Unlocking cultural portfolio for Creative Content Exchange

Digitised cultural assets are increasingly important for education, research, creative production, heritage interpretation, media, design and responsible digital innovation. However, digitisation alone does not make content ready for trusted reuse. For content to be made available through a licensing platform, rights must be checked, metadata must be clear, files must be technically prepared, permitted uses must be defined, pricing must be considered and responsible-use conditions must be recorded. This project addresses that gap.

Funded through the UKRI/AHRC Creative Content Exchange Early Adopters Fund (£118,197.00). The project will bring together expertise from Birmingham Business School, Culture, Collections and Public Engagement, University Collections, The Barber Institute of Fine Arts, The Lapworth Museum of Geology, Creative Media and Legal Services.

The work will produce a practical readiness model for cultural data licensing. This will include a data readiness register, rights and risk guidance, enhanced metadata, licensable content packages, pricing and licensing guidance, responsible-use categories and evidence that selected content is ready for the Creative Content Exchange process.

What are the objectives of unlocking cultural portfolio for CCE?

The project aims to prepare selected University of Birmingham cultural assets for responsible licensing, commercial readiness and CCE onboarding by addressing rights, metadata, technical, commercial and responsible innovation requirements within the funded period. We will:

• Identify high-quality content with clear rights and strong reuse potential.
• Complete rights, licensing and risk checks for selected asset groups.
• Improve descriptions and metadata so that content is easier to find, understand and reuse.
• Develop fair pricing and responsible licensing options for education, research, public engagement, creative production, commercial use and carefully governed AI-related use.
• Prepare the asset lists, files, product descriptions and evidence required for CCE onboarding.

Statistics indicators

• 3+: At least three CCE-ready content packages
• 500: Approximately 500 licensable digital assets targeted, subject to rights, metadata, technical and commercial checks
• 1,500: Approximately 1,500 metadata records to be enhanced

The project will share approved learning and practical outputs during and after the funded period. These resources are intended to support future cultural data readiness, responsible licensing and CCE-style onboarding work across the University and, where appropriate, with wider cultural partners.

Resources* to become available for download as project progresses

• Cultural portfolio data readiness framework
• Data readiness register template or public summary version
• Rights and risk guidance for cultural asset readiness
• Metadata enhancement guidance
• Responsible-use and AI-related reuse categories
• Pricing and licensing framework summary
• Readiness clinic materials
• Final project learning report

*Only resources approved for public release will be added above for download.