"Open data is such a powerful idea, and Europeana is such a
cultural asset, that only good things can result from the marriage
of the two", European Commission Neelie Kroes (Digital Agenda) said
at the launch of CC0-waiver, that makes re-use without restrictions
possible.
Kroes: "People often speak about closing the digital divide and
opening up culture to new audiences but very few can claim such a
big contribution to those efforts as Europeana's shift to creative
commons."
From books to films
Europeana (www.europeana.eu) is Europe's
digital library, archive and museum. It gives people access to over
20 million books, paintings, films, recordings, photographs and
archival records in 29 languages.
It represents 2,200 partner organisations, including all the
great national collections such as the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam,
the British Library in London and the Kunsthistorisches Museum in
Vienna.
Turkish coin, 460-440 BC, Numismatic Collection of Bode
Museum, through Europeana
Creative Commons' next level
Europeana actively promotes the use and re-use of open data on
the European stage and recognises the importance of clarity in this
complex area. It has a
Data Exchange Agreement (DEA) with each of its partner
contributors that establishes that Europeana publishes metadata it
receives from its data providers under the terms of the Creative Commons Zero
Universal Public Domain Dedication (CC0 waiver). The CC0 waiver is
a legal tool that has been developed by Creative Commons for making
data available without restrictions on re-use.
This release, which is by far the largest one-time dedication of
cultural data to the public domain using CC0 offers a new boost to
the digital economy, providing electronic entrepreneurs with
opportunities to create innovative apps and games for tablets and
smartphones and to create new web services and portals.
Away with closed data
Europeana's move to CC0 is a step change in open data access.
Releasing data from across the memory organisations of every EU
country sets an important new international precedent, a decisive
move away from the world of closed and controlled data.
The change represents a valuable contribution to the European
Commission's agenda to drive growth through digital innovation. The
Commission is of the opinion that online open data can fuel
enterprise and create opportunities for millions of Europeans
working in Europe's cultural and creative industries. The sector
represents 3.3% of EU GDP and is worth over €150 billion in
exports.
Linking the data together
Applying the CC0 waiver also means that Europeana's metadata can
now be used in Linked Open Data developments. This holds the
potential to bring together data from Europe's great libraries,
museums and archives with data from other sectors such as tourism
and broadcasting. The result could be a powerful knowledge
generating engine for the 21st century.
Jill Cousins, Executive Director of Europeana said: "This
move is a significant step forward for open data and an important
cultural shift for the network of museums, libraries and galleries
who have created Europeana. This is the world's premier cultural
dataset, and the decision to open it up for re-use is bold and
forward looking - it recognises the important potential for
innovation that access to digital data provides. This development
means that Europe now sets the worldwide standard for the
sector."