What is cc0?
It's all over our timelines. No matter how much people seem disagree on who should own @SolanaMBS, everyone seems to like 0% royalties, immutable, and cc0.
So what is it?
cc0 = Creative Commons Zero
It's a copyright law that ENCOURAGES derivatives.
Let's dive in
cc0 is a rights waiving tool designed in '09 by the Creative Commons Nonprofit.
By applying cc0 to your IP (intellectual property) you waive the rights to that IP. Anybody can make derivative works and profit from it without legal consequences.
Which begs an obvious question...
Why THE FUK would anybody give away their IP for free?
Turns out there are very rational reasons for it, though of course it doesn't work for everyone.
To quote a16z "Creative works live and die by their cultural relevance."
And encouraging derivatives can make the IP more popular.
Electing cc0 actively promotes more use of the brand, and if those derivatives enhance the cultural relevance of the original, in theory the value of the OG is enhanced.
Read: number go up.
To use an example: if SMB went cc0 and a video game was made by a 3rd party with their image, the video game maker could make a bunch of $$$ using the cultural popularity of SMB without giving any $$$ back to Monkes.
But it would solidify the brand, making SMBs more valuable.
For popular cultural touchstones it allows for unlicensed merch, t-shirts, NFT collections, statues - you name it.
If you see a cool BAYC hoodie, maybe you want the hoodie.
But maybe it makes you want the original NFT it was based on.
That accrues value to the OG.
Put in a way that most of you will understand:
cc0 licensing lets everyone "seize the memes of production."
Ok, that's great, so let's do it!
Gib all da cc0!
But hold on. Why might you NOT want to do this?
Most obviously, with cc0 you can't prevent anybody from using your brand as they wish.
And they may chose to do some weird shit.
youtube.com/watch?v=W3E74j_xFtg
Once the genie out of the bottle, sure, all the brilliant and savvy people out there can use your IP to do some cool stuff.
But all the lunatics can too.
Full blown cc0 may not be right for SMB, but SOME variation of it probably is.
For example, if you look at Yuga Labs, I really like what they've done with the CryptoPunks IP.
Yuga Labs owns the IP of each user’s CryptoPunk.
BUT...
...purchasing a Punk grants you, the buyer, the rights to commercialize your Punk via derivative works.
So while you don't own the IP of your Punk, you do get the right to derivatives that are exclusive, royalty-free, and sublicensable.
Neat.
Yuga gets to steer the mother ship, which in Punks' case means just doing nothing for the most part and letting them be the immutable collectible they are.
But they ENCOURAGE derivatives to enhance the cultural relevance.
Which, to me, sounds like a good fit for SMB.