TheImpactofOpenAccessonGalleries,Libraries,Museums,&Archives

EffieKapsalisSmithsonianEmergingLeadersDevelopmentProgramApril27,2016

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ExecutiveSummaryForthepurposeofthisdocument,“openaccess”isdefinedasmakingpublicdomainmaterialsopenforusewithoutanyrestrictions,andmakingcopyrightedmaterialsavailableundertheprovisionsoffairuse(non-commercial,educational).Morethan50institutionshave,tovaryingdegrees,pursuedopenaccessoverthelastdecade,removingtechnicalandcopyrightbarrierstotheirdigitizedcollectionsandresources.Astrengthenedinstitutionalbrand,increaseduseanddisseminationofcollections,andincreasedfundingopportunitieshavebeensomeofthebenefitsassociatedwithopen-accessinitiatives.ArecentAndrewW.MellonFoundationstudy,“ImagesofWorksofArtinMuseumCollections:TheExperienceofOpenAccess,aStudyof11Museums,”foundthatamongthemuseumsstudied,nonethatenforcedcopyrightrestrictionsmadeanysignificantsurplusorprofitagainsttheirexpenditures.Itconcluded,“realandperceivedgainsfaroutweightherealandperceivedlossesforeverymuseuminthestudythathasmadeatransitiontoanopenaccessapproach.”1Recently,severalfunders,includingtheBill&MelindaGatesFoundation,FordFoundation,andWilliamandFloraHewlettFoundation,havemadeopenaccesseitherarequirementforgiftrecipientsorafactorinassessingpotentialgifts.Furthermore,PresidentBarackObama’sOpenGovernmentInitiative,launchedin2009,hasbuiltanincreasingexpectationfromthepublicthatallgovernmententitieswillmovetowardspracticesthataremoreopen,whichplacesfederalentitiesatriskforpublicperceptionofnotpursuingbestpractices.Finally,ascrowdsourcinginitiativesgaintractionintheculturalheritagespace,itistheorganizationsthatprioritizeopennessandsharingthatarereapingthemostbenefits.

IntroductionOverthepast20ormoreyears,digitaltechnologieshavedramaticallychangedthewayweconsumeinformation,impactingrevenue-generatingactivitiesforbusinessesfrommusictopublishingtoeducation.Contentisabundantandcompetitionforattentionisatanall-timehigh.Thisphenomenonhasimpactedculturalheritage,scienceandart

1Kelly,Kristin,“ImagesofWorksofArtinMuseumCollections:TheExperienceofOpenAccess,aStudyof11Museums,”p.24.PreparedforTheAndrewW.MellonFoundation.CouncilonLibraryandInformationResources,June2013.http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub157/pub157.pdf,accessed7/8/2015.

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institutions,asthepublicnowexpectsourcollectionstobeeasilyaccessiblewithoutrestrictions.Earlyadoptersinthegallery,library,archiveandmuseum(GLAM)sectorhavetestedthewatersinopeningdigitalrepresentationsofcollectionstounrestricteduse,despitefearsoverlossofrevenue,intellectualcontrolandin-personvisitation.Whileitwasimmediatelyclearthatconcernsaboutlossofintellectualcontrolandin-personvisitationwerenotwellsupported,2onlynowdowehaveinformationonthefinancialimpactofopenaccess(asdefinedbelow).Morethan50institutions3havepursuedopenaccessthroughsometypeofpublicdomainorCreativeCommonsdesignation,removing,tovaryingdegrees,technicalandcopyrightbarrierstotheirdigitizedcollections(SeveraloftheseeffortsaresummarizedinAppendixA).Insomeinstances,organizationshavegonefurtherandmadeuseoftheCreativeCommons“FreeCulturalWorks”designation,CC04,whichisaninternationally-recognizedlicensethatallowsuserstocopy,modify,distributeandperformthework,evenforcommercialpurposes,allwithoutaskingpermission.CreativeCommonsisanon-profitorganizationthatdevelops,supports,andstewardslegalandtechnicalinfrastructureinordertomaximizedigitalcreativity,sharing,andinnovation.WithoveradecadeofGLAMopenaccess,severaltrendsandinsightshaveemergedfortheseorganizations:

• Whileopenaccessmaycausealossinrightsandreproductionrevenueinlimitedcases,itcanalsoleadtosignificantnewopportunitiesinfundraisingandbrandlicensing.

• Openaccessresultsincostsavingsassociatedwithrightsandreproductionmanagementoverhead.

• Openaccessallowsorganizationstorealignstaffwithmoremission-criticalactivities,resultinginmoreefficientandlesscostlyimagemanagementanddigitizationfunctions.

• Byfurtheringresearch,educationalandcreativeactivities,openaccessalsoadvancesthemissionsoftheseinstitutions.

• Openaccesssignificantlyincreasesuseandawarenessofaninstitution’scollections.

• Openaccesscreatesastrengthenedandmorerelevantbrand.

2Kelly2013,p.23–243https://wiki.creativecommons.org/wiki/GLAM4https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0

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Defining“OpenAccess”Openaccessmeansdifferentthingstodifferentorganizations.TheOpenKnowledgeFoundation(OKF)definesOpenKnowledgeas,“whatopendatabecomeswhenit’suseful,usableandused.”5ThekeyfeaturesofOpenKnowledge,asdefinedbyOKF,are:

• Availabilityandaccess• Reuseandredistribution• Universalparticipation

AspartofitsOpenDefinitionproject,OKFfurtherelaborates,“Openmeansanyonecanfreelyaccess,use,modify,andshareforanypurpose(subject,atmost,torequirementsthatpreserveprovenanceandopenness).”6Forthepurposesofthispaperanditsappendices,wewillusethefollowingdefinitions:

1. Forpublicdomainandothermaterialsforwhichaninstitutionhasconsciouslyrelinquisheditscopyright(oftenexpressedthroughaCC0license),openaccessgenerallymeansfullaccessandusewithoutrestriction.

2. Forcopyrightedmaterials,openaccessmeansaccessanduseonlywhenconsistentwithfairuse,whichisnon-commercial,educationaland/ortransformativeuse.

However,itisalsoimportanttoacknowledgethatthereisnouniversalconsensusaboutthedefinitionofopenaccess,andamongpractitioners,muchconfusionpersistsaboutwhatconstitutesopenaccess.Forexample,theannouncementoftheonlineavailabilityoftheentireFreerSacklercollectionunderthebrand“OpenF|S”hascreatedthemistakenimpressionthattheFreerSacklerisprovidingopenaccessasdefinedabove.Inreality,theFreerSacklerteamavoidedanymentionof“openaccess,”whilestilltryingtocommunicatethatthecompletenessofinformation,aswellasavailabilityofhigh-resolutionimages,markedanewmilestoneintermsofthe“openness”ofitscollection.Othermuseums,mostnotablytheMetropolitanMuseumofArt,havebeenroundlycriticizedbyopenaccessadvocatesfortheiruseoftheterm“openaccess”whentheactualtermsofthedatareleasefallsignificantlyshortofcommunityexpectations7.

5https://okfn.org/opendata/6http://opendefinition.org/7“MetropolitanMuseumofArt400,000Images,WithRestriction,”byJillianSteinhauer,Hyperallergic,May19,2014,http://hyperallergic.com/127278/metropolitan-museum-of-art-releases-400000-images-with-restriction,accessed09/04/2015.

