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Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act (CTEA)
This act extended the term of copyright for every work in the United States for an additional 20 years -
Wait, What?!
Some folks started talking about:
- The mismatch between what technology enables and what copyright restricts
- Ways to address the tension between creator’s ability to share digital works globally and copyright regulation
- How ensure end of a copyright term as it marks the moment the work moves into the public domain for everyone to use for any purpose without permission -
Eldred v. Ashcroft
1999 to 2002, Lawrence Lessig represented a high-profile challenge to the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. Working with the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Lessig led the team representing the plaintiff in Eric Eldred in Eldred v. Ashcroft. Eldred v. Ashcroft, 537 U.S. 186 (2003), was a decision by the Supreme Court of the U.S. upholding the constitutionality of the 1998 Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act (CTEA). -
The Birth of CC
Creative Commons was founded in 2001 by Lawrence Lessig, Hal Abelson, and Eric Eldred with the support of Center for the Public Domain. CC would soon release a set of free, public licenses that would allow creators to keep their copyrights while sharing their works on more flexible terms than the default “all rights reserved.” CC currently stewards the Creative Commons legal tools and helps power the open movement. -
2002 was a Busy and Exciting Year
- Hal Plotkin writes the first article in a general interest publication about Creative Commons
- The first set of CC copyright licenses was released in December 2002
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1.6 billion works and counting!
There are currently over 1.6 billion Creative Commons licensed works and the number is growing daily! -
Get Involved
There are many ways to support and promote Creative Commons!
- Publish your work under CC licenses
- Support Copyright reform where ever you are: Open Access, Open Data, use Mozilla's internet browser, & the CC Global Network -
Creative Commons Inception to Present is licensend under CC BY
Creative Commons Inception to Present by AMaloney for CC Certificate is licensed under CC BY International 4.0.
