Commons Approach Research Articles

The effects of a Creative Commons approach on collaborative learning

Social media on the World Wide Web, such as Wiki, are increasingly applied to support collaborative learning for students to conduct a project together. However, recent studies indicated that students, learning in the collaborative project, may not actively contribute to the collaborative work and are involved only in a limited level of positive interdependence due to the ambiguous ownership on the collaborative work. To this end, this study proposes an approach to support collaborative learning based on the notion of Creative Commons (CC). CC may be helpful to enhance positive interdependency because it provides a mechanism which protects individual creations while encouraging remixing and deriving new creations from them. This study conducted an empirical evaluation to examine how students react to the collaborative learning with CC notions. The results showed that CC can significantly improve participants' attitude to the derivative works, the satisfaction level of remix outcomes, perception to the peer interaction and the sense of work ownership. Such results suggest that CC may be a potential avenue for increasing individuals' responsibilities and motivating them to participate in the collaborative learning activity.

Spectrum Sharing in Competing Wireless Systems: A Simulation Study Using WLAN and WMAN

Worldwide, spectrum regulators are reducing the amount of radio spectrum they directly license. Consequently mechanisms are required to permit co-existence of non-cooperative technology. The purpose of this paper is to bring our experiences of this problem to the wireless area, by presenting a simulation system constructed to investigate the effects of imposing various spectrum sharing schemes upon wireless networks operating in the same spectrum band. In particular, wireless metropolitan and local area networks are considered operating in the 5 GHz band using two common sharing schemes--simple frequency hopping and move if interfered, both of which are compared against a spectrum commons approach (free for all). The system's design and operation is explained, as are the sharing schemes that have been incorporated. Results indicate that significant performance improvements can be obtained compared to a free-for-all approach and that differences occur depending on whether a planned or random frequency allocation is initially used.

Social finance: commerce and community in developing countries

PurposeThis paper adopts the conceptual framework of institutional analysis and development (IAD). The main focus is on the “commons,” a general term referring to a resource shared by a group of people or a community who are possibly vulnerable to social dilemmas. In this paper, the vulnerable are communities in developing countries; the resource is economic and social wellbeing; the dilemma is how this wellbeing can be shared. Social finance, among others actions, might be a means of reaching a favorable outcome. The purpose of this paper is to identify institutions in the developing world where a commons approach is attempted.Design/methodology/approachA major part of the research consists of examining knowledge, specifically digital knowledge, as a commons, and then looking at situations in developing countries where information and communication technology plays a prominent role. The spotlight is on the widespread use of cell phones to meet social, business, and service needs. The paper is designed to observe and report on the competing or converging concerns of profit‐making enterprises and impoverished communities. The role of social finance in promoting prosperity and higher living standards lies at the heart of social finance. At once, a conceptual and empirical issue, a case study of mobile banking in sub‐Saharan Africa is presented to achieve an understanding of a commons dependent on digital knowledge.FindingsWhile the data generally revealed that telecom's technical innovation results in an overall economic and social gain for developing countries, the precise financial effect of mobile telephony is less‐easily demonstrated, as might be expected with so many variables to be considered.Originality/valueThe value of IAD is uniquely manifest in the institutional analysis of mobile telephony in a developing region, namely, sub‐Saharan Africa. The knowledge commons of shared ownership and self‐governance is shown to benefit all parties without hindering financial gain or the common good.

The Wasteland: Anticommons, White Spaces, and the Fallacy of Spectrum

Nearly fifty years after FCC Chairman Newton Minow blasted broadcast television as a vast wasteland, the FCC has the opportunity create a verdant new oasis of wireless connectivity. The long-dormant “white spaces” around broadcast TV channels may soon be opened to new forms of communication. The question is how the regulator should allocate these spaces: through more-flexible versions of the exclusive licenses granted to broadcasters, or through inclusive mechanisms that allow for broader access. The FCC has proposed to make the white spaces available on an unlicensed basis, meaning that any device meeting technical requirements could operate there. The best solution is to consider the problem of gridlock in the broadcast bands holistically. Both exclusive property rights and unlicensed allocation can play synergistic roles. The debate over what to do with the white spaces illustrates persistent misunderstandings about both wireless spectrum and property rights. Communications policy scholars agree that broadcasting represents a tragedy of the anticommons: a government-engendered misallocation of property rights, resulting in under-consumption of a valuable resource. They disagree about almost everything else. Advocates of exclusive spectrum rights go astray by insisting, incorrectly, that spectrum itself is the scarce physical resource. The anticommons model sheds light on why this viewpoint is flawed. Both exclusion and inclusion have a place in spectrum policy, but only a commons approach can unlock the potential of the white spaces. This article uses the broadcast white spaces to analyze the nature of spectrum property rights and the potential for tragedies of the commons and anticommons.

The Tragedy of the Commons: Institutions and Fisheries Management at the Local and EU Levels

Garrett Hardin's Tragedy of the Commons argument states that resources held in common will inevitably suffer overexploitation and degradation. However, recent contradicting evidence has led theorists to question the soundness of this claim. This paper assesses the accuracy and predictive success of the six essential assumptions of Hardin's approach. The aim of the paper is to compare the functioning of the tragedy of the commons approach at the local and the international levels, in order to demonstrate that the context we choose affects the applicability of the hypothesis in explaining policy outcomes. The paper compares the validity of the tragedy of the commons hypothesis in three marine cases: California fisheries, modern Oregon fisheries and European Union Common Fisheries Policy. We find that at the local level the tragedy of the commons can be mitigated when a co-management of institutions is achieved, while the EU case shows that the tragedy of the commons is a realistic prediction when dealing with international institutions.

