Questionnaire for Case Studies

Case Coding Framework

I - Introduction:

As mentioned by Yochai Benkler in the Wealth of Networks, the word «commons» refers to a particular form of structuring rights to access, use and control resources. This coding system, through a set of questions, will focus on understanding how the chosen case studies («Case») in the relevant fields of research – educational materials, biotechnology and alternative energy – structure access, use and control of resources in the axis of participation and regulation. The intent is to begin to categorize the «commons» in a more rigorous fashion, so that we might understand its different implementations in different fields, its constituent parts, and perhaps even arrive at an «atlas» of the commons that we can use in future design and evaluation.

Most of the cases we will examine are knowledge resources (ranging from explicit knowledge like textbooks to tacit knowledge encoded in biological tools). As such, understanding their usage systems requires an understanding of the forces that governed their creation, since this frequently influences how the structure of access, use and control of resources get settled. Thus, we expanded the macro-categories to deal with the creation moment of a certain resource or pool of resources. Finally, this coding also present more basic questions related to Case identity.

The objective of this Coding system is to systematize the emerging institutions and practices from commons-based Cases and map each of these Cases into the framework retreated in the graphic below.

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The Axis of Participation deals with the question of «how open it is to join» either as a creator or a user. From Closed to Limited to Open, participation is the measure of the constituency – it deals with the person herself and not the issue of the person’s freedoms.

The Axis of Regulation deals with deals with the quantity and quality of norms that frame the rights of a user in any certain Case. In this sense, any thing, from norms, to contract, to law, to the practice of non-enforcement are measures as elements that constitute and determines how a certain an environment will behave. It may vary from Regulated to Limited to Unregulated levels.

The questions are focused on finding metrics through objective answers that are later rearranged in groups that denote characteristics such as symmetry, freedom, predictability, openness, transparency, collaboration, user-integration and autonomy.

II - Structure Overview:

A – Testing the Initial Perception of the Case

Before people start the Coding per se, we ask a small number of questions about the Case. This will let us see how people feel about the Case - do they think they are open or closed? We can also ask them the same questions after the survey to see if the survey changes their opinion.

B – Case Identity (What?)

This section is focused capturing the identity of the Case, which can be understood by what actors are involved, if a case is local, national or global, the field from what the Case emerged from, how many actors are involved, among other issues that give us a finger print of the case. This will let us over the long term begin to correlate aspects of identity with aspects of participation and regulation.

C – Participation (Who?)

This section is focused on «Who» participates in a certain Case, from the creation of a resource through to its access, use and control. We developed questions for coding these actions in order to understand how open or closed a Case is in terms of ease of participation of a diversity of actors (as Creators or Users).

C.1 – Creation

C.2 – Access

C.3 – Use

C.4 – Control

D – Regulation (How? And What? – Systems of governance)

This section is focused on «how» rules are settled in a certain Case and «what» rules emerged from the regulation process. Questions will be asked also around the four crucial moments of a Case in order to understand the «de juris» and «de facto» stage of a Case.

D.1 – Creation

D.2 – Access

D.3 – Use

D.4 - Control

E – Testing the final Perception of the Case

After the coding is done, questions from Section B will be asked again to see if the coding process changes their opinion.

III – Coding Questions

Instructions:

Using the data collection spreadsheet/web-form, answer all of the following questions about the Cases from the relevant fields chosen for analysis.

Institutional Cooperation Project (ICP) Researchers should answer Code sections B, C and D. Participants from a Case community should answer the whole questionnaire. Researchers can also use the Perception section as part of an interview process with Case Participants.

Many questions provide space for additional comments. You should use that space when necessary to give a more detailed answer or to indicate relevant documents and/or links.

The web version of this questionnaire will allow pop-ups with explanations of tricky questions and terms of art (e.g. substitute products).

A – Perception

1) What level are the entry barriers – in terms of cost of participation – to become a creator/user within the Case?

( ) very high

( ) high

( ) medium

( ) low

2) If there is some level of regulation on participation, is the right to participation granted neutrally (i.e., evenly available to all interested parties)?

( ) yes

( ) no

3) Is the organizational governance structure transparently communicated to creators/users?

( ) yes

( ) no

4) Do the community of Creators and Users obey the rules?

( ) always

( ) most of times

( ) never

5) Are the rules enforced?

