Intellectual Property

In this challenge you will learn about the laws surrounding the ownership and distribution of creative works. A person’s intellectual property is their original, creative work — which might include writing, photographs, videos and music — and this property is protected by copyright law. There is often confusion, however, when intellectual property is published and shared online. The open access movement and Creative Commons aim to address this confusion by making it easier to access and share intellectual works online, while also maintaining ethical standards that respect the original authors, artists and creators.

To set a context slightly outside of the Internet, and to invite you to think about copyright as a ubiquitous phenomenon, please watch the following TED talk video.

In her presentation, Johanna Blakely discusses fashion as an industry in which it is commonplace to freely sample, reuse, and replicate the work of others –- extending to the very controversial “designer replicas” and knockoffs. Blakeley wonders how, in an era of well-produced designer fakes, the originals continue to fetch high prices associated with the upscale brands. She suggests that while some designers complain, they also assert that the possibility of being both overtly and brashly copied makes them more creative, competitive, and eager to establish brand exclusivity and advantage.

Blakely’s presentation about the fashion industry’s “culture of copying” raises many questions about intellectual property and copyright. When is it wrong or right to copy? What can we claim ownership over? When is it acceptable re-purpose someone else’s creative work? And what should be considered “open” for public use? The following quests will help you think through these often complex questions.

As evidence of successful completion of the Intellectual Property challenge, you will apply a Creative Commons license to an original work, and describe the level of openness in that work. Before completing the capstone activity below, please review resources in copyright and open access , along with this video on adding a Creative Commons license to your work.

In this activity you will use the knowledge you’ve gained thus far to decide whether or not to assign a Creative Commons license to an original work. This original work can be in any format (written, image, video), and should be fairly simple. It can be something you’ve already created, but it must be your own. For example, you could take a picture, write a lyric, or create a short video. The emphasis here is not on the actual creation. You will then decide whether or not you wish to apply a Creative Commons license. You should discuss your decision. Did you choose to apply a CC licenses? Why or why not? If you did, what license did you choose, and why? What are the implications of choosing to license in Creative Commons? What are the implications of choosing not to?