Legal Definitions - collective work

A collective work refers to a compilation where a number of separate and independent creative contributions are brought together to form a larger, unified whole. While each individual contribution maintains its own distinct copyright, the creator of the collective work holds a separate copyright for the selection, arrangement, and coordination of these contributions.

In essence, the copyright for an individual piece within a collective work belongs to the original author of that piece. The copyright for the collective work itself covers only the creative elements involved in assembling and organizing those individual pieces, not the underlying individual works themselves.

• Example 1: An Online Recipe Website

  Imagine a popular website dedicated to user-submitted recipes. Each recipe, complete with ingredients, instructions, and a photograph, is an original creation by an individual user. These recipes are separate and independent works. The website itself, with its categories (e.g., "desserts," "main courses"), search functionality, user reviews, and overall design, functions as a collective work. The individual users retain the copyright to their specific recipes, while the website owner holds the copyright to the website's structure, the arrangement of the recipes, and the editorial choices made in presenting them.

• Example 2: A Themed Short Film Festival

  Consider a film festival that showcases a collection of independent short films centered around a specific theme, such as "Dreams and Reality." Each short film submitted by different filmmakers is a complete, standalone creative work. The festival organizers, by selecting these films, curating their order of presentation, designing the festival program, and creating promotional materials, are creating a collective work. Each filmmaker retains the copyright to their individual short film, while the festival organizers hold the copyright to the festival's overall compilation, including the selection, sequencing, and presentation of the films as a unified event.

• Example 3: A University Research Repository

  A university maintains an online digital repository where faculty members and students publish their academic papers, theses, and dissertations. Each submitted paper or thesis is an independent scholarly work, authored by an individual or a team. The repository, by providing a structured platform for these works, organizing them by department, subject, or publication date, and offering search and access features, constitutes a collective work. The authors of the individual papers and theses hold the copyright to their respective scholarly contributions, while the university, as the creator of the repository, holds the copyright to the repository's design, its system of organization, and the compilation of these works.