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TheBusinessofRightsandReproductionIn2004,aMellonFoundationstudy,“Reproductionchargingmodels&rightspolicyfordigitalimagesinAmericanartmuseums,”8examined“thecostandpolicymodelsadoptedbyartmuseumsintheUSAinarrivingatpricingstructuresfordeliveringsurrogatesofuniqueorrareartworksandartifactsasdigitalobjects.”9Throughasurveyandinterviewswithover120U.S.artmuseums,theauthorsofthestudyfoundthat:

Noneofthemuseumsinterviewedclaimedtomakeanysignificantsurplusorprofitsagainsttheirexpenditure…Everyoneinterviewedwantstorecoupcostsbutalmostnoneclaimedtoactuallyachieveorexpectedtoachievethis.Internaltransactionsoftenaccountfor50-75%ofserviceactivityandareusuallyuncharged…Eventhoseservicesthatclaimedtorecoupfullcostsgenerallydidnotaccountfullyforsalarycostsoroverheadexpenses.Manyhadgainedtheirequipmentthroughspecialfundingandthusequipmentwasagainnotadirectcostiteminrelationtothepricetagoffered.10

OpenAccessinU.S.GovernmentOnhisfirstdayofofficein2009,PresidentBarackObamalaunchedtheOpenGovernmentInitiative11withthreemandates:

• Governmentshouldbetransparent.• Governmentshouldbeparticipatory.• Governmentshouldbecollaborative.12

TheNationalArchivesreleaseditsfirstOpenGovernmentPlanin2010withthegoalofsupportinggreateraccesstotheirholdingsonline.13TheLibraryofCongresssimilarlydoesnotreserveanyrightstoitscollections14andplacestheonusonmembersofthepublictoclearrightsontheirown.15InApril2014,theNationalGalleryofArtannounced

8Tanner,Simon,“Reproductionchargingmodels&rightspolicyfordigitalimagesinAmericanartmuseums.”AnAndrewW.MellonFoundationstudy.King’sDigitalConsultancyServices,August2004.http://www.kdcs.kcl.ac.uk/fileadmin/documents/pubs/USMuseum_SimonTanner.pdf,accessed7/8/2015.9Ibid,p.510Ibid,p.3311https://www.whitehouse.gov/open12https://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/TransparencyandOpenGovernment/13http://www.archives.gov/open/open-plan.html14http://www.loc.gov/legal#copyright15http://www.loc.gov/pictures/about/#rights

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thereleaseof35,000imagesonitswebsiteintothepublicdomain,forallusesincludingcommercial.16OpenaccessinscientificresearchhasbecomeaprioritywiththeWhiteHouseinthelasttwoyears.In2013,theWhiteHouseOfficeofScienceandTechnologyPolicy(OSTP)issuedamemorandummandatingthatFederalagencieswithmorethan$100millioninR&Dexpendituresneededtodevelopplanstomakethepublishedresultsoffederallyfundedresearchfreelyavailabletothepublicwithinoneyearofpublication.17Laterin2013,18theWhiteHousemandatedthatgovernmentinformationbeboth“open”and“machine-readable.”InMarch2014,theadministrationissuedamemorandumonscientificcollectionswiththefollowingdirective:

d)Whenavailableandwherenotlimitedbylaw,makefreelyandeasilyaccessibletothepublicalldigitalfilesinthehighestavailablefidelityandresolution,including,butnotlimitedto,photographs,videos,anddigital3Dmodels,andassociatedrecordsanddocumentation,describingorcharacterizingobjectsingovernment-managedscientificcollections.19

Intheeducationsector,theWhiteHouseOfficeofScienceandTechnologyPolicyandtheU.S.DepartmentofEducation(ED)areworkingonidentifyingopportunitiesforimplementingopenaccesspoliciestoinformtheAdministration’sopengovernmentinitiatives,includingtheOpenGovernmentNationalActionPlan,20whichwillimpactthetermsassociatedwithgrantsawardedbytheDepartmentofEducation.Thishasbuiltanincreasingexpectationfromthepublicthatallgovernmententitieswillcomplywiththesemandates,whichplacesfederalandgovernmentalagenciesatriskforpublicperceptionofnon-compliance.

GLAMFundersandOpenAccessRecently,severalfoundationshavemadeopenaccesseitherarequirementforgrantrecipientsorafactorinassessingpotentialgrantees.Threelargefundershavemadeopenaccessarequirementforcontent/publicationscreatedwithgrantdollars:theBill

16http://openglam.org/2014/04/15/us-national-gallery-of-art-releases-35k-public-domain-images/17https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/02/22/expanding-public-access-results-federally-funded-research18https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/05/09/executive-order-making-open-and-machine-readable-new-default-government-19http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/ostp_memo_scientific_collections_march_2014.pdf20https://www.whitehouse.gov/open/partnership/national-action-plans

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&MelindaGatesFoundation,theFordFoundation,andTheWilliamandFloraHewlettFoundation.InJanuary1,2015,theBill&MelindaGatesFoundationadoptedanopenaccesspolicy.Thetermsforfuturegrantsareasfollows:

1. PublicationsAreDiscoverableandAccessibleOnline.Publicationswillbedepositedinaspecifiedrepository(s)withpropertaggingofmetadata.

2. PublicationWillBeOn“OpenAccess”Terms.AllpublicationsshallbepublishedundertheCreativeCommonsAttribution4.0GenericLicense(CCBY4.0)oranequivalentlicense.Thiswillpermitallusersofthepublicationtocopyandredistributethematerialinanymediumorformatandtransformandbuilduponthematerial,includingforanypurpose(includingcommercial)withoutfurtherpermissionorfeesbeingrequired.

3. FoundationWillPayNecessaryFees.Thefoundationwouldpayreasonablefeesrequiredbyapublishertoeffectpublicationontheseterms.

4. PublicationsWillBeAccessibleandOpenImmediately.Allpublicationsshallbeavailableimmediatelyupontheirpublication,withoutanyembargoperiod.Anembargoperiodistheperiodduringwhichthepublisherwillrequireasubscriptionorthepaymentofafeetogainaccesstothepublication.Weare,however,providingatransitionperiodofuptotwoyearsfromtheeffectivedateofthepolicy(oruntilJanuary1,2017).Duringthetransitionperiod,thefoundationwillallowpublicationsinjournalsthatprovideuptoa12-monthembargoperiod.

5. DataUnderlyingPublishedResearchResultsWillBeAccessibleandOpenImmediately.Thefoundationwillrequirethatdataunderlyingthepublishedresearchresultsbeimmediatelyaccessibleandopen.Thistooissubjecttothetransitionperiodanda12-monthembargomaybeapplied.”21

InFebruary2015,theFordFoundationadoptedasimilarpolicy,stating:

…granteesandconsultantswillberequiredtomakefoundation-fundedmaterialssubjecttoaCreativeCommonslicenseallowingothers,freeofchargeandwithoutrequestingpermission,theabilitytocopy,redistribute,andadaptexistingmaterials,providedtheygiveappropriatecredittotheoriginalauthor.…Projectgrantsfromthefoundationwillincludearequirementthatthegranteewidelydisseminateallcopyrightableproductsfundedbyafoundationgrant—includingwhitepapers,researchreports,andwebsites—andlicensethemundertheCCBY4.0license.22

21http://www.gatesfoundation.org/How-We-Work/General-Information/Open-Access-Policy22http://www.fordfoundation.org/newsroom/news-from-ford/934

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TheCCBY4.0license23alsoallowscommercialuses.InSeptember2014,theWilliamandFloraHewlettFoundationannouncedthat:

…beginningthisyearwewillaskgranteestolicensematerialscreatedwithourgrantdollars.Morespecifically,theHewlettFoundationnowrequiresthatgranteesreceivingproject-basedgrants—thosemadeforaspecificpurpose—openlylicensethefinalmaterialscreatedwiththosegrants(reports,videos,whitepapers,andthelike)underthemostrecentCreativeCommonsAttributionlicense.Wealsowillrequirethatthematerialsbemadeeasilyaccessibletothepublic,suchasbypostingthemtothegrantee’swebsite.24

ThemostrecentCreativeCommonsAttributionlicenseisCCBY4.0,whichagainallowsuseforanypurposeincludingcommercial.CreativeCommonslicenseshavebecometheglobalstandardforsharing25acrosscultural,educational,governmental,andscientificinstitutions,andofferthepublicaneasilyunderstoodsummaryofthelicenseasasupplementtotheactuallegalterms.TheCouncilonLibraryandInformationResources(CLIR,seebelow)andtheAlfredP.SloanFoundation26alsoconsideropenaccessasacriterioninawardinggrants.Inthelast10years,CLIRhasawardedtheSmithsonianover$800,000,andSloannearly$13million.TheSloanFoundation,whichin2011fundedastudyonScienceatCreativeCommons,27fundsbasicscientificresearch.CLIR’sDigitizingHiddenCollectionsprogram,supportedbytheAndrewW.MellonFoundation,isexpectedtoaward$4millionin2015tosupportthedigitizationof“collectionsofrareanduniquecontentinculturalmemoryinstitutions.”28Applicationswillbejudgedinaccordancewiththeprogram’sfivecorevalues:

• Scholarship:Theprogramisdesignedtomaximizeitsimpactonthecreationanddisseminationofnewknowledge.

• Comprehensiveness:Theprogramsupportsthedigitizationofentire(oratleastquantifiablysubstantialproportionsof)collectionsofsignificantscholarlyvalue,andencourage[sic]makingtheseeasilydiscoverableincontext,alongsiderelatedmaterialsonline.

