Rhea Myers

Forum On Open Content

= Forum on Open Content =

== Where and When ==

  • When: Wednesday 22nd February 2006, 7-9pm

  • Where: Stanhope Centre, Marble Arch, London.

  • Directions: http://www.stanhopecentre.org/about/directions.shtml

  • Map: http://tinyurl.com/dlrpt

  • Who can attend: public. Registration is optional but useful so
    please notify us if you can via: okforums-info [at] okfn.org

  • Who is speaking:

  • Paula LeDieu, iCommons

  • Cory Doctorow, Writer and Campaigner

  • Tom Chance, RemixReading

  • Jennifer Rigby, BBC Creative Archive

== Subject Matter ==

This forum will focus on ‘open content’, that is works such as books,
music, and films which are provided under terms that allow for free
access, redistribution and re-use.

Open ‘content’ it would seem is everywhere what with Yahoo announcing
there were over 50 million web pages licensed under Creative Commons,
Microsoft teaming up with the British Library to digitize 100,000 out of
copyright books (under the aegis of the Open Content Alliance), and the
BBC piloting the Creative Archive project which will make large sections
of its back catalogue available for free online.

The forum provides a chance to discuss these dramatic changes as well as
to ask important questions such as:

  • What exactly does ‘open’ mean? Does it mean ‘full’ freedom to
    access, redistribute and re-use or are restrictions such as those in CC
    non-commercial licenses allowed?

  • How should we promote the creation and distribution of open content?

  • Who will be producing open content and how will it be funded?

  • Will there be an ‘open content’ revolution

  • To what extent do monopoly rights such as copyright hinder, or
    help, the development of open content?

= About the Open Knowledge Forums =

‘‘‘Promoting open information - getting it, using it, sharing it’’’

The Open Knowledge Forums are a series of informal gatherings centred on
the subject of open information/data. It aims to bring together those
/producing/ and those /campaigning/, and to cover everything from
software to the law. The sessions are usually held in the evenings in
London and their format is to have talks by three or four different
people followed by a general discussion.

The Open Knowledge Forums are organized by the Open Knowledge
Foundation: http://www.openknowledgefoundation.org/