The future of copyright in the age of convergence: Is a new approach needed for the new media world?

In 2007 the European Commission finalised its proposals for replacing the Television without Frontiers Directive. The resultant Audiovisual Media Services Directive aims to provide a more suitable regulatory framework for the creative industries allowing it to benefit from the opportunities brought about by convergence. Convergence is the coming together of different technologies which have distinct functions to create one medium which performs each divergent function. The prime illustration of convergent technologies is arguably the coming together of telecommunications and broadcasting, through the internet and digital technology, so as to enable us to make voice telephony calls and watch television while sat at a computer. However, while convergence has created opportunities for the industry it has also created threats in that the same technology is also being used to infringe the copyright of content producers on a far greater scale. This is important as wide scale infringement may impact negatively on the creation of new works; as without protection from illegal copying the work has less economic value. It is argued that regardless of any other flaws the new Directive may have; its biggest weakness is not addressing the link between converged media platforms and the potential for increased copyright infringement. This work proceeds to evaluate whether the traditional approach to copyright protection is still the most suitable and whether in fact the arguments advanced in favour of this approach still have merit in the converged age. To this end an evaluation of a Creative Commons approach is provided in order to see whether this may have more advantages.

Digital Curation, Copyright, and Academic Research

A defining characteristic of contemporary copyright law is the willingness of governments to accept the argument that the impact of digital technologies requires copyright owners to be given ever greater control over the use of their works, regardless of the detriment to the copyright regime's 'public interest' elements. Yet a one-size-fits-all 'all rights reserved' copyright regime clearly fails to meet the requirements of many rightsholders. One response has been the Creative Commons movement which seeks, through licences based on existing copyright laws, to provide a simple mechanism for rightsholders to disseminate their works under less restrictive conditions. The Creative Commons' initial success has led to suggestions that its principles could be equally applied to scientific research outputs, such as publications, licensing of research materials, and datasets. This article argues that the Science Commons approach, if based on the Creative Commons model, and premised at its root on utilitarian copyright law, will both fail to address contemporary policy drivers in research, or to provide researchers with the type of rights that they actually want. It suggests that constructing an appropriate set of rights for the Science Commons, particularly for datasets, will require a willingness to step outside the utilitarian model and look to the Continental copyright tradition, which sets less store in economic rights and gives greater weight to moral rights.

Building a virtual patient commons

Virtual patients as a form of educational intervention can take many forms and can provide highly effective ways of addressing reduced student access to real patients, the need for standardised and well-structured educational patient encounters, and opportunities for students to practice in safe and responsive environments. However, virtual patients can also be complicated and costly to develop. As a result collaborative and distributed development is best suited to their widespread take up.This paper considers the development and use of virtual patients and the steps that have been taken to support authors in making this approach more sustainable and adaptable. In particular, this has involved the development of a common data interoperability standard, which in turn has engaged a number of communities that have developed, or are developing, virtual patient commons, consisting of shared resources, tools and knowledge for mutual benefit. The paper illustrates how innovative and otherwise difficult to sustain models for supporting and extending healthcare education, such as virtual patients, can be supported using a commons approach with commonly agreed data standards and specifications at their core.

Spectrum management reform and the notion of the "spectrum commons"

Spectrum management is an extremely important part of telecommunications policy and regulation. The allocation of for particular uses, and development of specific technical and service rules governing those allocations, are crucial determinants of telecommunications industry structure and performance. Not only does the management of the resource have an enormous impact on a nation's economic and social well-being, it is also of critical importance to the safety of life and property, and to national defense. Fast-growing demand, coupled with rapid technological change, have put increased pressure on the traditional, centralised, often bureaucratic, command-and-control methods of managing the resource. One alternative to the traditional, centralised method is moving management in the direction of a market-oriented solution, wherein property-like rights in the resource are traded on a decentralised basis, more like other resources. Another method for reducing the rigidities in the current system is for policy-makers to move management in the direction of a spectrum solution. Under this alternative, anyone can gain access to a particular block of or set of channels, subject only to certain basic rules. Recently, there has been increased interest in the commons approach, because of the success of unlicensed in providing consumer benefits and increased opportunities for entrepreneurial activity. This paper explores the commons approach and concludes that, even in the face of significant challenges, the potential benefits are significant enough to warrant serious consideration by telecommunications policy-makers in their role as managers. This conclusion applies not only to developed countries but also to developing countries, where the more decentralised, less bureaucratic approach could empower individuals and communities to expand networks, applications and services on their own initiative.

Revolutionary Ideas for Radio Regulation

Communication is a constitutional aspect of all human societies. While communication using sound waves (speech) is a well-explored area of constitutional law, communication using radio has received much less attention from constitutional lawyers. Nonetheless, the relationship between constitutional law and radio communications is rapidly increasing in importance. In considering radio regulation, too often policy-makers have focused on radio spectrum management and interference among radio signals. The most important questions are not whether to have open access to spectrum (a commons approach), or spectrum auctions, or spectrum property rights, or no property rights. Much more important is to examine the relationship of fundamental political choices to constitutional aspects of radio regulation. Clearly across the world there is a diversity of instantiations of constitutional law. But world experience has highlighted key questions and issues that any self-conscious system of constitutional law should consider. This paper argues that there are three key constitutional questions that radio regulation should address. First, what is a good separation and balance of powers in radio regulation? Second, how should radio regulation be geographically configured? Third, how should radio regulation understand and respect personal freedom? Most persons understand revolutionary ideas that answer these three questions. The challenge is to recognize this common knowledge and apply it to radio regulation.