Moonbirds Switches to CC0. Are Holders Right to Feel Slighted?
CC0 continues to be popular among project developers and community holders of NFTs. But how does a community respond when a project seemingly out of the blue switches from having NFT holders being the only ones who retain commercial rights to CC0 (creative commons) where anyone can creatively do whatever they want with an NFT, regardless of whether they are holders or not?
We’re finding that out now with Moonbirds.
TLDR:
1. Moonbirds co-founder Kevin Rose took to Twitter to state that Moonbirds is moving to a CC0 public license
2. Kevin Rose, Justin Mezzell, and Josh Cook believe this will empower anyone with the “ability to creatively remix work” and that “the work itself can become a credibly neutral platform — without restraint or the fear of restriction or creative limitations.”
3. Many members of the Moonbirds community feel that at this stage, this move erodes trust in the community
First of all, what is CC0?
CC0 is “the ‘no copyright reserved’ option in the Creative Commons toolkit — it effectively means relinquishing all copyright and similar rights that you hold in a work and dedicating those rights to the public domain.”
Why did Moonbirds switch to CC0?
Proponents of this switch to CC0 state that decentralization and permissionless creativity are at the heart of Web3 culture. Ryan Carson on Twitter came out with a thread about why he believes that this switch to CC0 is a good move by Moonbirds for the long term.
Even if Moonbirds can do this, should they?
Critics of the switch to CC0 state that this move degrades trust in the community. Many community members felt that such an abrupt, sudden change in promises to the community erodes trust and shows that there isn’t respect for the community. Many critics stated most holders would have never used their licensing rights but would have appreciated more of a dialog with the community before making such a big change. Other critics were harsher, stating that this was a money play by Moonbirds so that they didn’t have to deal with getting the licensing rights from individual holders while they capitalized on the brand’s value.
Best move for the long term?
Moonbirds has often been described as one of the most professionally ran NFT communities. This past month has not been the best for them though. From lukewarm interest in their latest merch release and now this switch to CC0, people are questioning whether Moonbirds really has what it takes to be here for the long term and to serve the true desires of the community. Moonbirds remains to be a top NFT collection though. Its leadership harps that everything that is being done is for the long-term value for the community. One thing that is clear though, with this bumpy summer, pressure is mounting for Moonbirds to deliver big on its promises.
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