How To Get Paid For Copyleft Art
From Robmyers
Free Culture
Free Culture is an ethical issue, it is a matter of rights. Free in this context refers to freedom, not price. Free Culture is not a vow of poverty or a matter of amateur or non-commercial culture. It is a matter of participatory public culture.
There are two main ways of organising its products. The Public Good model is that used by the foundations of the FSF and Wikipedia. The Commercial Culture model is that used by anyone who wishes to directly monetize their own work. In this article we are interested in the latter model, although the products of the two (and their users) can contribute to each other.
There are various different licensing models for Free Culture. In this article we assume that Copyleft is the best protection for Free Culture, but this article also applies to Public Domain work and BSD or Attribution-only style licenses, although these provide less protection both to Free Culture and for monetization.
How Real Artists Make A Living
People have made money from Free Culture for decades. Book publishers like Dover or Wordsworth, Rik Prelinger's film archive, any CDs of classical music or DVDs of old Flash Gordon serials. Orchestras and theatre companies perform well established work without paying a penny in royalties. Large media corporations make lavish movies based on old folk tales.
But when people speak of making money from Free Culture they usually mean directly from their own work that is still in copyright. It is important to recognise that most people do not make a living simply by selling copies of their work. And even the most successful artists can be ripped off or make business decisions before the full value of their work becomes apparent. Elton John had to sue his accountant. J K Rowling sold the film rights to the Harry Potter books very early on for a fraction of what she could have got later.
If your work is no good or you don't work hard to promote it, you will have no more luck selling your copylefted art than you would selling art under any other licensing scheme. You cannot just place your work on a server or a production-on-command site and wait to be discovered.
Over ninety percent of artists and musicians do not make their living from their recording contracts or art sales, so there is no easy life that copyleft will ruin. That said, every little helps. Reputation is the key, and copyleft does not harm reputation. Easy access to your work may even help your reputation.
Strategies
Advertising
Some individuals are supporting themselves selling advertising on their weblogs. There are advertising honeypots that use Wikipedia content, but Wikipedia has stuck with sponsorship.
Private performances or installations
Weddings, parties, other events, shop fronts.
Show fees for artists
As described by an.
Signatures/dedications
Such as book or print signings or dedication of an original score or painting. Placing the dedication in the title of the work or in the work itself is the ultimate version of this.
The Street Performer Protocol
The Street Performer Protocol - Marillion funded their last few albums this way. Drum up interest with demos, partworks, shopping for a distributor. Russian authors. Elephants Dream.
Conceptual Patronage / Realisation
Damien Hirst came up with his concept of a shark in a tank some time before a patron paid to have it made. A good pitch and good sketches for a proposed work can persuade someone to invest in making it.
Installation Services
Such as Sol LeWitt's team of wall drawing installers or an artist being paid to create an installation.
Bespoke Work
Murals, customised versions of work.
Live Performances
Any concert, show or performance of music, drama, book reading, poetry recital, or live art.
Selling Merchandise
Don't knock it until you find out how much bands make from tour shirts. Free software projects also sell merchandise. And designers and artists sell badges, t-shirts and other merchandise featuring their work.
Deluxe editions
Any physical, deluxe edition of a work or score. Think of hardback books or hardback CD book versions of albums.
Commissions
Any public art or performance commission.
Residencies
Visual artists, poets, musicians and others can be paid by a venue to make work on-site as part of a paid residency.
Grants
State or charitable patronage. You pay taxes, right?
Certificates, shares, contracts
Patronage or SPP after the fact.
Competing With Piracy
Providing more convenience, better formatted. See Disney.
Sponsorship
Usually corporate but private sponsors can help as well. Wikipedia is supported by sponsorship.
Tip Jar and Funding Drive Model
Some webcomics make their authors hundreds of dollars a month in this way.
Workshops
Education
Lecturing, tutoring, one on one tuition, training. Even very successful visual artists make their living this way for much of their careers.
Business Models
Selling Merchandise
FSF, Any live band
Competing With Piracy
Disney Cory Doctorow
The Bespoke Model. Installation And Training Model
Murals. Commissions Residencies
The Support Model
Live music. Readings. Workshops
Street Performer Protocol
Demos, partworks, shopping for a distributor. Russian authors. Marillion. Elephants Dream.
Advertising
Any weblog. Wikipedia honeypots.
Tip Jar and Funding Drive Model
Webcomics.
Sponsorship
Wikipedia.
Just Add Freedom
Loca.
Some Approaches That Don't Work
Begging Links
NC with a link for a proprietary licence doesn't pass on freedom and won't negotiate the best deal for either side. Nagware didn't work for software either. This is different from a tip jar.
Time Release
If you need to rip the work you can't, depressing potential sales.
Sales Release
SPP after release. The work may never reach the target, and will exist in a non-Free state until it does.
