On January 1st of every year, new heritage works enter the Public Domain. Unfortunately, oftentimes these works can still end up being inaccessible to the public, despite the fact that, legally speaking, nothing should prevent public access.
In order to share experiences and best practices in opening up this material, we co-organise the annual Public Domain Day. In 2025, we will celebrate the Public Domain on January 9, with numerous partners, local and international.
We will use this day to discuss inspiring developments and use cases from Belgium and will take a look at the Public Domain through a European lens.
What is the Public Domain?
The Public Domain is the collection of all creative works that are not (or no longer) subject to exclusive intellectual property rights, such as copyright and neighbouring rights. Every year, new works enter the Public Domain because in many countries, copyright protections expire 70 years after the death of the author or artist.
The legal status does not mean that this material is also automatically accessible. During the Public Domain Day, we will take a closer look at the legal, financial, technical and institutional barriers that prevent the public from accessing this content even after copyright protection expires and discuss how those barriers can be overcome.
Programme
In order to discuss the Public Domain from as many angles as possible, this year, we have decided to offer a choice of two tracks for the morning session. We are still putting the final touches on the programme, but we can already share a broad outline:
Belgian Track (morning)
Held mainly in Dutch, the Belgian track will highlight developments in the Public Domain in Belgium and beyond. The sessions will revolve around showcasing recently unlocked Public Domain works and the (re)use of Public Domain material. The track will also host the Wiki Loves Heritage Belgium award ceremony.
European Track (morning)
Held in English, the European track will discuss some of the biggest limiting factors for the Public Domain and highlight ongoing initiatives and projects at the European and international levels that aim to overcome these barriers.
Plenary (afternoon)
In the afternoon, we will look at the handling of the Public Domain by cultural heritage organisations and policies through a European lens. You will learn more about European policies and the impact of new technologies (such as 3D and AI) on the Public Domain, among other things.
Would the Public Domain day be interesting to you?
Do you work in a GLAM organisation and are you curious about what actions you can pursue to open up your Public Domain collections, and become part of the international, ever-growing openGLAM movement? The Public Domain Day 2025, and in particular the Belgian track, are an ideal opportunity to get inspired.
Are you a policymaker who would like to learn more about the Public Domain and the many challenges that exist in this context? We would kindly invite you to join us for the European track!
Together with our numerous (international) partners, we will take a look at the Public Domain from a wide range of perspectives, so everyone is welcome!
Practical information
Join us on 9 January 2024 at KBR (Kunstberg 28, 1000 Brussels). The morning session is split into 2 tracks, for which you can register separately. The Belgian track will be mainly in Dutch, with some possible interventions in French or English, depending on the speaker. The European track as well as the afternoon plenary will be held exclusively in English.
Registration
Registrations for attending the Public Domain Day 2025 in person and online are open now (through meemoo’s website). Please note that online participation will be limited to the European track in the morning and the plenary session in the afternoon.
Partners
Creative Commons, Europeana, Royal Library of Belgium (KBR), meemoo, Wikimedia Belgium, Wikimedia Europe