23https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/24http://www.hewlett.org/blog/posts/helping-good-ideas-go-further25https://creativecommons.org/who-uses-cc26AlfredP.SloanFoundation.“AlfredP.SloanFoundationGrantApplicationGuidelines,”May22,2014,p.6.http://www.sloan.org/fileadmin/media/files/application_documents/proposal_guidelines_non_research_trustee.pdf,accessed9/1/2015.27https://wiki.creativecommons.org/wiki/Science28http://www.clir.org/hiddencollections

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• Collaboration:Theprogrampromotesstrategicpartnershipsratherthanduplicationofcapacityandeffort.

• Sustainability:Theprogrampromotesbestpracticesforensuringthelong-termavailabilityanddiscoverabilityofdigitalfilescreatedthroughdigitization.

• Openness:Theprogramensuresthatdigitizedcontentwillbemadeavailabletothepublicaseasilyandcompletelyaspossible.29

TheAndrewW.MellonFoundationthatfundstheCLIRDigitizingHiddenCollectionsprogramhasfundedthetwomainreportsonopencollectionsinartmuseumswritteninthepastdecade.Whilecorporationshavebeenslowertoadoptopenaccess,someofthemostinnovative,forward-lookingcorporationshaveadaptedtheconceptof“open,”especiallyintechnologyandbiotech.Teslahasmadeallitspatentsopensource,andAmgen,Merck,SanofiandothersarebandingtogetherinopensourceR&D.Autodesk,aleadingcompanyfordesign,engineering,andentertainmentsoftwareisgivingawayallitssoftwareforfreetoeducationalinstitutions.Thecompanyhasstartedtorequireasimilarapproachfromthecausesitsupports:BrianMathews,VicePresident,GroupCTOatAutodesk,stated“wewereworkingcloselywitha501c3non-profit,donatingwelloversixfigures.Ultimately,asadirectconsequenceoflackofsufficientopenaccessandrelatedissues,wedecidedtoredirectourmonetarysupportelsewhereandreduceourinvolvementtobasicconsulting.”Finally,whiletheJ.PaulGettyTrustdoesnotrequireopenaccessinitsgrantmaking,theGettyMuseumhastakenstepstomakeitscollectionsavailableforopenaccess30.Inall,GLAMinstitutionsreliantonthesefoundationsthatnoweitherrequireorprioritizeopenaccesswhenselectinggranteescouldloseoutonthisimportantinstitutionalsupport.Inthefuture,grantproposalstothesesameorganizationsmightberejectedasaresultofanorganization’srestrictivetermsofuse.

OpenAccessandBrandLicensingSomeinstitutions,especiallythosewhichcoupledstrongmarketingcampaignswiththeiropenaccessprograms,haveseenamajorincreaseinbrandlicensingopportunities.InthecaseoftheRijksmuseumintheNetherlands,theiropencollectionsinitiativeincreasedawarenessoftheRijksbrandsomuchthattheirnamebecamesynonymouswithfamousartistssuchasVermeerandRembrandt(seeAppendixA.)Thisincreased

29http://www.clir.org/hiddencollections/applicants30“TheGettyOpenContentProgram,”http://www.getty.edu/about/opencontent.html,accessed7/8/2015.

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brandreputationledtomajorDutchandmultinationalbrandsseekingbrandpartnerships.TheRijk’spartnershipwithHeinekenhasledtopackagingdesignawardsandtheirnationalgrocerychain,AlbertHeijn,hasdevelopedproductlinesinspiredbymasterartworks31.TheNewYorkPublicLibrarymadetheiropenaccessannouncementinJanuary2016.Withinthefirsttwoweeksoftheirannouncement,theywereapproachedbyamajorretailerforbrandlicensing(seeAppendixA.)Replacingsmallrevenueslostfromadecreaseinrights&reproductionactivitieswasnotagoalofmanyoftheinstitutionsinterviewedforthisreport.However,iforganizationsdesiredtoreplacerights&reproductionincome,brandlicensingiscertainlyanavenueworthinvestigating.

RealitiesandRisks Therearerisksassociatedwithstayingwithrestrictivetermsofuse,aswellaswithadoptinganopenaccessmodel.Forthepurposesofthispaper,IwillfocusontherisksthatorganizationsreportedininterviewsconductedforAppendixA,aswellasonrisksreportedina2013reportfundedbytheCouncilonLibraryandInformationResources(CLIR)andpreparedbytheAndrewW.MellonFoundation:“ImagesofWorksofArtinMuseumCollections:TheExperienceofOpenAccess,aStudyof11Museums.”32Therisksanddownsidesofadoptinganopenaccessmodelare:

• Additionaltraffictoorganizationalwebsitesfrompublicdemandresultinginincreaseddemandontechnicalinfrastructure.

• Increasedworkloadforstaffmembersinfulfillingrequests,ifself-servicedownloadisnotimplemented.

• Lossofrevenuefromrightsandreproductionactivitiesforpublicdomainmaterials(butnotfromlicensingtheorganization’sbrand).33

• Somelossofintellectualcontrol;however,thisislikelymuchlessthanfeared.34

31“SpecialSinterklaasRijksmuseumassortmentinstores,”https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/nl/nu-in-het-museum/nieuws/albert-heijn-partner-rijksmuseum,accessed2/16/16 32Kelly2013,p.23-29.33Whilenotthemainimpetusforadoptinganopenaccesspolicy,someinstitutionssuchastheNewYorkPublicLibraryandtheRijksmuseum,haveseenincreasedactivityaroundbrandlicensing.34SeeKelly2013,p.27:“Lossofcontrolfadesasaconcern…theworstfearsofmuseumstaffhavenotbeenrealized.Noonecitedinappropriateusesofimagesthusfar.”AstheNationalGalleryofArtreported(Kelly2013,p.23),“The NGA had already lost control of many images of its most famous works of art, and it was better to make a high-quality, high resolution image available.”

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AsissummarizedintheMellon/CLIRreport,“Realandperceivedgainsfaroutweightherealandperceivedlossesforeverymuseuminthestudythathasmadeatransitiontoanopenaccessapproach.”35Therisks/downsidesassociatedwithstayingwithmorerestrictiveTermsofUseare:

• Decreasedfundingopportunitiesasmorefoundationsrequireopenaccess(see“FoundationsandOpenAccess,”above).

• Decreasedbrandlicensingrevenueopportunities.• Reducedopportunitiesforcollaborationwithotherculturalheritage,artand

scientificorganizations,aswellaswiththefederalgovernment.• AsWikipediarequirespublicdomainmedia,organizationswithrestrictiveterms

ofusecan’tcontributetothispopularonlineencyclopediathatisinthetop10formostpopularwebsitesworldwide,andcontributestosignificantincreasesinexposureofGLAMcontent(seeFigureAinAppendixA).Additionally,Wikipediavolunteersarelesslikelytowritearticlesaboutmaterialthatisrestricted.

• Reducedawarenessanduseofcollectionsasmoreopeninstitutionsclaimpublicattention.

• Reducedreputationas“worldclass”andrelevant.• Potentialreductioninactivityfromonlinevolunteersduetoperceptionthat

theirworkisnotsupportinganopeneffort.• Largeamountsofstafftimespentonnon-mission-criticaltaskssuchas

respondingtoimagerequests.36

Elevatedbrandrecognition/reputationandincreaseduseanddisseminationofcollectionswerethetoptwobenefitsassociatedwithopenaccessinitiatives,asdetailedinAppendixA.AccordingtoSmithsonianpublicaffairsspecialist,SarahSulick:

Openingupourcollectionlivesuptothepromiseofourbrand‘fortheincreaseanddiffusionofknowledge.’Itnotonlyisapublicgood,it’salsoawonderfulpublicrelationsstrategy;wegivepeopletheabilitytouseourcontentinwayswecan’tevenimagineandtheybecomeambassadorsforthevastculturalandscientificresourcesthattheSmithsonianholds.