( ) always

( ) most part of the time

( ) rarely

( ) never

6) Is there a sense of a «common purpose»?

( ) always

( ) most part of the time

( ) rarely

( ) never

7) Is there a sense of a «shared vision»?

( ) always

( ) most part of the time

( ) rarely

( ) never

8) Are Users seen as:

( ) Necessary Contributors?

( ) Possible Contributors?

( ) Pure Consumers?

( ) Free-riders?

9) What are the Community main motivations to participate in the Case? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) Advancing the learning curve (Know-How development)

( ) Lowering costs

( ) Improving quality of manufactures

( ) First to Market strategy

( ) Develop strong marketing relations

( ) Make money from exclusive rights (licensing or blocking competition)

( ) Make money from information production but not by exercising exclusive rights (ex.: Adds in journals, AVS);

( ) Status and reputational motivations

( ) Securing government funding

( ) Securing government status

( ) Feedback before publication/sale/etc

( ) Learning Network

( ) Dealing with externalities

( ) Dealing with uncertainty

( ) "Learning to code" (Access to, and sharing of knowledge/education/removing information asymmetries)

( ) "Gaining a reputation of trustable"

( ) "Scratching an itch" (Inventing something that meets your own needs)

( ) "Contributing to the commons" (actively being altruistic)

( ) Work towards replacing obsolete and closed systems with open systems.

B - Case Identity

1) Field:

( ) Educational materials

( ) Biotechnology

( ) Alternative Energy

( ) Other. List: ____________________________________________________

2) Name: ___________________________________________________________

3) URL: ___________________________________________________________

4) Types of actors involved: (Check all applicable answers)

( ) Government

( ) University(ies)

( ) For-Profit Corporation(s)

( ) Individual(s) producers

( ) Individual(s) consumers

( ) Informal social collaboration enable by the network (Here Wikipedia is seen as an actor, e.g.)

( ) Foundation(s)

( ) Non-Governmental Organization (Civil Society organization)

( ) For profit «do good» company

Additional comments to your answer:

5) What is the expressly stated reason (e.g.: in the Mission of the Project) for the existence of the Case? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) Funder mandate

( ) Experimentation

( ) Solicit new ideas

( ) Develop consensus

( ) Develop standards

( ) Achieve interoperability

( ) Contribute to the commons

( ) Other. List: _______________________________________________________________

Additional comments to your answer:

6) What are the types of in-put resource actors are asked to contribute for the Case? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) Time

( ) Money

( ) Computing storage capacity

( ) Computing processing capacity

( ) Physical infrastructure – rooms, buildings, etc.

( ) Data

( ) Narratives

( ) Tools and/or material

( ) Know How

( ) Dedicated staff

( ) Other. List: _______________________________________________________________

Additional comments to your answer:

7) What are the out-put resource result of the Case? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) Data and/or Databases (Foundation and/or observational)

( ) Narratives

( ) Tools and/or materials

Additional comments to your answer:

8) Where in the value chain does the Case happen?/What is the stage in the value chain? (Check the most relevant answer)

( ) Basic Research

( ) Translational Research

( ) Development / Optimization

( ) Production / Manufacture

( ) Commercialization

Additional comments to your answer:

9) What are the formal community management tools in use? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) Wiki

( ) Blog

( ) Mailing list

( ) Social Network Platforms

( ) P2P Network

( ) Repository

( ) Web-site

( ) VoIP

( ) Forums

( ) Chats

( ) Conference calls

Additional comments to your answer:

10) Are there «real-world» community management tools implemented in parallel to the online tools to support the Case? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) yes

( ) conferences

( ) association-related activities

( ) private meetings

( ) staff training

( ) participation in standards setting-bodies

( ) no

11) What is the Case funding structure? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) Governmental Funding. List: _________________________________________________

( ) Individual Philanthropy grants or individual donations

( ) Foundation grant. List: ______________________________________________________

( ) Membership-related fee

( ) Access-related fee

( ) Use-related fee

( ) Rent from sales of goods

( ) Rent from sales of services

( ) Rent from advertisement

( ) Rent from merchandising

( ) Rent from added value services. List: ___________________________________________

( ) None of the above. Other: ____________________________________________________

Additional comments to your answer:

12) What are the Intellectual Property rights available for the resource? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) None – resource in public domain

( ) Copyright

( ) Patents

( ) Trade Secrets

( ) Trademark

Additional comments to your answer:

13) Is the resource that is the Case’s out-come is:

( ) a substitute good?

