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Open Educational Resources: Collections & Remixes

Note about Collections

REMEMBER: you only have copyright on the collection, NOT the contents within your collection. This means that your chosen copyright license would only cover your work in creating the collection (such as the selection and arrangement of the works)

You do not own copyright on other copyrighted works.

Choosing a License

Want some guidance on picking a license for your work? Try out the CC license chooser and explore what's available.

When creating a remix, derivative, or collection, it is important to keep track of the existing licenses of the original work(s). These licenses will inform you of what Creative Commons license(s) are available to you as you think about your own license choices.

Unfortunately, it's pretty easy to confuse the compatibility of different types of licenses. Check out the chart linked here to see what works are compatible.

CC License Compatibility Chart by Creative Commons. CC BY 4.0

Identify the original license along the left, and see what licenses are compatible as you follow the columns that run across the table.

  • A CC-BY license is compatible with a CC-BY-SA license (so you could license your remixed work/collection as CC-BY-SA.)
  • A CC-BY-ND license is not compatible with ANY of the licenses (as you can see from the long row of Xs). In this case you cannot use any materials licensed under CC-BY-ND in your remixed work/collection.

Example Collection

Check out the following collection to see an example of how you can and should attribute materials within a collection. Make note of how the CC licenses for each item and the overall collection is presented in the document.

Note about Remixes/Adapted Works/Derivative Works

! It is still important that you provide attribution to the works of others that inspired and contributed to your remixed work. !

The minimal information included in the attribution should include:

  • T: Title of the source
  • A: Author
  • S: Source (link to the original source)
  • L: License of the original source

Defining Collections, Remixes, Adapted, and Derivative Works

When first exploring Creative Commons licenses, it can be confusing as you think about how to define collections, remixes, adapted works, and derivative works. How are these different items defined and what does it mean to create these works or to have your original work be used in these ways?

 

 

The difference between a collection and a remix can be difficult to determine, and what constitutes an adaptation depends on a country's applicable law.

If you are thinking about adapting or creating a derivative of other works, it's important to stay aware of the existing Creative Commons licenses that are currently in place for these sources. This will inform how and what licenses you can use as you consider a license for your own work.

You'll find quite a few reminders on this page about the consideration of licenses as you think about sharing your remixed work or collection. Explore the ADAPTER'S LICENSE CHART. 

  • If the box is green, the licenses are compatible
  • If the box is yellow, the license is TECHNICALLY permitted, but Creative Commons does not recommend using that license
  • If the box is gray, the license is NOT compatible.

CC Adapter's Chart by Creative Commons. CC BY 4.0.

Chart Legend:

PD: Public Domain
BY: Attribution
BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial
BY-NC-ND: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives
BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
BY-ND: Attribution-NoDerivatives
BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike

Creative Commons License for this Page

The Creative Commons Collections & Remixes Page of the Creative Commons LibGuide by Christine Elliott is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.