This infogram could be used as a starting point for people who would like to learn more about how and why Creative Commons came to be, as well as providing information about its activities and support of the open movement.

1. A short history of Creative Commons (CC)
Sharing, Openness & Collaboration
Whilst Creative Commons are best
known for their free public licenses, it
is important to note that Creative
Commons is also a non-profit
organization, a global network, and a
movement – all inspired by the values
of sharing, openness and collaboration.
Creative Commons has the role of
stewardship of the CC licenses, and
widely supports the Open Movement;
yet the Open Movement extends
beyond the CC licenses and is
committed to the idea that the world
will benefit with the sharing of ideas.
An example of this is the Creative
Commons ‘ Global Network which
includes lawyers, scholars and activists
that work on various projects and
issues connected to sharing and
collaboration.
It all begins with
copyright…
The Sonny Bono Copyright Term
Extension Act (CTEA) of 1998
extended copyright terms in the
USA from 50 to 70 years. This
proved very controversial. Many
believed that this new act was
unconstitutional, as the copyright
term was continually being
extended over time. This did not
allow for creative works to fall into
the “public domain”, whereby
creative works such as books,
music and pictures could be used
and shared without obtaining
permission from the creator.
Sharing capabilities vs Sharing
restrictions
Copyright law regulates how creative
works are used; it grants a set of
exclusive rights to creators. Yet with
the advent of the internet, the sharing
capabilities it offered created direct
tension with the sharing restrictions
embedded in the copyright (as seen in
the Eldred vs Ashcroft case). To help
address this tension CC Licenses were
first released by the Creative
Commons in 2002.
The licenses are built on copyright,
and are designed to give more options
to creators who want to share under
more permissive terms than the
traditional “all rights reserved”
approach.
Six types of CC licenses exist that are
regularly used worldwide. In 2016 1.2
billion works had a creative common
license assigned.
Eldred vs Ashcroft
As a result of the CTEA, Eric Eldred, an
internet publisher who relied on the
public domain for his work filed a legal
complaint. The US Govt. who
supported the CTEA was represented
by Ashcroft. Eldred argued that if
copyright was continuously extended
over time, the question of copyright
for a "limited time" was meaningless.
Copyright law needed to ensure that a
balance existed between freedom of
speech and the interests of copyright -
Eldred argued that the CTEA did not
support this, and should therefore be
considered unconstitutional. The
subsequent appeals and hearings saw
the case taken right up to the US
Supreme Court.; where in 2003 the
decision was made to uphold the
CTEA.
CC Global Network
Creative Commons Network includes over
500 volunteers & community members
who serve as CC representatives in over 85
countries.
The CC Global Network is organized into
what is called “Network Platforms.” A
platform is an area of work, a space for
individuals and institutions to organize ,
coordinate, and communciate strategic
collaboration in order to have world-wide
impact. Currently there are 4 platforms:
• Copyright reform
• Open Education
• Galleries, Libraries, Archives & Museums
• Community Development
© When we share,
everyone wins