The Free Culture Foundation [1] was launched today to promote and protect cultural freedoms. The Foundation provides an accessible, independent introduction to the free culture movement, now a global phenomenon thanks to the Creative Commons licenses [2], organisations like Students for Free Culture [3] and artists like the Beastie Boys [4].
The Foundation defines 'free culture' in terms of four simple principles: the freedom to use, create, share and learn. In recognition of the controversy surrounding the Creative Commons licenses [5], the Foundation's new web site presents a set of essays that discuss precisely what these might mean. Future plans include packaging free art for free software users and commissioning a set of essays to explain the issues.Rob Myers, digital artist, said "we fill a gap left by the likes of Creative Commons, popularising a coherent set of principles. We don't pretend to have all the answers, but want people to think more about how technology and the law help or hinder our ability to watch films, write novels, share music with friends and learn to paint."
Myers continued, "no single person or organisation should define what the free culture movement is trying to achieve. As an artist I value the diversity of approaches we introduce, so our intention is to highlight the many people and groups in the movement and our important disagreements, rather than stepping on any toes. I hope we will contribute something of use for everyone interested in the issues we raise."
1. For more information about the FCF visit our web site:
http://freeculturefoundation.org
2. Creative Commons (http://creativecommons.org/) provide a set of copyright licenses that enable creators to define how people can use their work leaving only "some rights reserved", and thus providing more creative freedoms than "all rights reserved" copyright.
3. Students for Free Culture is an international chapter-based student organization that promotes the public interest in intellectual property and information & communications technology policy.
4. The Beastie Boys endorsed Creative Commons and shared a track as part of a remix competition: http://creativecommons.org/wired
5. Creative Commons licenses have been criticised by certain individuals in the media industry for tricking artists into giving away their rights. Members of the free software community claim that Creative Commons endorses "non-free" licenses such as those that prohibit commercial use. A number of other criticisms have also come from radical left political theorists, artists and lawyers alike.