New CC Search Offers One-Stop Access to 300 Million Images

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 05/02/19
CC Search

A new CC Search front end debuts this week. Developed by Creative Commons and a community of volunteer developers, the tool allows users to find and use some 300 million images from openly licensed and public domain works.

The search function provides a single place to look for images from 19 collections, including Flickr (which is currently the source for the bulk of the content — some 289 million pictures), Bēhance, Geograph Britain and Ireland and DeviantArt.

CC Search result

While the search currently encompasses only images, the effort will eventually add other media types, such as open texts and audio, later this year. The eventual goal: to allow people to find any of the 1.4 billion Creative Commons-licensed and public domain works on the web through the search page.

Thanks to feedback provided by beta testers, the search page now provides a cleaner design and "better navigation and filters," according to Jane Park, CC's director of product and research, who leads the work for CC Search. Attribution options have been streamlined and "clear channels" have been added for providing feedback on the functionality of the site and specific image reuses.

"Under the hood," she added, search loading time and search phrase relevance have been improved, and analytics have been added "to better understand when and how the tools are used."

According to the CC Search roadmap, later this quarter the search function will sport advanced filters, the ability to browse without entering a search term, improved accessibility and a mobile user experience.

CC Search is part of the Creative Commons website.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • The AI Show

    Register for Free to Attend the World's Greatest Show for All Things AI in EDU

    The AI Show @ ASU+GSV, held April 5–7, 2025, at the San Diego Convention Center, is a free event designed to help educators, students, and parents navigate AI's role in education. Featuring hands-on workshops, AI-powered networking, live demos from 125+ EdTech exhibitors, and keynote speakers like Colin Kaepernick and Stevie Van Zandt, the event offers practical insights into AI-driven teaching, learning, and career opportunities. Attendees will gain actionable strategies to integrate AI into classrooms while exploring innovations that promote equity, accessibility, and student success.

  • chart with ascending bars and two silhouetted figures observing it, set against a light background with blue and purple tones

    Report: Enterprises Embracing Agentic AI

    According to research by SnapLogic, 50% of enterprises are already deploying AI agents, and another 32% plan to do so within the next 12 months..

  • laptop screen displays an

    Crafting Thoughtful AI Policy in Higher Education: A Guide for Institutional Leaders

    Here's how to develop and implement an AI framework that not only aligns with an institution's unique mission, but also addresses the diverse needs of its stakeholders, including faculty, students, staff, and administration.

  • minimalist digital network with glowing interconnected lines and nodes

    Integration Brings Cerebras Inference Capabilities to Hugging Face Hub

    AI hardware company Cerebras has teamed up with Hugging Face, the open source platform and community for machine learning, to integrate its inference capabilities into the Hugging Face Hub.