Open Education 2016

In the summer of 2015 Creative Commons ran a successful Kickstarter campaign raising funds to write a book about open business models made using Creative Commons. With the help of backers, and through an open public call, Creative Commons identified businesses and organizations from around the world and across all sectors who have successful Creative Commons based open business models. From that list twenty four were chosen to interview, profile, and analyse.



This session will report out on the results of this work. The twenty four businesses and organizations will be identified and highlights of their stories and models shared. Analysis showing how these models work and how they generate economic and social value will be summarized. The differences between open business model success and those of traditional models where success is defined solely in monetary terms will be portrayed. Commonalities and unique innovations across models will be described along with the evolving strategies these organizations are pursuing to sustain their work.



This session aims to provide participants with a framework for thinking about about open business models and the sustainability of open education initiatives. By drawing on a wide range of models from within and outside education participants will be given a spectrum of possibilities and strategies that can be adopted to fit their own initiative and/or spark new, innovative ideas. Participants will be provided with tools they can use to design their own model.



This session will conclude with a look at how Creative Commons open business models fit within a larger open context that includes open source software, open hardware, open access, open data, and the sharing economy. The implications and possibilities associated with free, open and abundant goods generated by a network will be contrasted with a system of monopolies, banks and governments trying to keep things private, scarce and commercial. Participants will leave with an understanding of how to survive with a foot in both worlds while working toward a more open and equitable future.