Intermsofcollectionsuseanddissemination,onceaninstitutionmakesitscollectionsopen,digitalvolunteersdotheworktodisseminatethemevenfurther.WhentheWikipediacommunitymigratedimagesfromtheSmithsonian’sFlickrCommonsaccounttoWikimedia,thecollectionssawahugeincreaseinsearchengineplacement.FortheSmithsonianInstitutionArchivesalone,theimagesonWikimediaCommonshave35Kelly2013,p.2436In a blog post entitled “Reusing Te Papa’s collections images, by the numbers,” Adrian Kingston, digital collections analyst at the Te Papa Museum of New Zealand, writes that since releasing the museum’s collections online without restrictions (in June 2014), staff members have been spared from approving 14,000 image requests — and writing at least 28,000 emails. http://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/2015/04/10/reusing-te-papas-collections-images-by-the-numbers/

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received1milliontimesasmanyviewsasthoseontheArchives’ownwebsite.Additionally,Wikipediavolunteersinanedit-a-thonusedtheimagestowritearticlesaboutprominentfemalescientists,37resultinginmorethan60newarticles—includingoneonourownformerUnderSecretaryforScience,EvaJ.Pell.38AnincreasingnumberofnationalandworldwideGLAMprojects,suchastheDigitalPublicLibraryofAmerica39andEuropeana40,areembracingopenaccess.Whilethemorerestrictiveorganizationsareabletocontributedataaboutitscollectionstotheseportals,organizationsthatareabletosharedigitalmediaassociatedwiththeirdatadobetterinthesespacesandhavemoreopportunitiesforpartnering(seeAppendixA.)Finally,ascrowdsourcinginitiativesgaintractionintheculturalheritagespace,itistheorganizationsthataremostopen(releasingcollectionsaspublicdomainorCC0whenpossible)thatarereapingthebenefits.AccordingtotheSmithsonianTranscriptionCenter’stopvolunteer,SiobhanLeachman:

The“don’twanttofeeltakenadvantageof”sentimentcomesfrommybeliefthatifI’mdonatingmytimeasavolunteer,generatingcontentanddata,Iregardthatdata/contentasnotjustfortheinstitutionI’mworkingforbutforeveryone.IfthecontentI’vegeneratedoutofa“forthegreatergood”motivationislicensedunderarestrictivelicense,Iwouldfeeltakenadvantageof.AndIwouldquicklystopgeneratingcontentforthatinstitution.Thereareplentyofcrowdsourcing/citizenscienceprojectsouttheredesperateforvolunteers,andthat“market”isonlygoingtogetmoreandmorecompetitive.Iregardmy“pay”forbeingavolunteerastheopenaccesstothecontentIgenerate.

ConclusionThecasestudiesexaminedinAppendixAfindthatfearsaboutlossofintellectualcontrolofcollections,orreductionsinthenumberofin-personvisits,duetoopenaccesspoliciesarelargelyunfounded.Withanopenaccesspolicy,revenuefromrightsandreproductionactivitiesarereduced,butretainingmorerestrictivetermsofusemaycostorganizationsinfundingopportunities,stafftime,andreputation.AsGLAMorganizationsconsidertheirfuturesustainabilityastheir“typical”audienceagesout,theymustexaminetheimpactthatmorerestrictivetermsofusewillhaveontheirrelevanceasanorganization.Withinformationfromadecadeofopenaccessprograms

37SmithsonianInstitutionArchives“WomeninScience”WikipediaTo-DoList:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Meetup/DC_30/To-do_list38https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eva_J._Pell39http://http://dp.la/40http://www.europeana.eu/portal/

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intheGLAMworld,organizationsnowareintheadvantageouspositiontoassesstheirtermsofusebasedonevidenceandthesector’scollectiveexperience.

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AppendixA:OpenAccessCaseStudiesThefollowingnationalandinternationalcasestudieslookattheresultsofgalleries,libraries,archives,andmuseums(GLAM)pursuinganopenaccessmodel.Whiletheymostlypursuedopenaccessformission-relatedreasons,severalhavenotedincreasedopportunitiesforfundraisingbecauseoftheiropenstance.Additionally,allreportsignificantincreasedawarenessanduseofcollectionscoupledwithimprovedpublicimage.

U.S.OrganizationsCooperHewitt,SmithsonianDesignMuseumIntervieweeSebastianChan,formerdirectorofdigitalandemergingmedia,CooperHewittOverviewCooperHewitt,SmithsonianDesignMuseum,receivedin-kindworkfrom3DSystemstodevelopa3Dmodeland3DdataoftheCarnegiemansion.CooperHewitthasalsoreleaseditscollectionsdata41withtheCreativeCommons“CC0”openlicense,42whichmeansthattheCooperHewittreservesnorightstothesedata—soessentially,theyareinthepublicdomain.SebChan,founderofCooperHewittLabs,explainsthisdecision:

Philosophically,too,thepublicreleaseofcollectionmetadataasserts,clearly,thatsuchmetadataistherawmaterialonwhichinterpretationthroughexhibitions,catalogues,publicprograms,andexperiencesarebuilt.Onitsown,unrefined,itisofminimal‘value’exceptasatoolfordiscovery.Italsohelpsremindusthatcollectionmetadataisnotthecollectionitself.43

Finally,CooperHewittreleasedthefontitusesforitsidentityandbrandunderan‘OpenFontLicense’whichpermitsunrestrictedcommercialandnon-commercialuse,aswellasmodification.44Scope3DscanoftheCarnegieMansion,collectionsmetadata,andCooperHewittfont.Funding

41Collectionsdataprovidedescriptiveinformationabouttheobject,suchasitstitle,author,medium,etc.TheSmithsonianconsidersitsmetadatatobeinthepublicdomain,anditisfreelysharedthroughtheDigitalPublicLibraryofAmerica.42http://creativecommons.org/about/cc043Chan,Sebastian,“ReleasingthecollectiononGitHub,”CooperHewittLabsblog,February2012,http://labs.cooperhewitt.org/2012/releasing-collection-github/44http://www.cooperhewitt.org/open-source-at-cooper-hewitt/

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In-kindworkfrom3DSystems.Results

• CooperHewittisseenasaleaderindigitalhumanities.4546• PublicawarenessofCooperHewitt’seffortshasenhanceditsnewbrandidentity

asadesignresourcetobeusedand“notjustlookedat.”• AccordingtoChan,theuseofopendataandresourceshashelpedshiftthefocus

ofcuratorialandregistrationstafftoward“thevisitorpointofviewratherthantheperfectionofcollectionsmetadata.Thishashadinnumerableimplicationsbuthasbeenkeytotheirorganizationalshifttowardsthevisitor.”

DallasMuseumofArtIntervieweeRobStein,formerdeputydirector,DallasMuseumofArtScopeandCopyrightDesignationIn2013,theDallasMuseumofArtreceiveda$9millionanonymousgifttosupportfreeadmissionandfreeonlineaccesstoitsentirecollectionof22,000collectionsobjects.47Ofthattotal,$5millionwasfordigitizationofthemuseum’spermanentcollectionalongwiththecreationofeducationalcontenttosupport“freeonlineexperienceswithart.”Publicdomaincollectionobjectsarelistedassuch,andwhenevercopyrightallows,high-resolutionimagesareavailablefordownload.Thegiftalsoincludesresourcestomeasuretheeducationalimpactoftheproject,informationwhichisforthcoming.MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollections“Asaninstitutionitwasimportantforustopublishourentirecollectiononline,”saysStein.“Thereasoningwentbeyondtransparencyandopenness:wefeltthatweneededtomorepositivelyandstronglybroadcastthefactthattheDallasMuseumofArthasadeepandencyclopediccollection.”48ResultsThedonationhasallowedtheDMAtoreconsiderandincreasetheefficiencyofitsprocessesforcollectionsdigitization,datamanagement,andpublication.Themuseum45AccordingtotheCUNYDigitalHumanitiesResourceGuidehttp://commons.gc.cuny.edu/wiki/index.php/The_CUNY_Digital_Humanities_Resource_Guide),“digitalhumanities”pertainstoresearchandteachingattheintersectionofcomputingandthehumanitiesdisciplines.46Ridge,Mia,Editors’Choice:ExploringtheCooper-HewittCollectionRound-Up,DigitalHumanitiesNowblog,June21,2012,

http://digitalhumanitiesnow.org/2012/06/editors-choice-exploring-the-cooper-hewitt-collection-round-up/.47https://www.dma.org/press-release/dallas-museum-art-announces-9-million-gift-support-free-general-admission-and-free48http://mw2015.museumsandtheweb.com/paper/new-architectures-for-online-collections-and-digitization/

