Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Overview
‘Imagine being able to buy the digital blueprints to any object, being able to take
it to a skilled professional and have it produced directly. Imagine instant access
to quality design ideas and the means to manufacture products on demand.
Imagine completely removing the middleman.’
http://www.kith-kin.co.uk/shop/about/
This direct link to consumers means that the traditional route taken to market a product,
involving protracted negotiations with manufacturers and shops, is avoided.2 Now, they can
3
‘conceive an idea, refine it in a day and publish it the next’. The results are products which
represent KithKin’s honest creative voice, and ideas driven by ‘a genuine passion for inspiring
4
people and celebrating creativity’.
‘I want to be part of something truly wholesome and honest within a field that so
5
often feels dishonest and untrustworthy.’
James King, KithKin Designer
1
SomeRightsReserved, http://www.kith-kin.co.uk/shop/.
2
SomeRightsReserved Press Release, 25 March 2008, http://www.kith-
kin.co.uk/press/releases/milan/KithKin_SomeRightsReserved_2008.pdf (accessed 18 March 2009).
3
Interview with Ian Atkins by Cameron Parkins from Creative Commons, 29 October 2008,
http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/10360 (accessed 11 March 2009).
4
Note 2.
5
Ibid.
Unless otherwise noted, this paper is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.
The shop lists 30 products, ranging from product blueprints which can be printed, laser-cut
and rapid prototyped after being downloaded, to ready-to-use digital products such as music,
e-books, fonts, and graphics. Even Lawrence Lessig’s Free Culture is available for download
as a pdf file at the shop.7
Licence Usage
6
Ibid.
7
http://www.kith-kin.co.uk/shop/free-culture/.
8
Email interview with Ian Atkins by Cheryl Foong from ccClinic, 21 March 2009.
9
SomeRightsReserved, http://www.kith-kin.co.uk/shop/about/ (accessed 19 March 2009).
10
Note 3.
Unless otherwise noted, this paper is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.
11
Ibid.
12
Email interview with Anthony Dickens by Cheryl Foong from ccClinic, 19 March 2009.
13
Note 8.
14
Email interview with Stuart Bannocks by Cheryl Foong from ccClinic, 23 March 2009.
15
See for example, Nine Inch Nails’ release of Ghosts I-IV and The Slip under a Creative Commons
licence, http://theslip.nin.com/ (accessed 24 March 2009).
16
Email interview Joss Debae by Cheryl Foong from ccClinic, 21 March 2009.
Unless otherwise noted, this paper is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.
Whilst the initial thoughts that led to the development of SomeRightsReserved arose from the
17
simple desire of several designers to make and sell their designs and creations, the shop
has crystallized to embody KithKin’s experimental approach to creative outcomes.
Challenging the traditional system of design which preaches the value of IP and patents,
some of the products on SomeRightsReserved are free to download, and others have to be
paid for. Of the 30 products, 9 are available for free, whilst the rest are priced from £1 to £10.
Initially, they had no idea as to the volume of downloads the shop would get, or if people
would be prepared to pay for a design download.18 Thus, the project became an experiment
19
with ‘the notion of value’, with people ‘plucking prices from thin air’. Ian muses that it may be
strange (and almost a little uncomfortable) to have free products and paid products sat next to
20
each other, but that’s almost the point of questioning the notion of value.
‘You’re not meant to give things away for free, you’re not meant to publish
the blueprints & instructions to your ideas, you’re not meant to let people
copy your work, improve upon it or share it. But we do. It’s different, at first it
seems illogical, but hopefully it’s the start for a whole new generation of
21
similar thinkers.’
Ian Atkins, KithKin/SRR founder
The slogan ‘a download revolution’ and statements such as ‘Mp3s, file sharing and piracy
revolutionised the music industry. Now it’s time for the design industry’ proudly embellish the
website. SomeRightsReserved is KithKin’s response to, and rejection of the traditional way of
doing things. Instead of gripping on tightly to their designs, they are making the most of the
internet as a platform for distribution to the whole world. And the response is encouraging. So
22
far, there have been over 5000 direct downloads of their 30 online products.
Both images: Chair Back Stencils by Will Gurney, CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 Unported, http://www.kith-
kin.co.uk/shop/chair-stencil/
Product description: Make furniture anywhere and everywhere, you'll surely be sitting pretty!
17
Note 3.
18
Note 8.
19
Note 3.
20
Note 8.
21
Note 3.
22
Note 8.
23
Interview with Ian Atkins, Ed Vince and Joss Debae by Yariv Revah from PingMag, 5 December
2008, http://pingmag.jp/2008/12/05/kithkin/ (accessed 10 March 2009).
Unless otherwise noted, this paper is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.
‘As with anything that has primarily grown on the internet, in my opinion it has
a slight stigma attached to it. If Creative Commons can come offline, and
25
touch people in the real world it will be a real success.’
Ian Atkins, KithKin/SRR founder
Image: The shop making its debut offline in Milan, and also appearing in Selfridges’ Oxford St store and in
Covent Garden, London. Reproduced with permission, http://www.kith-kin.co.uk/KithKin-Portfolio-2009.pdf.
SomeRightsReserved is not ‘your high street supermarket stacking it high to sell it cheap,’ but
‘the little specialist shop that smells funny’.26 As a refreshing take on the traditional shop
model, SomeRightsReserved is definitely a space to watch, especially with KithKin working to
build their product listings, and diversifying their already fascinating collection.
24
Note 3.
25
Note 8.
26
Ibid.
Unless otherwise noted, this paper is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.