[Commons-sense] invitation: Creative Commons South Africa Workshop: 4 March, LINK Centre, Wits University

[Heather Ford]

INVITATION

Creative Commons South Africa Workshop: 4 March, LINK Centre, Wits University

The BBC is creating a digital archive that allows people to make use of their vast news archive for non-commercial purposes. IBM has pledged 500 patents for an industry "Software Commons" which will allow developers to grow innovative products using technical knowledge that has been released into the public domain. The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) is being forced to consider alternative mechanisms for encouraging innovation and creativity in countries around the world. 

So what do all these events signify? And who is fuelling these changes?
 
A radical new development in intellectual property law is the licensing of work for public, non-commercial use. The idea was so successful in the software industry with the development of "free and open source" software, that it is now being applied to licencing other types of creative works. At the head of this movement is Creative Commons, an organisation founded by Stanford Law Professor, Larry Lessig, who inspired the BBC Creative Archive to release thousands of television programs to the British public on the internet for non-commercial sharing and re-use.
 
Through a set of 'open content' licences, Creative Commons enables authors to release works to the public for copying, distribution and re-use under terms (non-commercial, no derivatives etc) set by the authors themselves. Creative Commons works (4.5 million of them) are being used in a variety of ways - by non-profits, in education, and even in new business models - encouraging lawyers and visionaries around the world to adapt the American licence to suit their national jurisdictions.
 
Creative Commons South Africa (http://za.creativecommons.org), hosted by the LINK Centre at Wits University (http://link.wits.ac.za), is creating a series of specifically South African licences, and now seeks input from the legal and intellectual property communities in order to develop a watertight South African version.
 
Many other countries such as the USA, Brazil, UK and Australia (http://creativecommons.org/worldwide/) have released Creative Commons licences, so by helping out, you'll be joining a global movement of individuals pioneering intellectual property developments in the information age. 
 
Please help us to make South Africa the first African nation to produce a jurisdiction-specific Creative Commons licence.
 
You can add your voice to the discussion by:
 
1)      Attending the workshop on Friday March 4 at the LINK Centre, Wits University (details are set out below)
AND
2)      Subscribing to Creative Commons South Africa e-mail newsletter (at http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/cc-za) where we will advise you of on-line discussions and of Creative Commons events.

Please forward this message to colleagues who may take an interest.
 
Best regards,

Andrew Rens and Heather Ford
Creative Commons South Africa
 
March 4 Workshop on draft Creative Commons licence:
 
When? 4 March, 2005: 9.30am - 4.30pm
Where? LINK Centre, Mwalimu House, University of the Witwatersrand, Public and Development Management Campus, 2 St David's Place, Parktown 
(See http://link.wits.ac.za/images/map_new.gif for a map)
 
Who? Intellectual Property lawyers, broadcasters, the media and policy experts in South Africa.
 
See the draft licence here: http://creativecommons.org/worldwide/za/english-changes 
 
Please RSVP to or request further information from Heather Ford, Project Lead, Creative Commons South Africa; ford.h at pdm.wits.ac.za  
 

News Reports referred to:
 
(1) http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2004/05_may/26/creative_archive.shtml    
 
(2) http://www-1.ibm.com/businesscenter/venturedevelopment/us/en/xslpage/xmlid/26770 
 
 
 
 
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