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Imagining a Smithsonian Commons
Michael EdsonDirector, Web and New Media Strategy
Smithsonian Institution, Office of the CIOVisual Resources Association
March 19, 2009Toronto, CA
Preamble
• Beware…The opinions in this presentation are mine, not the official policy/strategy of the Smithsonian…
• We’re a little bird• …Darwin…Write this down so it doesn’t slip away• How is this good for you as…– A technologist?– An enthusiast? – A re-user?– A citizen?
A Model Institution
A Model Institution
A Model Institution
A Model Institution
A Model Institution
VisitorsCustomers
CollaboratorsContributors
ChampionsCritics
Competitors
A Model Institution
What example shall we provide?
What example shall we provide?
A Model Institution
A return to the commons.
Democratize knowledge and innovationCreate a free and open commons
Act with urgency and verve
A Smithsonian Commons is good civics,good mission, and good business
A Model Institution
Relevance
What is a Commons?
A set of resources maintained in the public sphere for the use and benefit of everyone
What is a Commons?
The Anti-Commons…
What is a Commons?An organized workshop where the raw materials of
knowledge can be found and assembled into new things.
What is a Commons?
What is a Commons?
What is a Commons?
“Free resources are crucialto innovation and creativity”
Lawrence Lessig
What is a Commons?
“I’ve been giving away my books online ever since my first novel, and boy has it ever made
me a bunch of money.”
Corey Doctrow
What is a Commons?
“I’ve been giving away my books online ever since my first novel, and boy has it ever made
me a bunch of money.”
Corey Doctrow
What is a Commons?
Commerce and the Commons
What is a Commons?
Commerce and the Commons
Crazy…?
What is a Commons?
Commerce and the Commons
IBM$10M into patent commons
$500M value from $100M investment
What is a Commons?
Commerce and the Commons
“IBM provides a surprising example of how a large, mature company with an engrained proprietary culture
can embrace openness and self-organization as catalysts for reinvention.”
Wikinomics
What is a Commons?
Collaborative Model
What is a Commons?
Collaborative Model
“we are living in the middle of a remarkable increase in our ability to share, to cooperate with one another, and
to take collective action, all outside the framework of traditional institutions and organization …Getting the
free and ready participation of a large, distributed group with a variety of skills has gone from impossible
to simple.” Clay Shirky
What is a Commons?
The ascendance of free commons modelsThe erosion of proprietary models
Outperforming
More appropriate for mission and civic function
A new way of organizing
Commons Examples
Commons Examples
“We were established by congress as a universal repository of human creativity and knowledge, and that includes vast amounts of items that are in the public domain. It is our mission to make those freely available, whether in the 21 reading rooms of the Library of Congress, or online.”
Library of Congress spokesman Matt Raymond
Commons Examples
Flickr Commons
Commons Examples
Flickr Commons
Commons Examples
Flickr Commons
Commons Examples
Flickr Commons
Commons Examples
Flickr Commons Smithsonian end-user survey (opt-in, non scientific)
• 84% likely to reuse SI images•35% for school, 16% professional/personal
• 41% say they’ll reference from blog/web• 97% say they’re more likely to visit SI sites• 100% have more positive opinion of SI – emphatically so!
Commons Examples
Flickr Commons
8 views/month vs 2,000 views/month
Commons Examples
Flickr Commons
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)“I was amazed that a university such as MIT would
freely give access to its educational information.”
Triatno Yudo HarjokoUniversity of Indonesia
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)
A more effective model than proprietary contracts
Commons Examples
MIT Open Courseware (OCW)
“Unlocking Knowledge, Empowering Minds…”No Registration Required.
Open Courseware Tag Line
Commons Examples
Common Characteristics• Free sharing of information• Licensing or permissions structure• Fluid institutional boundaries• Network effects
The Rise of the Commons
The Un-Common Institution
The Un-Common Institution
The Un-Common Institution
The Un-Common Institution
A consultant walks into a bar and says…
The Un-Common Institution
99% decentralized
The Un-Common Institution
A “thousand wildflowers…”
The Un-Common Institution
• Search and findability• Usability and branding•Web 2.0 patterns• Platform development/maintenance• Repetition of effort
Nobody would rationally design the operations of a world-class institution this way!
Vexatious Phenomena
Vexatious Phenomena
Unexpected Rivals in Google Search
Vexatious Phenomena
Unexpected Rivals in Reach
Enchantedlearning.com
si.edu
discoveryeducation.com
ocean.com
Google ImagesWikipedia
Ocean.com
Vexatious Phenomena
Unexpected Rivals in Reach
Enchantedlearning.com
si.edu
discoveryeducation.com
ocean.com
Vexatious Phenomena
Unexpected Rivals in Reach
Enchantedlearning.com
si.edu
discoveryeducation.com
ocean.com
Vexatious Phenomena
Traffic Trending Down
Vexatious Phenomena
Brand Identity
Vexatious Phenomena
We’re competing with… everybody!
Vexatious Phenomena
We’re competing with… everybody!
Vexatious Phenomena
We’re competing with… everybody!
Vexatious Phenomena
The Demographic Tsunami
November 2007 data: Pew Internet and American Life Project
Vexatious Phenomena
The Demographic Tsunami“Everything we hear from people we interview
is that today’s consumers draw no distinctions between an organization’s Web site and their traditional bricks-and-mortar presence: both must be excellent for either to be excellent.”
Lee RainiePew Internet and American Life Project
Vexatious Phenomena
The Smithsonian Commons
So…How shall we advance the increase and diffusion of knowledge now…?
The Smithsonian Commons
We’re a publicly funded institution with a civic mission
The Smithsonian Commons
The nature of our mission
The Smithsonian Commons
Scope of endeavors
The Smithsonian Commons
Siloed operations
The Smithsonian Commons
The model of the commons…
The Smithsonian Commons
The model of the commons…Rise of social media
The Smithsonian Commons
The model of the commons…Rise of social mediaRise of distributed collaboration
The Smithsonian Commons
The model of the commons…Rise of social mediaRise of distributed collaborationRise of crowdsourcing
The Smithsonian Commons
The model of the commons…Rise of social mediaRise of distributed collaborationRise of crowdsourcingRise of “free” business models
The Smithsonian Commons
The model of the commons…Rise of social mediaRise of distributed collaborationRise of crowdsourcingRise of “free” business modelsShifting attitudes about content and brands
The Smithsonian Commons
I assert that reshaping our digital identity around the concept of a Smithsonian Commons is the way to move forward—it’s the game changer: a low risk, high reward proposition that addresses the fundamental challenges of the Institution in terms of brand, audience, operations, speed, governance, integrity, education, research, revenue generation, leadership, and legacy.
I want to be a commons…
Don’t forget about us!!!
Thanks!
Michael EdsonDirector, Web and New Media Strategy
Smithsonian Institutionedsonm@si.edu
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