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builttoolsthat,accordingtoStein,“[provide]staffwithaunifiedresourcetoconsultthelevelofcompletionforimageandobjectinformation;analyticstotrackstatusofimageproductionandingest;andasimpletoolkittomakeadjustmentstothepresentationofthisinformationonline.”Hence,staffareabletoeasilyviewthestatusofanimageinrelationtoitsdata,digitization,andpublication.GettyOpenContentProgramIntervieweeStanleySmith,headofcollectioninformationandaccess,J.PaulGettyMuseumScopeandCopyrightDesignationThereare112,239objectsavailableontheGettyMuseum’scollectionwebpages.Ofthese,approximately18,000aredesignatedas“OpenContent”49andhigh-resolutioncopiescanbedirectlydownloaded.Additionally,theGettyResearchInstitutehasapproximately83,000OpenContentimagesavailableonitswebsite.MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollectionsTheGettyrealizedthattherevenuethemuseumwascollecting(about$45KinFY2013)tolicenseuseofitsimageswasoutpacedbytheexpenseofdoingso(seerelatedMellonFoundationsponsoredreport,ChangingModelsandRightsStrategyforImagesinMuseumsandBeyond).50Butmostlythedecisionwasrelatedtotheorganization’smission:“TheGettywasfoundedtopromote'thediffusionofartisticandgeneralknowledge'ofthevisualarts,andthisnewprogramarisesdirectlyfromthatmission,"saysJamesCuno,PresidentandCEOoftheJ.PaulGettyTrust."Inaworldwhere,increasingly,thetrendistowardfreeraccesstomoreandmoreinformationandresources,itonlymakessensetoreducebarrierstothepublictofullyexperienceourcollections.51"ResultsTheresponsehasbeen“overwhelminglypositive,”accordingtoSmith.Therewereinitialconcernsthatopenaccesswouldcauseahugeincreaseinworkloads,butsincethedeliveryofimagesislargelyautomaticviatheGetty’swebsite,thisworrywasunfounded.Thechangeinpolicyhasfreedupanumberofstaffmemberstoconcentrateonmoremission-criticalprojects.Additionally,severalinstitutionshavefollowedtheGetty’slead,soitisperceivedasaleader.

49GettydefinitionofOpenContent:“TheGettymakesavailable,withoutcharge,allavailabledigitalimagestowhichtheGettyholdstherightsorthatareinthe

publicdomaintobeusedforanypurpose.Nopermissionisrequired.”http://www.getty.edu/about/opencontent.html. 50http://www.kdcs.kcl.ac.uk/innovation/us-art.html51TheGettyNewsdesk,GettyAnnouncesNewProgramLiftingRestrictionsonUseofDigitalImages,http://news.getty.edu/press-materials/press-releases/getty-open-content-images.print.

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Finally,thechangeinpolicyhasresultedinalargeincreaseindownloadsofcollectionsfromtheGetty’swebsite(over325,000downloadssincelaunch),sotheybelievetheyareincreasingthepublic’sengagementwithart.NationalGalleryofArtIntervieweeAlanNewman,chiefofdigitalimagingandvisualresources, NationalGalleryofArt ScopeandCopyrightDesignationTheNationalGalleryofArt(NGA)hasreleased45,000publicdomainimageswiththefollowingterms:

NGAImagesisarepositoryofdigitalimagesofthecollectionsoftheNationalGalleryofArt.Onthiswebsiteyoucansearch,browse,share,anddownloadimages.Astandards-basedreproductionguideandahelpsectionprovideadviceforbothnovicesandexperts.Morethan45,000openaccessdigitalimagesupto4000pixelseachareavailablefreeofchargefordownloadanduse.NGAImagesisdesignedtofacilitatelearning,enrichment,enjoyment,andexploration.

MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollectionsAccordingtoAlanNewman,chiefofimagingandvisualresources,itwasmainlyamission-drivendecision.Personally,hewasinspiredbyKennethHamma’spaperfrom2005,PublicDomainArtinanAgeofEasierMechanicalReproducibility.52Asaninstitution,NGAwasfrustratedthatmostofthegreatworksinitscollectionwerereproducedpoorlyonthousandsofwebsites.Theywantedtochangethisbyreleasinghigh-qualityimagesto,overtime,replacethepoorreproductions.Atthetimeofthisdecision,NGAwasre-evaluatingtherolesofstaffmembersinvolvedinfulfillment.Theypreferredtohavethestafffocusonhelpingthepublicfindtherightimagesforprojectsandtoincreasetheamountofdigitizedcollectionsavailable.Potentialrevenuelosswasnotconsidered“atall”inpolicymakingaccordingtoNewman,althoughrevenueshadbeendecreasingforseveralyearspriortothisdecision.NearlyallseniorNGAstaffmembersfeltopenaccesswasthecorrectpublicpolicyforthegallery.Staffaswellaspublicsupportfortheopenaccessinitiativewasnearlyuniversal.Finally,NGAreceivedfundingforrapiddigitizationofitscollectionsfromtwofoundations:theSamuelH.KressFoundationandtheMr.andMrs.RaymondJ.HorowitzFoundationfortheArts.Oneofthefoundationsrequiredthatthecollectionsbe

52http://www.dlib.org/dlib/november05/hamma/11hamma.html

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publishedopenly,whiletheotherfoundationfundedtheinitiativeasaresultofNGA’sopenaccesspolicy.Results

• StaffthroughouttheNationalGallery,aswellasthepublic,havebenefitedfromaself-serveimagerepository.Scholars,staffincluded,aremoreeasilyabletoaccessimagesforpublicationsandresearch.

• Thegallerywasabletoshifttheemphasisoftheremainingstaffmemberstohelpingclientsanddigitizingcollectionsratherthanprocessingpaperwork.

• “Universalgoodwill.”AccordingtoNewman,therewasa“profoundeffect”onboththeNGAstaffandpublicwiththepublicationofaself-serviceimagewebsite.Thereislittlewaitandlittlepaperwork.

• Thegalleryhasreceivedtwomilliondownloadsinthreeyears,increasingthepublic’sawarenessanduseofitscollections.

• Thegallerydidnotfillarecentlyvacatedrightsandreproductionstaffposition,butthishasnotnegativelyimpactedthegallery’swork.

NewYorkPublicLibraryIntervieweeShanaKimball,ManagerofPublicProgramsandOutreach,NewYorkPublicLibraryLabsScopeandCopyrightDesignationInearly2016,theNewYorkPublicLibraryreleased187,000high-resolutionimagesontheirDigitalCollectionsplatform53aspublicdomainremovinganyrestrictionsonre-useornecessityforpermissions.MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollectionsThemainimpetusfortheiropenaccessreleasewastobetterfulfilltheirmission,“…toinspirelifelonglearning,advanceknowledge,andstrengthenourcommunities.”Buildingonthesuccessofa2014releaseof20Khigh-resolutioncartographicworksinthepublicdomain,therehadbeengrowingdesiretoenhanceaccesstoallpublicdomainworksinNYPL'sDigitalCollections.A2014staffreorganizationbroughtdigitization,metadata,andrights&reproductionstaffundertheNYPLLabsteam,whichsetthestageforacohesiveandunifiedproject,withexperimentation,openness,andengagementatitscenter.Theiropencollectionsreleasewasdoneinthatspiritwithasuiteofannouncements;enhancedAPI,enhancementstothecollectionsinterfaceforeasydownloadandprintorders,CC0metadatareleaseonGitHub,newvisualizationsanddemonstrationprojects

53http://www.nypl.org/blog/2016/01/05/share-public-domain-collections

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builtbyLabsstaffusingtheirAPI(e.g.FifthAveThenandNow,MansionManiac,NavigatingtheGreenBooks,etc.),andacallforcandidatesfortheirremixresidency54.Results

• Theysignificantlygrewtheiraudiencefortheirdigitalcollections;doublingtheirpreviousbaselineoftraffic,receivingnearly300applicationsfortheirresidencyprogram,anddramaticallyincreasinguseoftheircollectionsAPI.

• Theyhavenotlost“significant”incomefromrights&reproductionsactivitiesandtheycontinuetofulfillrequestsforcollectionsitemsnotinthepublicdomain.

• Increasedpublicparticipation-hundredsofuser-generatedremixescontributedonsocialmediaplatforms.

• SinceJanuary2016,theyhavereceivedover100pressmentions,coveringallaspectsoftherelease;thecollectionsthemselves,theremixresidency,theR&Ddemonstrationprojects,andthebroaderstoryofdigitizationatNYPL.

