, Cat Cooper,
Cecilie Maria, Cedric Howe, Cefn Hoile,
-@ShrimpingIt, Celia Muller, Ces Keller, Chad Anderson, Charles Butler,
+\@ShrimpingIt, Celia Muller, Ces Keller, Chad Anderson, Charles Butler,
Charles Carstensen, Charles Chi Thoi Le, Charles Kobbe, Charles S.
Tritt, Charles Stanhope, Charlotte Ong-Wisener, Chealsye Bowley, Chelle
Destefano, Chenpang Chou, Cheryl Corte, Cheryl Todd, Chip Dickerson,
Swenson, Christos Keramitsis, Chuck Roslof, Chutika Udomsinn, Claire
Wardle, Clare Forrest, Claudia Cristiani, Claudio Gallo, Claudio Ruiz,
Clayton Dewey, Clement Delort, Cliff Church, Clint Lalonde, Clint
-O’Connor, Cody Allard, Cody Taylor, Colin Ayer, Colin Campbell, Colin
+O'Connor, Cody Allard, Cody Taylor, Colin Ayer, Colin Campbell, Colin
Dean, Colin Mutchler, Colleen Cressman, Comfy Nomad, Connie Roberts,
Connor Bär, Connor Merkley, Constantin Graf, Corbett Messa, Cory
Chapman, Cosmic Wombat Games, Craig Engler, Craig Heath, Craig Maloney,
Dongpo Deng, Donnovan Knight, Door de Flines, Doug Fitzpatrick, Doug
Hoover, Douglas Craver, Douglas Van Camp, Douglas Van Houweling, Dr.
Braddlee, Drew Spencer, Duncan
-Sample, Durand D’souza, Dylan Field, E C Humphries, Eamon Caddigan,
+Sample, Durand D'souza, Dylan Field, E C Humphries, Eamon Caddigan,
Earleen Smith, Eden Sarid, Eden Spodek, Eduardo Belinchon, Eduardo
Castro, Edwin Vandam, Einar Joergensen, Ejnar Brendsdal, Elad Wieder,
Elar Haljas, Elena Valhalla, Eli Doran, Elias Bouchi, Elie Calhoun,
Jeremy Sabo, Jeremy Zauder, Jerko Grubisic, Jerome Glacken, Jérôme
Mizeret, Jessica Dickinson Goodman, Jessica Litman, Jessica Mackay,
Jessy Kate Schingler, Jesús Longás Gamarra, Jesus Marin, Jim Matt, Jim
-Meloy, Jim O’Flaherty, Jim Pellegrini, Jim Tittsler, Jimmy Alenius, Jiří
+Meloy, Jim O'Flaherty, Jim Pellegrini, Jim Tittsler, Jimmy Alenius, Jiří
Marek, Jo Allum, Joachim Brandon LeBlanc, Joachim Pileborg, Joachim von
Goetz, Joakim Bang Larsen, Joan Rieu, Joanna Penn, João Almeida, Jochen
Muetsch, Jodi Sandfort, Joe Cardillo, Joe Carpita, Joe Moross, Joerg
Keith Berndtson, MD, Keith Luebke, Kellie Higginbottom, Ken Friis
Larsen, Ken Haase, Ken Torbeck, Kendel Ratley, Kendra Byrne, Kerry
Hicks, Kevin Brown, Kevin Coates, Kevin Flynn, Kevin Rumon, Kevin
-Shannon, Kevin Taylor, Kevin Tostado, Kewhyun Kelly-Yuoh, Kiane l’Azin,
+Shannon, Kevin Taylor, Kevin Tostado, Kewhyun Kelly-Yuoh, Kiane l'Azin,
Kianosh Pourian, Kiran Kadekoppa, Kit Walsh, Klaus Mickus, Konrad
Rennert, Kris Kasianovitz, Kristian Lundquist, Kristin Buxton, Kristina
Popova, Kristofer Bratt, Kristoffer Steen, Kumar McMillan, Kurt
Mike Habicher, Mike Maloney, Mike Masnick, Mike McDaniel, Mike
Pouraryan, Mike Sheldon, Mike Stop Continues, Mike Stringer, Mike
Wittenstein, Mikkel Ovesen, Mikołaj Podlaszewski, Millie Gonzalez, Mindi
-Lovell, Mindy Lin, Mirko “Macro” Fichtner, Mitch Featherston, Mitchell
+Lovell, Mindy Lin, Mirko "Macro" Fichtner, Mitch Featherston, Mitchell
Adams, Molika Oum, Molly Shaffer Van Houweling, Monica Mora, Morgan
Loomis, Moritz Schubert, Mrs. Paganini, Mushin Schilling, Mustafa K
Calik, MD, Myk Pilgrim, Myra Harmer, Nadine Forget-Dubois, Nagle
Walker, Pavel Dostál, Peeter Sällström Randsalu, Peggy Frith, Pen-Yuan
Hsing, Penny Pearson, Per Åström, Perry Jetter, Péter Fankhauser, Peter
Hirtle, Peter Humphries, Peter Jenkins, Peter Langmar, Peter le Roux,
-Peter Marinari, Peter Mengelers, Peter O’Brien, Peter Pinch, Peter S.
+Peter Marinari, Peter Mengelers, Peter O'Brien, Peter Pinch, Peter S.
Crosby, Peter Wells, Petr Fristedt, Petr Viktorin, Petronella Jeurissen,
Phil Flickinger, Philip Chung, Philip Pangrac, Philip R. Skaggs Jr.,
Philip Young, Philippa Lorne Channer, Philippe Vandenbroeck, Pierluigi
Randall Kirby, Randy Brians, Raphaël Alexandre, Raphaël Schröder, Rasmus
Jensen, Rayn Drahps, Rayna Stamboliyska, Rebecca Godar, Rebecca Lendl,
Rebecca Weir, Regina Tschud, Remi Dino, Ric Herrero, Rich McCue, Richard
-“TalkToMeGuy” Olson, Richard Best, Richard Blumberg, Richard Fannon,
+"TalkToMeGuy" Olson, Richard Best, Richard Blumberg, Richard Fannon,
Richard Heying, Richard Karnesky, Richard Kelly, Richard Littauer,
Richard Sobey, Richard White, Richard Winchell, Rik ToeWater, Rita
Lewis, Rita Wood, Riyadh Al Balushi, Rob Balder, Rob Berkley, Rob
Occhiogrosso, Udo Blenkhorn, Uri Sivan, Vanja Bobas, Vantharith Oum,
Vaughan jenkins, Veethika Mishra, Vic King, Vickie Goode, Victor DePina,
Victor Grigas, Victoria Klassen, Victorien Elvinger, VIGA Manufacture,
-Vikas Shah, Vinayak S.Kaujalgi, Vincent O’Leary, Violette Paquet,
+Vikas Shah, Vinayak S.Kaujalgi, Vincent O'Leary, Violette Paquet,
Virginia Gentilini, Virginia Kopelman, Vitor Menezes, Vivian Marthell,
Wayne Mackintosh, Wendy Keenan, Werner Wiethege, Wesley Derbyshire,
Widar Hellwig, Willa Köerner, William Bettridge-Radford, William
Yann Heurtaux, Yasmine Hajjar, Yu-Hsian Sun, Yves Deruisseau, Zach
Chandler, Zak Zebrowski, Zane Amiralis and Joshua de Haan, ZeMarmot Open
Movie
-
projects / text-madewithcc.git / blobdiff