( ) a complementary good?

14) Does the Case allow incubation of derivative projects?

( ) yes

( ) no

( ) not addressed

Additional comments to your answer:

C – Participation

C.1 – Creation

1) Are there rules on who can participate in the creation stage?

( ) yes, informally transmitted

( ) yes, formally transmitted

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) published on the Case web page. List URL: ___________________________________

( ) no

3) Who can participate in the creation of a resource or input-process in the Case?

( ) funded creator

( ) invited-only creator

( ) membership-only creator

( ) any creator

If anything different from «any creator», please describe:

4) Do creators have to sign a contract in order to take part in the Case?

( ) yes, physical

( ) yes, digital / digital signature

( ) yes, digital / one-click

( ) no

5) Is there a terms of use document regulating the creators’ actions within the Case?

( ) yes. List URL, if digital: _____________________________________________________

( ) no

6) How many steps does it take to become a creator (e.g. screens to click through, forms to sign, terms to accept)?

( ) 0-1

( ) 2-3

( ) 3-4

( ) 5 or more

7) Does a creator require an institutional affiliation (e.g. university or research institute) to participate?

( ) never

( ) sometimes

( ) regularly

( ) always

Additional comments to your answer:

C.2 – Access

1) Are there clear rules on who can access the resource?

( ) yes, informally transmitted

( ) yes, formally transmitted

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) published on the Case web page. List URL: ___________________________________

( ) no

3) Is anonymous access to the resource allowed?

( ) yes

( ) no

If yes, skip to question 9.

4) Is user-registration needed?

( ) yes

( ) no

5) If registration is needed, can anyone register?

( ) yes

( ) no

6) If registration is needed, is there an authentication process?

( ) yes

( ) no

7) If registration is needed, does the user need an invitation or previous permission to register?

( ) yes

( ) no

8) If registration is needed, does anyone approve the user-registrations?

( ) yes

( ) the process is transparent, meaning that the user know what are the criteria for acceptation or rejection of registration, and who is making the decision

( ) the process is not transparent

( ) no

9) Does a user require an institutional affiliation (e.g. university or research institute) to access the resource?

( ) never

( ) sometimes

( ) regularly

( ) always

Additional comments to your answer:

10) Does the user have to pay to register?

( ) yes. Specify payment: _______________________________________________________

( ) no

Additional comments to your answer:

11) Is there tracking of access measures?

( ) yes. Specify how tracking is done: ______________________________________________

( ) no

Additional comments to your answer:

12) Is there a privacy policy?

( ) yes. Specify URL: ___________________________________________________________

( ) no

Additional comments to your answer:

C.3 – Use

1) Are there rules on who can use the resource?

( ) yes, informally transmitted

( ) yes, formally transmitted

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) published on the Case web page. List URL: ___________________________________

( ) no

2) Does everybody that has access to the resource have rights to use the resource (or can they only view the resource)?

( ) yes

( ) no

3) If no, are there different types of users that emerge from different rights attributed?

( ) yes

( ) no

Additional comments to your answer:

4) Does a user require an institutional affiliation (e.g. university or research institute) to use the resource?

( ) never

( ) sometimes

( ) regularly

( ) always

Additional comments to your answer:

C.4 –Control

1) Is there governance?

( ) yes

( ) no

2) What is the governance structure? (Check the most relevant answer)

( ) hierarchical governance

( ) centralized governance

( ) club governance

( ) distributed governance

3) Is there the figure of a leader?

( ) yes

( ) no

4) What are the types of leadership? (Check the most relevant answer)

( ) organic/hegemonic leader

( ) elected leader

( ) organic/hegemonic moderator

( ) elected moderator

D – Regulation

D.1 –Creation

1) Are there rules on how a Creator can participate?

( ) yes, informally transmitted

( ) yes, formally transmitted

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) by a (physical or digital) contract

( ) by a Terms of Use published on the Case web page. List URL: _______________________________

( ) no

2) Are these rules modular, meaning: Does the creator have to agree with the rules or can the Creator agree partially with the rules?

