Wikimedia Foundation announces tenth transparency report

The Wikimedia Foundation has supported free access to the sum of all knowledge for nearly sixteen years. This longstanding vision would not be possible without the dedication of community members who contribute content to the Wikimedia projects. As a global platform for free knowledge, we are sometimes approached by governments and private parties with requests….

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A bunch of media just entered the public domain. Here’s why that matters.

The black-and-white film flickers as a wealthy young woman, sitting on a bench in a garden, bats her eyes at the gardener’s son she is not allowed to marry. In her self-portrait, an artist wears masculine clothes against a bleak urban backdrop, dark eyes meeting the viewer’s gaze from the shadow of a broad-brimmed riding….

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Here’s why we’re celebrating the public domain in 2019

As 2018 turned to 2019, people around the world celebrated the start of a brand new year with parties, family, and friends. The transition into 2019 also marked a new era for access to knowledge and culture in the United States, as new works finally entered the public domain through copyright expiration for the first….

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EU copyright vote leaves the future of online participation uncertain

The European Parliament’s September 12 vote on the proposed Copyright Directive was a missed opportunity to improve copyright, after many years of discussion: Two years ago, the European Commission set out to modernize copyright laws across the EU with a flawed proposal with potential to improve. This proposal was referred to several committees in the….

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Your internet is under threat. Here’s why you should care about European Copyright Reform.

You can also read this post in Spanish and in French. Back in 2001, the European Parliament came together to pass regulations and set up copyright laws for the internet, a technology that was just finding its footing after the dot com boom and bust. Wikipedia had just been born, and there were 29 million websites. No one….

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Wikimedia releases ninth transparency report

The Wikimedia Foundation has supported free access to the sum of all knowledge for fifteen years. This longstanding vision would not be possible without the dedication of community members who contribute content to the Wikimedia projects. As a global platform for free knowledge, we are sometimes approached by governments and private parties with requests to….

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European Parliament votes against EU copyright proposal that would threaten the open web

We applaud the results of this vote by the European Parliament as it now provides an opportunity for open discussion to create a balanced, modern copyright system for Europe.

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How the EU copyright proposal will hurt the web and Wikipedia

A proposed new copyright package in the European Union is a threat to our fundamental right to freely share information. The time to speak out is now.

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Time is running out to defend user rights online

Now that it has passed a critical vote in the European Parliament, we have one last opportunity to make the EU revise its proposed copyright directive and ensure the internet stays open for everyone.

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Don’t force platforms to replace communities with algorithms

As policymakers increasingly suggest technological solutions to fight illegal and controversial content online, we ask them to consider the rights of internet users and to leave room for the human side of content moderation.

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