Smithsonian:FlickrCommonsProjectIntervieweeEffieKapsalis,headofweb,newmediaandoutreach,SmithsonianInstitutionArchivesOverviewAspecialculturalheritagephotographyportalcalledFlickrCommons,55launchedin2008,hasthegoalofexposing“thehiddentreasuresfromtheworld’spublicphotographyarchives.”TheLibraryofCongresswasthefirstmember,withtheSmithsonianjoininginJune2008.AllimagesintheCommonsmusthavethecopyrightterms,“noknowncopyrightrestrictions,”whichisadesignationtheLibraryofCongresscreatedsincealargepartofitscollectionsareunpublishedandtheauthorhasn’tbeendeadfor75years.Thisputstheonusonthepublictoclearrightsfortheimages.ScopeTodate,theSmithsonianhascontributedmorethan3,500imagesfrommorethan12divisions,includingtheNationalMuseumoftheAmericanIndian,SmithsonianInstitutionArchives,SmithsonianLibraries,andSmithsonianAstrophysicalObservatory.FundingTheSmithsonianreceivesnofundingforparticipatingintheFlickrCommons.Results

54http://www.nypl.org/help/about-nypl/fellowships-institutes/remix55https://www.flickr.com/commons

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• Increasedexposure:Todate,the3,200+images(asmallfractionoftheSmithsonian’sentirecollection)havereceivedover26millionviews,whichisanaverageof30,000viewspermonth(seeFigureAbelow).Thisisasignificantincreaseincollectionsrecognitionanduse.OneunitparticipatingintheCommonssaid,“AfterthreemonthsonFlickr,ourcollectionsreceivednearlyasmanyvisitsasduringthepreviousfiveyearsonourwebsite.”

• Donation:TheSmithsonianInstitutionArchives(SIA)receivedadonationof10rarephotographicnegativesfromtheScopesTrial56asaresultofsharingtheArchives’ownScopesTrialphotostotheCommons.Thedonor’sstatedreasonforgivingtheArchivesthephotoswas,“IappreciatethewaythephotostheSmithsonianhasareavailableonlineforalltosee.”Thedonorwouldnotaseasilyhavefoundthesephotosiftheyweren’tavailableontheCommons.

• Newvolunteers:VisitorstotheCommonshavespentmanyhourstaggingphotosaswellasparticipatinginSIA’sannualcallforhelpidentifyingunknownfemalescientistsinitscollectionforWomen’sHistoryMonth.57

• Press:TheSmithsonianhasreceivedatleast760pressmentionssince2008asaresultofitsparticipationintheFlickrCommons.NewsoutletsincludeScientificAmerican,Buzzfeed,NPR’sRadiolab,CNET,CBSNews,andtheNewYorkTimes.

• Goodwill:ThepublicgivestheSmithsoniananenormousamountofcreditforsharingthisrelativelysmallpoolofimages.

Smithsonian:WikipediaIntervieweesKarenWeiss,headofdigitaloperations,ArchivesofAmericanArtSaraSnyder,formerwebmaster,ArchivesofAmericanArt;currentchiefofdigitalattheSmithsonianAmericanArtMuseumOverviewIn2011,theArchivesofAmericanArt(AAA)hostedthefirst“Wikipedian-in-Residence”58attheSmithsonian.Todate,morethansixteenWikipediaedit-a-thons59havebeenheld,invitingWikipediavolunteersintotheSmithsoniantocreatearticlesabouttheSmithsonian’scollections,people,andresources.TomakestrongerWikipediaarticles,volunteersrequestimagestoillustratearticles.InordertocontributemediatoWikimediaCommons,themediahadtoeitherbeinthe

56http://siarchives.si.edu/blog/new-donation-scopes-trial-photos-smithsonian-archives57Oneexample:https://www.flickr.com/photos/smithsonian/3398615048/in/album-72157614810586267/58AvolunteerwhohelpsculturalheritageinstitutionsnavigatetheWikipediacultureandincreaserepresentationofcontentrelatedtotheinstitutiononWikipediaandWikimedia.59https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:GLAM/Smithsonian_Institution/Events

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publicdomainorassignedaCreativeCommonslicensethatallowsforcommercialuses.60ScopeAAAcontributedapproximately320publicdomainWorksProgressAdministration(WPA)photographs.61Manyofthe3,500SmithsonianimagesonFlickrCommonshavebeenmigratedtoWikimediawiththe“noknowncopyrightrestriction”status.FundingFundingforfoodanddrinksservedduringsomeoftheedit-a-thonswasprovidedbyWikimediaDC.Results

• Goodwill:TheSmithsoniangainedtrustwiththeWikimediavolunteercommunitythatpersiststothisday.WikimediaDCprovidesfundingforvolunteereventsandhelpsSmithsonianstaffmemberstocorrectandenhancearticles.

• Publicimage:Smithsoniancollectionsareexposedtosignificantlylargeraudiences,astheyarenowareusedonWikipediainmultiplelanguagestoillustratearticlesondiversetopics.InthecaseofAAA,thearchiveuploadedtheimagesitself,includingassociatedmetadataandlinksbacktotheoriginalsource,whichlikelyaccountsforWikipedia’sroleasatopinboundWebtrafficreferrertotheAAAwebsite.

• Volunteerlabor:AAAhasnotquantifiedthehoursspentonWikipediaedit-a-thonsandotheractivities.However,fortheSmithsonianInstitutionArchivesalone,over50newarticles62havebeencreatedonwomeninscience,over75newarticles63relatedtotheSmithsonian’shistory,andover700imagesuploaded.

• DiffusionofSmithsoniancollections(SeeFigureA.)

60https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Licensing#Acceptable_licenses61http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Images_from_the_Archives_of_American_Art62https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Meetup/DC_30/To-do_list63https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:GLAM/Smithsonian_Institution_Archives/Outcomes/Todo

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FigureA:Comparisonofviewsreceivedforan“average”imageondifferentwebsitessince2008.

YaleCenterforBritishArt,YaleUniversityArtGallery,PeabodyMuseum,andBeineckeRareBookandManuscriptLibraryIntervieweeMelissaFournier,managerofimagingservicesandintellectualproperty,YaleCenterforBritishArtScopeandCopyrightDesignation250,000imagesfromYale’smuseums,galleries,archives,andlibrarieswiththefollowingtermsofuse:

YaleUniversity’sOpenAccessPolicyprovideslicense-androyalty-freeaccesstodigitalimagesofpublicdomainmaterialsinYalecollections.Openaccessdigitalimagesmaybeusedbyanyoneforanypurpose.64

MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollectionsAccordingtoFournier,Yale’simageswerenever“amoney-maker.”Additionally,therewaspressureonYaletonotchargefeesbecauseofitsmission,andmostrequestswerescholarlyinnature.Finally,Yalewantedtomakedeliveryofimagesasseamlessaspossibleforvisitors.ResultsResponsefromthescholarlycommunityhasbeenoverwhelminglypositive.Therewasanxietyastowhatthiswouldmeanforjobsandworkload,andtherehavebeensome64http://ydc2.yale.edu/documentation/faq-open-access-digital-representations-works-public-domain-museum-library-and-archive

0100002000030000400005000060000700008000090000100000

ViewsonSIAWebsite

ViewsonFlickrCommons

ViewsonWikipedia

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growingpains,butit’sbeen“refreshing”forstaffmemberstospendtimeondigitizationratherthenpermissionforms.Demandhasbeensteady,sotherehasn’tbeenanoverwhelmingincreaseinworkload.Additionally,ithasn’tbeendifficulttoletgoofsmallrevenue.IthasalsobeenhelpfulfortheYalebrand.Yalehasreceivedgreatpress,andisnowabletoparticipateinattention-garneringprojects:GoogleArtProject,Wikipedia,etc.

