Vimeo adds CC browse and search capabilities

Vimeo has revamped their platform for video creators and users, including the creation of a Creative Commons landing page where you can browse and search for videos by CC license! We were thrilled when Vimeo enabled the CC license suite in July of 2010; we are even more thrilled that the Vimeo team has since recognized the community’s needs to easily discover high quality CC-licensed videos. Blake Whitman, Vimeo’s VP of Creative Development, says, “We know the many ways in which sharing can positively impact creativity. As such, we will continue to build features that enable people to exchange ideas, and that support the Vimeo community’s growing demand for creative sharing. Our partnership with Creative Commons is the backbone of this commitment.“ Read more.

Creative Commons and Policy

We have been incredibly busy in the policy realm, opposing SOPA/PIPA, along with many other excellent organizations, companies, and individuals. Here are a few of our policy activities over the past month: We joined 9 organizations in a letter to U.S. Congress opposing the Research Works Act (pdf); we submitted comments to the White House Inquiries on Public Access to Publicly Funded Research Publications and Data; and we are an institutional member of COMMUNIA, which released a short policy document in reaction to the European Commission’s proposed amendments to its Directive on the reuse of public sector information.

Creative Commons in Education

We are no less busy in education, where we are gearing up to celebrate Open Education Week! Find out how you can contribute. In addition: The final comment period for the Learning Resource Metadata Initiative concluded on January 31. Let us know if you want to be an early adopter! The Saylor Foundation announced the winners of its Open Textbook Challenge, where all textbooks will be released under CC Attribution. (The extended deadline for the second wave and $20,000 in awards is May 31.) And the U.S. Utah State Office of Education announced that it would develop and support open textbooks, and encourage its districts and schools to adopt them beginning this fall (pdf).

• Thanks to everyone who supported us during our 2011 Annual Campaign! With its official end on January 15, we can now start gearing up for the 10th birthday of the CC license suite later this year. Get ready to celebrate not only CC, but openness everywhere!
• We released a new set of FAQs on Data. We hope this new resource will be useful to those of you grappling with data licensing and helps to clarify how our licenses operate in practice.
• The Venezuelan adaptation of the BY-NC-SA 3.0 license draft is in public discussion.
• The Open Knowledge Foundation published a nifty guide on the basics of Finding Interesting Public Domain Works Online under CC BY.
• A new pilot project between Creative Commons, Creative Commons’ legal affiliate in France, and the French collecting society SACEM allows SACEM members to license their works under one of the three non-commercial CC 3.0 licenses.
• Arts Engine‘s 12th annual Media That Matters Festival is now accepting new entries for short films.
• Lastly, several key job opportunities are still open at CC: Chief Technology Officer and Senior Accountant.