Open content
Encyclopedia
Open content or OpenContent is a neologism coined by David Wiley
in 1998 which describes a creative work
that others can copy or modify. The term evokes open source
, which is a related concept in software.
When the term OpenContent was first used by Wiley, it described works licensed under the Open Content License
(a copyleft
licence) and perhaps other works licensed under similar terms. It has since come to describe a broader class of content without conventional copyright restrictions. The openness of content can be assessed under the '4Rs Framework' based on the extent to which it can be reused, revised, remixed and redistributed by members of the public without violating copyright law. Unlike open source
and free content
, there is no clear threshold that a work must reach to qualify as 'open content'.
Although open content has been described as a counterbalance to copyright
, open content licences rely on a copyright holder's power to license their work.
The term since shifted in meaning, and the OpenContent website now describes openness as a 'continuous construct'. The more copyright permissions are granted to the general public, the more open the content is. The threshold for open content is simply that the work 'is licensed in a manner that provides users with the right to make more kinds of uses than those normally permitted under the law - at no cost to the user.'
The 4Rs are put forward on the OpenContent website as a framework for assessing the extent to which content is open:
This broader definition distinguishes open content from open source software, since the latter must be available for commercial use and adaptation by the public. However, it is similar to several definitions for open educational resources
, which include resources under noncommercial and verbatim licences.
The Open Definition, which purports to define open content and open knowledge
, draws heavily on the Open Source Definition; it preserves the limited sense of open content as libre content.
, some open content materials can also be described as "free content
". However, free content has preserved the requirement (present in both open source and free software) that licences allow commercial use and adaptation. For similar reasons, the Free Software Foundation
describes the Open Content License as a non-free documentation licence.
access to content, consisting mainly of published peer-reviewed
scholarly journal articles. Some open access works are also licensed for reuse and redistribution, which would qualify them as open content.
David A. Wiley
David A. Wiley is an Associate Professor of Instructional Psychology & Technology at Brigham Young University. He is also Chief Openness Officer of Flat World Knowledge and founder of the Open High School of Utah...
in 1998 which describes a creative work
Creative work
A creative work is a tangible manifestation of creative effort such as literature, music, paintings, and software. Creative works have in common a degree of arbitrariness, such that it is improbable that two people would independently create the same work. Creative works are part of property...
that others can copy or modify. The term evokes open source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
, which is a related concept in software.
When the term OpenContent was first used by Wiley, it described works licensed under the Open Content License
Open Content License
The Open Content License is a copyleft license designed for distribution of open content material. This license is not compatible with the any other license in that it requires derivative works to be licensed under the Open Content License....
(a copyleft
Copyleft
Copyleft is a play on the word copyright to describe the practice of using copyright law to offer the right to distribute copies and modified versions of a work and requiring that the same rights be preserved in modified versions of the work...
licence) and perhaps other works licensed under similar terms. It has since come to describe a broader class of content without conventional copyright restrictions. The openness of content can be assessed under the '4Rs Framework' based on the extent to which it can be reused, revised, remixed and redistributed by members of the public without violating copyright law. Unlike open source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
and free content
Free content
Free content, or free information, is any kind of functional work, artwork, or other creative content that meets the definition of a free cultural work...
, there is no clear threshold that a work must reach to qualify as 'open content'.
Although open content has been described as a counterbalance to copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
, open content licences rely on a copyright holder's power to license their work.
Definition
The OpenContent website once defined OpenContent as 'freely available for modification, use and redistribution under a license similar to those used by the Open Source / Free Software community', that is to say, a libre licence which allows commercial adaptation of the work as well as its distribution. It is unclear if OpenContent was used to exclusively describe content licensed under the Open Content Licence (OPL) or if OPL content was a subset of OpenContent.The term since shifted in meaning, and the OpenContent website now describes openness as a 'continuous construct'. The more copyright permissions are granted to the general public, the more open the content is. The threshold for open content is simply that the work 'is licensed in a manner that provides users with the right to make more kinds of uses than those normally permitted under the law - at no cost to the user.'
The 4Rs are put forward on the OpenContent website as a framework for assessing the extent to which content is open:
# Reuse - the right to reuse the content in its unaltered / verbatim form (e.g., make a backup copy of the content)
- Revise - the right to adapt, adjust, modify, or alter the content itself (e.g., translate the content into another language)
- Remix - the right to combine the original or revised content with other content to create something new (e.g., incorporate the content into a mashup)
- Redistribute - the right to share copies of the original content, your revisions, or your remixes with others (e.g., give a copy of the content to a friend)
This broader definition distinguishes open content from open source software, since the latter must be available for commercial use and adaptation by the public. However, it is similar to several definitions for open educational resources
Open educational resources
Open educational resources are digital materials that can be re-used for teaching, learning, research and more, made available for free through open licenses, which allow uses of the materials that would not be easily permitted under copyright alone...
, which include resources under noncommercial and verbatim licences.
The Open Definition, which purports to define open content and open knowledge
Open Knowledge
Open Knowledge is a term used to denote a set of principles and methodologies related to the production and distribution of knowledge works in an open manner...