( ) rules not modular, creator has to accept all the rules set in advance by founders/managers of the Case

( ) rules modular, creator can intervene in the rule-set process

3) Are there rules regulating the Intellectual Property rights of Creators?

( ) yes, but not expressed in the Case. Creators assume general IP laws are applied.

( ) yes, expressed in the Case and they are transmitted:

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) by (physical or digital) contract

( ) inserted in a general Terms of Use published on the Case web page. List URL: ________________________________

( ) published in a specific Intellectual Property Notice or Terms on the Case web page. List URL: __________________________________

4) What are the rules adopted for Creators if resource is «de juris» in public domain? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) just public domain

( ) resource in public domain, but community rules exist:

( ) to regulate form of creation

( ) to regulate input of resources

( ) to regulated interoperability of resources

( ) to regulated future freedom of use by Creators

( ) to set the obligation that «if use and create something else (derivatives), contribute back»

( ) to regulate publication rights of Creators

( ) to regulate citation rights

( ) in the public domain, but the Case has a contract for use inspired by Free or Open Source Software licenses

( ) Attribution / Citation clauses

( ) Non Commercial clauses

( ) «Viral» / Copyleft-inspired clauses

( ) N/A

Specify rules:

5) What are the rules adopted for Creators if resource is «de juris» copyrightable?

( ) All rights reserved

( ) Some rights reserved, with express-communicated license

( ) GPL

( ) BSD

( ) Creative Commons

( ) CC-BY

( ) CC-BY-NC

( ) CC-BY-NC-ND

( ) CC-BY-NC-SA

( ) CC-BY-ND

( ) CC-BY-SA

( ) Other. List: __________________________________________

( ) Declaration of resources in Open Access, but no express-communicated license

( ) Regulations on publication rights

( ) Regulations on citation rights

( ) No kind of assertion is made

( ) N/A

Specify rules:

6) What are the rules adopted for Creators if resource is «de juris» patentable?

( ) All rights reserved

( ) Some rights reserved, with express-communicated license (check all applicable)

( ) research exemption

( ) socially responsible license

( ) UAEM model

( ) Berkley model

( ) other List: __________________________________________

( ) in the patentable sphere, but the Case has a contract for use inspired by Free or Open Source Software licenses

( ) Attribution / Citation clauses

( ) Non Commercial clauses

( ) «Viral» / Copyleft-inspired clauses

( ) Patent «covenant» / non-assertion commons

( ) Patent «pool»

( ) Other. List: __________________________________________

( ) No kind of assertion is made

( ) N/A

7) What are the rules adopted for Creators if resource is «de juris» not IP protected, but traditionally regulated by a contract, such as Material Transfer Contracts?

( ) Material Transfer Agreement is negotiated case by case

( ) the Case has a standard Material Transfer Agreement

( ) Simple Letter Agreement (SLA)

( ) Uniform Biological Material Transfer Agreement (UMBTA)

( ) Science Commons MTA

( ) Other. List: ____________________________________________________

( ) Subject to standard property and title laws, but the Case has a contract for use inspired by Free or Open Source Software licenses

( ) Attribution / Citation clauses

( ) Non Commercial clauses

( ) «Viral» / Copyleft-inspired clauses

( ) No kind of assertion is made

( ) N/A

D.2 – Access

1) Are there rules on how a User can access the resource?

( ) yes

( ) no

2) Are the rules of access for Users different from the rules applied to Creators?

( ) yes

( ) no

3) Can User’s right of access be withdrawn at any moment?

( ) yes

( ) no

4) Are the reasons for withdrawal of an User communicated?

( ) yes, informally transmitted

( ) yes, formally transmitted

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) by a (physical or digital) end-of-contract term

( ) by a public communication notice

( ) no

D.3 – Use

1) Are there rules on how a User can use the resource?

( ) yes, informally transmitted

( ) yes, formally transmitted

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) by a (physical or digital) contract

( ) by a Terms of Use published on the Case web page. List URL: _______________________________

( ) no

2) Are these rules modular, meaning: does the user have to agree with the rules or can the user agree partially with the rules?

( ) rules not modular, user has to accept all the rules set in advance by founders/creators of the Case

( ) rules modular, user can intervene in the rule-set process

3) Are the regulations on the use of a resource by users different from the regulations of use for Creators?

