Wikimedia is a charity - officially
November 2011
The successful registration of Wikemedia UK as a charity for the purposes of promoting 'open content' such as Wikipedia demonstrates the regulator's enlighted view of the many perspectives of public benefit
Although the public utility of Wikimedia projects like Wikipedia may appear obvious to many, the registration of Wikimedia UK as a charity represents a milestone in the development of charity law in England and Wales.
Wikimedia UK’s registration as a charity is a significant step toward the updating of charity law to reflect developments in modern communications and the evolution of user-generated content. The promotion of open access to content and user-generated and -enriched content has not, until now, been recognised as a charitable purpose. The Charity Commission has made a significant step that acknowledges the profound contribution that properly managed and regulated open content makes to society.
The decision reflects the Commission’s acceptance that charities can operate for charitable purposes other than those expressly set out in the Charities Act 2006 and that more comfortably fit under the heading “objects of general public utility” famously proposed by Mr Samuel Romilly (as he was then) and others in the 19th Century.
In accepting law firm's Stone King’s application on behalf of Wikimedia UK, the Commission has been at pains to point out that the publication of information useful to the public and the promotion of open content are not inherently charitable activities. Any similar organisation seeking to become registered with the Charity Commission would need to demonstrate that its activities are exclusively for the public benefit and that the content promoted has sufficient editorial controls and safeguards on the accuracy and objectivity of the information provided. In Wikipedia’s case, for example, the continuous development and operation of editing policies and content security tools assure an increasingly high quality of content.
As well as promoting Wikipedia, Wikimedia UK promotes open content through a wide range of facilities and projects that include the Wikimedia Commons project (through which good-quality digital images are provided free for use to the general public), Wikisource (which brings original research sources and related commentary together in one place) and Wikimedia UK’s “GLAM” project (in which Wikimedia UK works with galleries, libraries, archives and museums to develop the use of open content for those institutions’ benefit).
“We are very pleased to have been involved in this fascinating application,” commented Jonathan Burchfield, Head of Stone King’s Charity Team, “We are grateful to colleagues at the Charity Commission for their imaginative and insightful assistance throughout this process.”
Author: Jonathan Burchfield
Jonathan Burchfield is a charity and education partner at Stone King LLP. He has specialised in charity law and practice since qualifying as a solicitor in 1978. Jonathan is a former deputy chairman of the Charity Law Association
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