, draws heavily on the Open Source Definition; it preserves the limited sense of open content as libre content.
Free content and free documentation
As with the terms "open source" and "free software"Alternative terms for free software
Alternative terms for free software have been a controversial issue among free software users from the late 1990s onwards. Coined in 1983 by Richard Stallman, "free software" is used to describe software which can be used, modified, and redistributed with little or no restriction...
, some open content materials can also be described as "free content
Free content
Free content, or free information, is any kind of functional work, artwork, or other creative content that meets the definition of a free cultural work...
". However, free content has preserved the requirement (present in both open source and free software) that licences allow commercial use and adaptation. For similar reasons, the Free Software Foundation
Free Software Foundation
The Free Software Foundation is a non-profit corporation founded by Richard Stallman on 4 October 1985 to support the free software movement, a copyleft-based movement which aims to promote the universal freedom to create, distribute and modify computer software...
describes the Open Content License as a non-free documentation licence.
Open access
"Open access" refers to toll-free or gratisGratis
Gratis is the process of providing goods or services without compensation. It is often referred to in English as "free of charge" or "complimentary"...
access to content, consisting mainly of published peer-reviewed
Peer review
Peer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
scholarly journal articles. Some open access works are also licensed for reuse and redistribution, which would qualify them as open content.
Example Licenses
- Creative Commons licensesCreative Commons licensesCreative Commons licenses are several copyright licenses that allow the distribution of copyrighted works. The licenses differ by several combinations that condition the terms of distribution. They were initially released on December 16, 2002 by Creative Commons, a U.S...
(6 versions, as well as Creative Commons Zero) - Design Science LicenseDesign Science LicenseDesign Science License is a copyleft license for free content such as text, images, music and other content but not for documentation or source code. The DSL was written by Michael Stutz.-External links:*...
- Against DRM licenseAgainst DRM licenseAgainst DRM 2.0 is a free copyleft license for artworks. It is the first free content license that contains a clause about related rights and a clause against DRM.The first clause authorizes licensee to exercise related rights;...
- GNU Free Documentation LicenseGNU Free Documentation LicenseThe GNU Free Documentation License is a copyleft license for free documentation, designed by the Free Software Foundation for the GNU Project. It is similar to the GNU General Public License, giving readers the rights to copy, redistribute, and modify a work and requires all copies and...
- Open Content LicenseOpen Content LicenseThe Open Content License is a copyleft license designed for distribution of open content material. This license is not compatible with the any other license in that it requires derivative works to be licensed under the Open Content License....
(the original licence of the Open Content ProjectOpen Content ProjectThe Open Content Project was a project dedicated to creating Open content. Primarily designed for academics, the project's Open Publication License can easily be adapted to the needs of the artist or other content provider....
) - Open Game License (a licence designed for role-playing games by Wizards of the CoastWizards of the CoastWizards of the Coast is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games...
) - Open Publication LicenseOpen Publication LicenseOpen Publication License is a license open publications created by the Open Content Project, which now recommends using one of the Creative Commons licenses....
(the current license of the Open Content ProjectOpen Content ProjectThe Open Content Project was a project dedicated to creating Open content. Primarily designed for academics, the project's Open Publication License can easily be adapted to the needs of the artist or other content provider....
)
See also
- Digital freedom
- Free contentFree contentFree content, or free information, is any kind of functional work, artwork, or other creative content that meets the definition of a free cultural work...
- IdeagorasIdeagorasThe term Ideagoras refers to places on the Internet where large numbers of people or businesses gather to exchange ideas and solutions. The term was coined by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams in Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything. This term is a portmanteau of the modern...
- Open sourceOpen sourceThe term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
- Open dataOpen DataOpen data is the idea that certain data should be freely available to everyone to use and republish as they wish, without restrictions from copyright, patents or other mechanisms of control. The goals of the open data movement are similar to those of other "Open" movements such as open source, open...
- Open catalogueOpen catalogueOpen catalogue is an open content catalogue or free content catalogue, i.e., a structured database with information about products or other stored items in a standardized format...
External links
- IOSN Open Content e-Primer — from their FOSS e-Primers Section
- Open Knowledge Definition: Defining the Open in Open Data, Open Content and Open Information — set of principles from the Open Knowledge Foundation
Major open content repositories and directories
- OpenCourseWare Consortium — portal linking to free and openly licensed course materials from hundreds of universities worldwide
- MIT OpenCourseWare — free and openly licensed course materials from more than 1,800 MIT courses
- Connexions — global open-content repository started by Rice University
- OER Commons — network of open teaching and learning materials, with ratings and reviews
- OpenLearn — free and open educational resources from The Open University
- Comprehensive Knowledge Archive Network (CKAN) — directory/registry of open data/content packages and projects
- UNESCO Open Training Platform — network for international development issues
- Open ICEcat catalog — worldwide open catalog for product information
- LRE for schools - The Learning Resource Exchange for schools is a federation of repositories including open content from 18 Ministries of Education in Europe