( ) yes

( ) no

If yes, jump to section D-4. If no, keep answering in sequence.

4) Are there rules regulating the Intellectual Property rights of Users?

( ) yes, but not expressed in the Case. Users assume general IP laws are applied.

( ) yes, expressed in the Case and they are transmitted:

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) by (physical or digital) contract

( ) inserted in a general Terms of Use published on the Case web page. List URL: ________________________________

( ) published in a specific Intellectual Property Notice or Terms on the Case web page. List URL: __________________________________

5) What are the rules adopted if resource is «de juris» in public domain? (Check all applicable answers)

( ) just public domain

( ) resource in public domain, but community rules exist:

( ) to regulate form of creation

( ) to regulate input of resources

( ) to regulated interoperability of resources

( ) to regulated future freedom of use by Creators

( ) to set the obligation that «if use and create something else (derivatives), contribute back»

( ) to regulate publication rights of Creators

( ) to regulate citation rights

( ) in the public domain, but the Case has a contract for use inspired by Free or Open Source Software licenses

( ) Attribution / Citation clauses

( ) Non Commercial clauses

( ) «Viral» / Copyleft-inspired clauses

( ) N/A

Specify rules:

6) What are the rules adopted if resource is «de juris» copyrightable?

( ) All rights reserved

( ) Some rights reserved, with express-communicated license

( ) GPL

( ) Creative Commons

( ) CC-BY

( ) CC-BY-NC

( ) CC-BY-NC-ND

( ) CC-BY-NC-SA

( ) CC-BY-ND

( ) CC-BY-SA

( ) Other. List: __________________________________________

( ) Declaration of resources in Open Access, but no express-communicated license

( ) Regulations on publication rights

( ) Regulations on citation rights

( ) No kind of assertion is made

( ) N/A

Specify rules:

7) What are the rules adopted if resource is «de juris» patentable?

( ) All rights reserved

( ) Some rights reserved, with express-communicated license (check all applicable)

( ) research exemption

( ) socially responsible license

( ) UAEM model

( ) Berkley model

( ) other List: __________________________________________

( ) in the patentable sphere, but the Case has a contract for use inspired by Free or Open Source Software licenses

( ) Attribution / Citation clauses

( ) Non Commercial clauses

( ) «Viral» / Copyleft-inspired clauses

( ) Patent «covenant» / non-assertion commons

( ) Patent «pool»

( ) Other. List: __________________________________________

( ) No kind of assertion is made

( ) N/A

8) What are the rules adopted if resource is «de juris» not IP protected, but traditionally regulated by a contract, such as a Material Transfer Agreement?

( ) Material Transfer Agreement is negotiated case by case

( ) the Case has a standard Material Transfer Agreement

( ) Simple Letter Agreement (SLA)

( ) Uniform Biological Material Transfer Agreement (UMBTA)

( ) Science Commons MTA

( ) Other. List: ____________________________________________________

( ) Subject to standard property and title laws, but the Case has a contract for use inspired by Free or Open Source Software licenses

( ) Attribution / Citation clauses

( ) Non Commercial clauses

( ) «Viral» / Copyleft-inspired clauses( ) No kind of assertion is made

( ) N/A

D.4 - Control

1) Is the control over the resource symmetric among Creators and users?

( ) yes

( ) no

Additional comments to your answer:

2) If no, does anybody in the Case’s community has any veto power?

( ) yes

( ) Funders

( ) Community Manager

( ) Community Leader

( ) Creator(s)

( ) User(s)

( ) no

Specify veto-power system:

3) Do the Case regulations reserve the rights to the Creators or Managers of the Case to change the rules at any given moment?

( ) yes

( ) yes and this power is expressly communicated to the Community

( ) yes, but this power is not expressly communicated to the Community

( ) no

Additional comments to your answer:

4) If regulation changes, is the change process communicated to the Case Community?

( ) yes

( ) yes, but informally.

( ) yes, and expressly transmitted:

( ) by a physical letter

( ) by an e-mail

( ) by (physical or digital) contract-change

( ) by a pre-communicated change of the Terms of Use

( ) by a non-pre-communicated change of the Terms of Use

( ) published in a specific Notice

( ) no

5) Is there a reward system for the Case Community?

( ) yes

( ) no

Specify reward system:

E – Perception

(Same questions of section A)