Co-DesignPlatform
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Contents |
Provide a Platform for collaborative Idea exchange
Adopting the Open Source approach to provide a collaborative design space, where people meet to create solutions
Motivation
Open Source software is created in a collaborative way by people distributed all over the world.
Can this approach be adopted to create a co-design platform, where people meet to
discuss, generate and co-create ideas collaboratively? Is it possible to provide a means
to make a living for ideas contributors? How would the business model look like?
What legal implications are there, can we get around patents?
Open Source
Software is written by software engineers by entering syntactically rigidly defined text into
a text file. This text, called source code, is then translated (compiled in jergo) into 0 and 1, the language computers
understand (some languages are translated on the fly, source code is then said to be interpreted).
When we run software (like Windows, Word, Photoshop, iTunes, etc.), we normally
only get the translated, compiled code. We don't see how it has been programmed, we just run it.
The source code is regarded as restricted intellectual property and is kept secret by the manufacturer.
Open Source Software (OSS, like linux, firefox, and open office) is also compiled software, but
the source code is freely accessible as well, you can download the source code too. In OSS, you normally
get the rights to changethe source code as you wish (e.g. for custom requirements) and use and redistribute
the changed software (there are different licenses out there which regulate the implications, see www.opensource.org/licenses
for more information). You also can contributeto the software by proposing extensions, pointing to failures and errors
(called software bugs), and implementing new functionality. It's then the project maintainer(s) who decide(s) (there are
different organisational structures) what parts are being accepted and proposals approved.
This is a very transparent, open and democratic process which fosters collaboration and distributed review by cooperating members.
The motivation to build OSS is the claim for better quality, flexibility and reliability of the software. It is also empowering as
everybody can potentially participate.
Open Tables Ecology Platform
The working group on the project came up with a first draft of a possible scenario for the platform:
- Designers post their ideas onto the platform.
- Implementors pay to use those ideas.
- End users (as well as designers and implementors) can
post needs and rate the ideas. - The whole platform could introduce an own currency;
this is optional though, but could boost its usage: local currencies
can only be used inside its destined area.
This wiki site is a working document for the project group. It's a base to discuss the platform and see if and how it would be feasible to create such a platform, what incentives there would be for it and if there are chances for it to be appropriately used and for potential stakeholders to make sustainable business through it.
An important issue is that the platform should be responsible in terms of:
- Equity in gender, nationality, race, age, sexual orientation
- Justice
- Sustainable ecological practice: nature first
- Democracy
- Open, collaborative and cooperative spirit
- Economical and social sustainability
Rating can be helpful in achieving these goals.
Open points
To be able to bring this project to fly, the following open questions need to be addressed:
- What's the legal structure behind the ideas posted? What kind of license would we need?
Professional advice through a lawyer is maybe needed. - To what extent is the open source approach appropriate?
- What business model to be adopted? Are the many different possibilities?
- How can trust be built up?
- What prevents this platform of being accepted and used?
- How does the platform maintain free flow of content?
Possible scenarios
Scenario #1: Trust based
An individual posts an idea. This idea is subject to a specific license. So this idea enters the platform and is freely accessible. However, the license prevents it from being stolen. This means, unauthorized implementation (usage of the idea) is illegal.
The owner of this idea can decide the level of openness the idea has. She/he may want to invite others to co-design it, request comments, extensions, critiques, etc., and may invite other people to participate in the refinement of the idea (open table). Problem here: how to redistribute a remuneration or donation, in case the idea is successful?
Ideas for which an individual wants to get remuneration need to have a structure. Most easy but maybe improbable is the situation where the individual posts the idea freely and then expects donations from implementing parties (the idea would be protected by the license as mentioned). However, there's no impediment in raising fees for the idea in general. Again, it's in the responsibility of the owner to decide where he wants to go. But care should be taken in calling the idea "open", "open source" or "co-designed" if there is only a single individual involved who doesn't want to discuss his idea with others.
Some ideas are maybe just freely distributable, they don't have a commercial background (like voluntary work) and would clearly be most easily discussed on the platform.
Ideally, through the collaborative approach, the quality of the idea/project/proposal is improved, so this is the incentive of co-creating/co-designing ideas. Potential customers then would increasingly check on the page because they know that the quality of proposals is high; the platform would be regarded as a highly creative and outstandingly broad and wealthy source of ideas where they can make business, so businesses would be very interested in keeping it running and would pay (hence trust based) for the ideas to be implemented. Businesses would be bound to pay as soon as they want to implement the idea, that's when the contract is signed.
Scenario #2: Fee based
Again, an idea is protected by the license.
Ideas are only visible through an abstract. To access the details, either:
- A fee is immediately due (not very user-friendly, could prevent many people from wanting to know more)
- A collaborative process is being started, where the idea owner first is being contacted, like negotiations in normal business. Feeing is left to the idea owner and the potential customer to be agreed.
Scenario #3: Total Openness of Content
Ideas are public domain. The distinction between user and creator of ideas is removed. There is a separation of ideas from returns or money generated by those ideas.
- Keep all information open to maximize flow
- Returns are generated only when the user applies the ideas towards productivity.
- Alternative mechanisms are utilized to generate value for the developer. These may be crowdsourcing/collection basket/product release funding
Bottom line: ideas are free and encouraged to be free. Earning/payment/money may be obtained only through honest labor/work/production based on those ideas. Alternative means for capturing value by the developer should be encouraged, such that once the developer's work has been paid for in some way, the information becomes openly accessible. The aim here is to eliminate the barrier of information access completely, while acknowledging the developers for their work.
