Public Knowledge is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

-based public interest group. Founded in 2001 by David Bollier and

Gigi Sohn Gigi Beth Sohn (born August 2, 1961) is an American lawyer who is the co-founder (with Laurie Racine and David Bollier) of Public Knowledge. She previously worked for the Ford Foundation. In 2013, Tom Wheeler hired her into a senior staff positi ...

, Public Knowledge is primarily involved in the fields of

intellectual property law Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indiv ...

and choice in the digital marketplace, and an open standards/ end-to-end

internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

History

Public Knowledge was founded by David Bollier and

. Chris Lewis is president and CEO, and its directors include

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

Director and Co-founder Brewster Kahle,

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

professor Kevin Werbach, and former

FCC The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdictio ...

Commissioner Michael J. Copps. Public Knowledge's work focuses on the three 'IP's of communications and copyright policy:

information Information is an abstract concept that refers to that which has the power to inform. At the most fundamental level information pertains to the interpretation of that which may be sensed. Any natural process that is not completely random ...

policy Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an orga ...

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

, and

Internet Protocol The Internet Protocol (IP) is the network layer communications protocol in the Internet protocol suite for relaying datagrams across network boundaries. Its routing function enables internetworking, and essentially establishes the Internet. ...

. The group is known for its advocacy for copyright defenses and exemptions such as

fair use Fair use is a doctrine in United States law that permits limited use of copyrighted material without having to first acquire permission from the copyright holder. Fair use is one of the limitations to copyright intended to balance the interests ...

and against the expansion of copyright in general. For instance, in response to the

's attempt to mandate a broadcast flag for all digital TV tuners, Public Knowledge led the successful legal campaign to have the rule overturned. One study of the politics of digital rights management policy concluded, "Since its 2001 founding, Public Knowledge has risen to prominence as the pre-eminent DC-based policy advocacy organization within the strong fair use coalition."

Board of directors

The following individuals are on the board as of February 2020. *Virginia Lam Abrams - Senior Vice President of Starry, Inc., operators of Starry Internet *Moses Boyd - Founding Partner, Integrated Solutions Group * Michael J. Copps - Former FCC Commissioner, Special Adviser to the Media and Democracy Reform Initiative at Common Cause *Maura Colleton Corbett - President and Founder of Glen Echo Group *Laurent Crenshaw - Senior Director of Policy, Eaze * Brewster Kahle -

, Digital Librarian, Director and Co-founder *Andrew McLaughlin - Partner, betaworks; Co-founder and Partner, Higher Ground Labs *Michael Petricone - Senior Vice President Government Affairs, Consumer Technology Association *Frank C. Torres, III - Director of Consumer Affairs and Senior Policy Counsel,

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washin ...

* Kevin Werbach - Professor at the

Wharton School The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in P ...

Former members of the board

* Hal Abelson - Professor of Computer Science and Engineering,

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

*Leah Belsky - Vice President of Strategic Development and Associate General Counsel,

Kaltura Kaltura is a New York-based software company founded in 2006. Kaltura operates in four major markets: Cloud TV (that is, OTT) for operators and media companies, online video platform (OVP) offered mostly to media companies and brands looking to ...

* David Bollier - Writer and founder of the Commons Strategies Group *Hal Bringman - Founder and President of NVPR * Susan Crawford - Professor,

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparative Law (MCL ...

Jesse Dylan Jesse Byron Dylan (born January 6, 1966) is an American film director and production executive. He is the founder of the media production company Wondros and Lybba, a non-profit organization. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relati ...

- Founder, Wondros *

Lawrence Lessig Lester Lawrence Lessig III (born June 3, 1961) is an American academic, attorney, and political activist. He is the Roy L. Furman Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and the former director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard ...

- Professor of Law,

Stanford Law School Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...

Warrington Hudlin Warrington W. Hudlin, Jr. (born July 16, 1952) is an American film director, producer, and actor. Early life Hudlin was born in East St. Louis, Illinois, the son of Helen (née Cason), a teacher, and Warrington W. Hudlin, Sr., an insurance ex ...

- Founder, dvRepublic * Reed Hundt - Former Chair,

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

(FCC) *

Joichi Ito is a Japanese entrepreneur and venture capitalist. He is a former director of the MIT Media Lab, former professor of the practice of media arts and sciences at MIT, and a former visiting professor of practice at the Harvard Law School. Ito has re ...

- Former Director,

MIT Media Lab The MIT Media Lab is a research laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, growing out of MIT's Architecture Machine Group in the School of Architecture. Its research does not restrict to fixed academic disciplines, but draws from ...

*Laurie Racine - Founder, Managing Director, Startl * Gigi B. Sohn - Founder of Public Knowledge; Counselor to former FCC Chairman

Tom Wheeler Thomas Edgar Wheeler (born April 5, 1946) is an American businessman and former government official. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 31st Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. He was appointed by President Bar ...

* Jonathan Taplin - Adjunct Professor,

USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism The USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism comprises a School of Communication and a School of Journalism at the University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = N ...

*Kathleen Wallman - President, Wallman Consulting LLC

References

External links

Public Knowledge
{{authority control Intellectual property activism Intellectual property organizations Political advocacy groups in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Washington, D.C. 501(c)(3) organizations

History

Board of directors

Former members of the board

See also

References

External links