InternationalCaseStudiesBiodiversityHeritageLibraryIntervieweeMartinKalfatovic,associatedirector,SmithsonianLibraries,anddigitalservicesandprogramdirector,BiodiversityHeritageLibraryOverview“TheBiodiversityHeritageLibrary(BHL)isaconsortiumofnaturalhistoryandbotanicallibrariesthatseekstodigitizethelegacyliteratureofbiodiversityheldintheircollections,andmakethatliteratureavailableforopenaccessasapartofaglobal“biodiversitycommons.’”65ThegoalofBHListodigitizeallpublicdomainbiodiversitylegacyliterature,andasmuchin-copyrightmaterialastheycanobtainpermissionsfor.Researchersneedtoconsultthisliteraturetoprovethatnooneelsehaspublishedthespecies,lookingatpublicationsallthewaybacktoLinnaeus.ScopeTheBiodiversityHeritageLibraryincludes95,144titles,161,717volumes,and46,340,752pagesofnaturalhistorytaxonomicliterature,whichhaveamixoflicenses:publicdomain,“noknowncopyrightrestrictions,”andCreativeCommonslicenses.Additionally,over100,000images66fromtheliteraturehavebeenpublishedwithaCreativeCommons2.0license.67ThedigitizedliteratureisavailabletoresearchersacrosstheworldviatheBHLwebsiteandtheInternetArchive.FundingTheBiodiversityHeritageLibraryreceivedasub-awardoftheEncyclopediaofLife’sgrantfromtheMacArthurFoundation.Thefundscamewiththefollowingterms:65BHLobtainsliteraturefrom24memberorganizations,includingCornellUniversityLibraryandtheFieldMuseumLibrary,andfromhundredsofnodesacrosstheworld,http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/.66https://www.flickr.com/photos/biodivlibrary/sets/67CreativeCommons2.0Licensemeansthatusersarefreeto“Share”(“copyandredistributethematerialinanymediumorformat”)and“Adapt”(“remix,transform,andbuilduponthematerialforanypurpose,evencommercially”)aslongastheycredittheoriginalsource,https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/.

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TheFoundationencouragesthewidestdisseminationoftheWorkProductsoastoadvancethepublicgoodanddiscouragesIntellectualPropertyRightsfrombeingusedtolimitordenythepublictotheWorkProductorforagranteetoclaimexclusiveuseofsuchworkproduct.

SubsequentgrantshavebeenreceivedfromtheGordonandBettyMooreFoundation,theRichardLounsberyFoundation,theInstituteofMuseumandLibraryServices,theJRSBiodiversityFoundation,theNationalEndowmentfortheHumanities,andtheNationalScienceFoundation.Results

• Makingtheliteratureavailableonlineacceleratesthepaceoftaxonomicscienceacrosstheworld.BHLis“infrastructure”forthetaxonomicresearchcommunity.

• Dr.ChrisThompson,entomologistattheSmithsonian’sNaturalHistoryMuseum,says,“IlovetheBHL.Imayhavethefinestprivatelibraryonflies(Diptera),butnowwhileIhaveacopy,Ifinditfaster,easier,etc.,togototheBHLandgetthepageIwant,ratherthansteppingintothenextroomandpullingmyowncopyofftheshelfandthengoingbacktomakeacopyofthatpage.”

• It’samodelprojectofmultipleinstitutionsworkingtogethertostrengthenscientificresearch.

• Ithasinspiredotherprojects,includingtheMedicalHeritageLibraryforhistoricmedicalliterature.

• Increasedgoodwillfromthetaxonomiccommunity.• Increasedpublicparticipation:Librarieshasheld“taggingparties”tomake

bettermetadataforimagesintheliterature.BritishLibrary,U.K.IntervieweeNoraMcGregor,digitalcurator,BritishLibraryScopeandCopyrightDesignationOveronemillionimagesinthepublicdomainwiththefollowingterms:

"PublicDomaincontent":theContentontheSitemarked"PublicDomain"consistsofContentfromtheBritishLibrary’scollections,whichtheLibrarybelievesareinthepublicdomaininmostterritories.Contentmarked“PublicDomain”indicatesthattheLibraryisunawareofanycurrentcopyrightrestrictionsontheContenteitherbecause:(i)thetermofcopyrighthasexpiredinmostcountriesor:(ii)noevidencehasbeenfoundthatcopyrightrestrictionsapply.

MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollectionsAccordingtoMcGregor,theBritishLibrary’sfirstbigforayinto“open”wasin2003,withthereleaseof“CollectBritain”materialsontheWebunderthepublicdomain.The

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librarysetuptheDigitalResearchTeamandtheAndrewW.MellonFoundation-fundedBLLabs68in2010,andhasmadeaconcertedpushtoopenupanevenlargerpercentageofthecollectionsinamoresystematic,business-as-usualway.TheBLLabsprojectseekstoenableinnovativeresearchwithBritishLibrarydigitalcollectionsatscale—research(suchastextmining/datamining,etc.)thatrequiresthefewestrestrictionsonthegreatestamountofmaterial.Therewasalsoabusinessneedtoenablecuratorialstaffseekingtocommunicateandpromotecollectionsonlineviasocialmediatohavegreaterautonomyinmakingdecisionsaboutreleasingthesematerialsunderthepublicdomainmarkforwidersharing.Atthesametime,privatefundingorganizationsintheUnitedKingdomwereincreasinglyrequiringopensharingofdigitizationoutputs,sotheclimatehasbeenfavorableformovinginthisdirection.HowitwasdoneThelibrarydevelopedguidelinesstatingthatcreativeworksthatwereoutofcopyright,orclearlyunderthecopyrightoftheBritishLibrary,couldbereleasedintothepublicdomainwithoutpriorapprovalbytheIPandLicensingdivision.Thispolicywasrolledouttothestaffthroughaseriesoftrainingeventsandwasquicklyadopted,particularlyforcuratorialbloggingandsharingonWikimediaCommons.69TheLibraryalsosetupaninternalandcross-departmentalAccessandReusegroup,whichischairedbytheheadofintellectualpropertyandmeetsmonthlytoconsiderproposalsforchangingthestatusoflarge,complexdigitizedcollectionsthatdonotfallwithintheabovepolicy.ThisprocesshasgreatlyincreasedthefrequencyandamountofmaterialreleasedbytheLibraryintothepublicdomain.OneofthemajorBLLabsandtheDigitalResearchTeampublicdomainactivitieswastopublishonFlickracollectionofoveronemillionimagespulledfrom19thcenturydigitizedbooksaspublicdomain.Thiswasdonetotestthelibrary’s“appetiteforrisk,”andalsotolearnmoreaboutpotentialusesofsuchcontentfromwhatpeopleendedupdoingwiththecollectionswhentheyhadnorestrictions.ResultsMovingtoopenaccesshashelpedBritishLibrarycollectionsreachaglobalanddiverseaudienceoutsideofthelibrary’stypicalresearcherprofile,increasedtheinstitution’sappetiteforrisk-taking,andenabledinnovativeresearchandexperimentationwithLibrarycollections.TheFlickruploadalonehasreceived254,363,839imageviewssinceDecember2013,with383,742tagsaddedwhichwilleventuallybeintegratedintothelibrary’scollections.Therehavebeennumerouscreativere-uses70oftheimages,data

68http://labs.bl.uk/69https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:British_Library70http://blpublicdomain.wikispaces.com/Creative+Projects

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researchexplorations,71andvisualizations.72Recently,theLibraryannouncedanewplatform,LibCrowds,73hostingexperimentalcrowdsourcingprojectswiththeBritishLibrarydigitalcollections,theunderlyingdataofwhicharealsoopenandfreelyavailableforreuse.NationalGalleryofDenmark(SMK),DenmarkIntervieweeMereteSanderhoff,curatorofdigitalmuseumpractice,NationalGalleryofDenmarkScopeandCopyrightDesignation25,000images(160availableinhighresolutionwithremainingpendingscanningandavailabilityinanupgradedWebinterface)withthefollowingcopyrightdesignation:

Thecopyrightonalloftheseartworkshasexpiredbecausetheyweremadebyartistswhopassedawaymorethan70yearsago.ThereforetheyareinthePublicDomain.ThisalsomeansthatyouarefreetousetheimagesforanypurposewithoutaskingpermissionfromtheSMKoranyoneelse.Sincethecopyrightontheseimageshasexpired,youarefreeto:

• Sharetheimages–i.e.tocopy,distribute,andtransmitthem.• Remixtheimages–i.e.modifyandreusetheminnewcontexts.• Usetheimagesinanycontext–e.g.teaching,research,lectures,publications,filmproductions,etc.Thisincludescommercialpurposes.

Theimageshavebeendesignated'PublicDomain'toclearlysignifythattheyarenolongersubjecttocopyright.Theybelongtothepublic–toyou.74MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollectionsAccordingtoSanderhoff,theSMK’sownlicensingrestrictionsonitspublicdomainimageswerestandinginthewayofinteractionsthemuseumdesiredtohavewiththepublic,othermuseums,andotherorganizations.Additionally,themuseumwantedtosupportcreativityandlearning,inlinewithitsmission.Sanderhoffassertsthatpeopleneeddeeperandmoreinteractiveexperienceswiththearttobetterlearnaboutit.Results

1. Improvedpublicimage,increasedartistcollaboration,andinspiringcreativity:SMKusedtostrugglewithadusty,“oldaunt”imageaccordingto

71http://blpublicdomain.wikispaces.com/Research72http://blpublicdomain.wikispaces.com/visualisations73http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/asian-and-african/2015/06/introducing-libcrowds-a-crowdsourcing-platform-aimed-at-enhancing-access-to-british-library-collecti.html74http://www.smk.dk/en/use-of-images-and-text/free-download-of-artworks/

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Sanderhoff,andopencollectionsischangingthat.ThemuseumnowholdsmonthlySMKFridaypubliceventsandrecentlyheldonetocelebrateitsopencollections,calledSetArtFree.75Theeventsingeneralarea“hugesuccess”witharound6,000peopleattending,andSMKhaswonnumerousawards,whichleadstothepublicperceptionthatitisawelcomingplace,evena“hipplaceintown.”SanderhoffreportsthatitgivesSMKa“humanface.”Themuseumisalsoabletoholdeventsthatmoredeeplyengagethepublicwiththeartworkssincetheyareabletoremixthem.

2. Increasedopportunityforculturalcollaboration:Asaresultofthe

museum’sopenstance,SMKwaspartnersinEuropeana’sCreativeprojectthat“enablesandpromotesgreaterre-useofculturalheritageresourcesbycreativeindustries.”76SMKalsocollaborateswithWikimediaCommonsandWikipediaDenmarktofosterreuseofthemuseum’simagesinWikipediaentries,andtocontributetoupdatedknowledgeaboutartinthemuseum’scollectionsfortheopenencyclopedia.

3. Increasedpublicengagement:Atmanylevels,theSMKhasbecomemore

visitor/user-focused,andisabletoworkmorecloselywithvisitorsanduserscoretoitsfutureuserbase:schoolchildren,localurbanaudiences,immigrantsinculturalinclusionprojects,youngpeopleneedingcreativeoutlets,etc.

4. Increasedcollectionsawareness:Themuseum’scollectionsarespreading

acrossDenmarkandinternationally.Forexample,theCopenhagenMetroCompanyhashostedexhibitionsofremixesofSMKpublicdomainartworksonfencesaroundmetroconstructionsitesincentralCopenhagen.77

Rijksmuseum,NetherlandsIntervieweeLizzyJongma,collectionsinformationsystemmanager,RijksmuseumScopeandCopyrightDesignationTheRijksmuseumhascommittedtodigitizingitsentirecollections(onemillionartworks)by2020.78Currently200,000+worksofartinthepublicdomainand40,000+worksofartundercopyrightareavailableonline.Ifanartworkisundercopyright,theRijksattemptstocometoanagreementwiththeartist/copyrightholdertoallowpublicationofahigh-resolutionimageontheRijkswebsite.

75http://pro.europeana.eu/blogpost/set-art-free-and-the-rest-will-follow,http://www.smk.dk/en/visit-the-museum/exhibitions/past-exhibitions/exhibition-mix-it-up/76http://pro.europeana.eu/structure/europeana-creative77http://openglam.org/2013/07/08/2353/78http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/14/arts/international/a-museum-at-the-forefront-of-digitization.html

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MotivationforAdoptingOpenCollections

• TheRijks’majorartworkswerealreadyonline,butofpoorquality.Sincethemuseumbelievedthatthemajorityofthepublic,includingstudents,downloadedimagesfromtheWebforuse,themuseumwantedthemtohaveaccesstothehighestqualityimages.TheRijkshopedthatovertimethehigh-qualityimageswouldreplacethepoorones(seetheEuropeanareportTheProblemoftheYellowMilkmaid).79

• ThemajorityoftheRijks’collectionsareunknowntothepublic,colleagues,andbookpublishers.Withoutdigitizingandsharingthem,therewouldbenointerestintheselesser-knowncollections.

• AccordingtoJongma,theRijksrealizedfundersaremoreinterestedinsponsoringdigitizationprojectsiftheresultsareopenlyshared.

• Asstewardsofthecollections,theRijksconsidersititsdutytoshareitscollectionsinordertoeducatethepublicworldwide.Sharing,accordingtotheRijks,meansmakingavailablethehighestqualityimagepossible.

• Inthebeginning,themuseumshareditsimages,butmadeadistinctionbetweencommercialandnon-commercialusagewhichconfusedthepublic.TheRijkswas“flooded”withquestionsandrequestsanddidnothavetheITsystemsnormanpowertodealwithit.Themuseumfoundsharingimagesforfreewaslessexpensiveandtime-consuming.

• TheRijkswantedtoshareitscollectionson“largeinternetportals”suchasWikipedia,Europeana,Flickr,Pinterest,etc.Bysharingintheseonlinespaces,therewasan“exponentialincreaseinuse”ofitscollections.

ResultsOntheimpactofopenaccessonstaff,Jongmahadthistosay:

Nooneintheimagedepartmentgotlaidoff.Welostallofourincomeondirectsalesofimages,butwegainedalotofnewfriends,sponsors,andnewfundingstreams(morethanwelostfromrevenue).Weareintheamazingsituationthatwecanchoosewhatprojectswewanttodo,andhowwewanttodothem…Thankstoourtechnicalinfrastructure,ourcuratorscanalsocollaborateinallprojectsthattheylikewithoutalotoftechnicalorrightsmanagementsupport.

AccordingtoJorisPekel,communitymanageratEuropeana,themovetoopencollectionshaspositivelyimpactedtheRijksmuseum’sfinances:

In2010,whennothingwasavailableunderopenconditions,therewasactuallylessrevenuethanin2011,whenthefirstsetwasmadeavailableinhi-resfornon-commercialpurposes.Itisevenmoreinterestingtoseethatin2012,thereisan

79http://pro.europeana.eu/files/Europeana_Professional/Publications/Whitepaper_2-The_Yellow_Milkmaid.pdf

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evenmoresubstantialincreaseinsaleswhentheywerereleasedforallpurposes.Thisshowsthatreleasingthemediumqualityimagestothepublicin2011stillallowedthemtohaveaviablebusinessmodel,andinfactincreasedtheamountofimagesales.80

JongmasaystheRijkshasfeltapositiveimpactonitsbrandbothnationallyandinternationally,andthemuseumisoneofthestrongestbrandsintheNetherlands:

Everyonewantstoworkwithus.WearepreferredpartnerforWikipediaandEuropeana.IgetatleastadozenrequestsforEuropeandigitizationprojectsamonth(weactuallyturndownmostrequestsbecausewedon’thavethetimetodoalltheseprojects).

OnincreasedvisibilityoftheRijksmuseumcollections,Jongmasays:

Sofar6,499imagesfromtheRijksmuseumhavebeenuploadedtoWikimediaCommonswhichisthemediafilerepositoryofWikimedia—thefoundationresponsibleforWikipedia.2,175oftheseimagesarecurrentlyusedinvariousWikipediaarticles.Theseimageshavebeenshown10,322,754timestousersvisitingthearticleswherethematerialisused.

AccordingtoJongma,theRijks’imagesarewidelydistributedonline,whichmakespeoplewanttocometotheRijksandseetheoriginalinperson.Finally,theRijksgainedrevenuefrombrandlicensingopportunitiesthatdidn’texistpriortotheiropenaccessinitiative.TheyhaveoveradozenbrandlicensingagreementswithpopularDutchandmultinationalbrandssuchasHeineken,AlbertHein(nationalchainofDutchgrocerystores),andKLM:

OurOpenDatamakesourcollectionvisibletotheworld,soeveryoneknowsthattheNightwatch/Rembrandt/Vermeer=Rijksmuseum…SowhenHeinekenputsaVermeerorRembrandtonabeerbottlepeopleknowthatHeinekencollaborateswiththeRijksmuseum.IthelpsusandithelpsHeineken.Thenumberofpartnersthatuseourimagesfortheircommercialactivitieshasincreaseddramatically:fromnonein2010toadozennow.

80http://pro.europeana.eu/files/Europeana_Professional/Publications/DemocratisingtheRijksmuseum.pdf

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TheRijksmuseum/Heinekenlicensingagreementhasreceiveddesignawards.81.

81http://www.thedieline.com/blog/2015/4/27/3rd-place-beer-malt-beverages-tobacco-heineken-amsterdam-originals-the-rijksmuseum-bottles