This guide and the resources included within are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license, except as otherwise noted. Questions and requests may be directed to Meaghan Shannon, Copyright Librarian at Queen's University: meaghan.shannon@queensu.ca.
The information on this page is intended for Queen's faculty, who produce media for use in their courses, and addresses the following:
- Faculty-Produced Media,
- Modules,
- Videos, and
-Audio Recordings.
If you are looking for information or resources about a specific type of media that has not been addressed on this page, please let us know as we would be happy to make that information and those resources available.
If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office: qcopy@queensu.ca.
The content that faculty create for the facilitation of their courses is protected by copyright and Queen's faculty retain the rights (economic and moral) to the content that they create. Examples of this content include: course outlines, handouts, postings, assignment templates, slides, lecture notes, and any media that faculty produce. This faculty-produced media may include text, images, links, embedded media, etc. but it's important to note that incorporating such content into faculty-produced media does not result in the rights to such content being transferred to faculty; the rights to such content will remain with each piece of content's copyright owner. As such, appropriate exceptions in the Copyright Act, the Fair Dealing Requirements for Educational Copying (Appendix A of Queen's University's Copyright Compliance and Administration Policy), and applicable licenses and terms of use/service should be adhered to. Please see the sections below for information about specific types of media and how to appropriately incorporate content into them. *Please note that it is important for both copyright-related reasons and academic purposes to acknowledge the authors and sources of content, by way of attribution statements, citations, or credit lines, whenever such content is incorporated into faculty-produced media.*
Faculty-produced media can be performed/streamed for students in the classroom and communicated to students via a course site, during an online class, and during a recorded lecture at the faculty member's discretion.
As Queen's faculty retain the rights (economic and moral) to the content that they create, it is recommended that faculty consider making the following information visible on, or included within their faculty-produced media:
(c) [year], Prepared by [name of faculty member], Professor, Queen's University [email address] for use in [course, term].
A Creative Commons license could be applied at the faculty member's discretion, please see the Creative Commons Licenses section on our Authors' Rights & Course Materials page (a Creative Commons license would apply only to the faculty-produced media, not to any incorporated content), or the line above could be accompanied by a statement addressing the use of the faculty-produced media within the course and/or program as well as the reproduction, distribution, and communication of the faculty-produced media online and outside of the course and/or program.
Example: This video is protected by copyright and was prepared for use within [course, term] by students enrolled in the course. The reproduction, distribution, and communication of this video online and outside of [course, term] is not permitted without permission from [name of faculty member], Professor, Queen's University [email address].
The Copyright Advisory Office offers a Takedown Notice service for Queen's faculty who have found their faculty-produced media on websites, platforms, or online services and would like their faculty-produced media removed from such sites. For information about this service, please see our page linked above or contact the Copyright Services Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
The information in this section is intended to address the creation of modules, packaged lessons that are created using Ed Tech tools like Articulate Rise 360 and D2L, that are made available to students within course sites. In order to comply with copyright, course sites must be password-protected and within Queen's University's learning management systems, such as onQ, Elentra, or the Smith School of Business' portals.
Ed Tech tools like Articulate Rise 360 and D2L offer workspaces for the preparation and development of modules. While completed modules are accessed and used by students from within course sites, versions of the completed modules will remain within the Ed Tech tools and will be available to other users of those Ed Tech tools. As such, the strategies for complying with copyright when preparing and developing modules will differ from the strategies for complying with copyright when preparing and developing course sites, online classes, and recorded lectures (which are addressed on our Copyright in Course Sites page).
An Ed Tech Toolkit has been made available by the Centre for Teaching and Learning at Queen's University. The list below was prepared by the Copyright Advisory Office for the Ed Tech Toolkit Working Group. The list includes reviews of numerous Ed Tech tools' Terms of Use or Terms of Service and highlights the treatment and management of intellectual property (content), whether and how artificial intelligence is used, and includes links to the tools' privacy policies and any available accessibility-related information. Please be aware that most Ed Tech tools' Terms of Use or Terms of Service state that users are responsible for any content that the share too, post to, upload to, transmit through, store within, etc., the Ed Tech tool and many prohibit users from sharing, posting, uploading, transmitting, storing, etc., any content to which they do not own the intellectual property rights.
The following are best practices for the use of categories or types of content within or in association with modules.
Content from Print Sources
Postings that consist of short excerpts from copyright-protected material or works should be produced in accordance with the Fair Dealing Requirements for Educational Copying (Appendix A of Queen's University's Copyright Compliance and Administration Policy). For more information, please see our Overview of Fair Dealing page. These postings can be made available to students via a course site and alongside a module but postings cannot be made available to students from within a module.
Permission from copyright owners will be required in order to include short excerpts, including images, from print sources within a module. Queen's faculty are encouraged to use the Copyright Advisory Office's Permissions & Licensing service.
Textbook and Publisher-Issued Supplemental and Instructional Materials
Permission from publishers will be required in order to include content from textbooks and any publisher-issued supplemental and instructional materials within a module. Queen's faculty are encouraged to use the Copyright Advisory Office's Permissions & Licensing service.
Content from Online Sources
Permission from copyright owners will be required in order to include content from publicly accessible online sources within a module. Queen's faculty are encouraged to use the Copyright Advisory Office's Permissions & Licensing service.
Linking or hyperlinking to publicly accessible online content is an alternative to reproducing that content. In the decision regarding Crookes v. Newton (2011), the Supreme Court of Canada stated that "a hyperlink, by itself, should never be seen as 'publication' of the content to which it refers" [para. 14]. Linking or hyperlinking to content does not constitute reproducing that content and links or hyperlinks would not need to be accompanied by attribution statements.
YouTube Videos
YouTube is a publicly accessible online source of videos. You are not required to have a YouTube or Google account in order to access videos on YouTube. Before embedding an embedding-enabled YouTube video within a module, you must confirm that the video is legitimate (not an infringing copy); that the video was made available on YouTube by the copyright owner (consult verified accounts, consider the validity of the usernames of those who posted or uploaded the video, and avoid videos that are accompanied disclaimers that state 'no copyright infringement intended'); and that the use of the video is not restricted by technological protection measures or digital locks (avoid videos that cannot be played in your geographic location).
If you come across YouTube videos that you would like to use but have questions or concerns about whether or how the videos can be used, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Open Educational Resources
Open Educational Resources, or content from them, can be used within modules. Queen's University Library's Open Educational Resources page and Open Educational Resources Guide include detailed information about the use, adaptation, and development of Open Educational Resources.
Creative Commons-licensed Content and Works
Creative Commons-licensed content and works are protected by copyright. Authors of Creative Commons-licensed content and works have elected to employ Creative Commons licenses to pre-authorize the use of their copyright-protected content and works by permitting the exercising of some or all of their economic rights and retaining their moral right or attribution. There are seven Creative Commons licenses that permit specific uses of content and works and range from least to most restrictive. Two of the Creative Commons licenses, CC BY-ND and CC BY-NC-ND, do not permit adaptations or the creation of derivative works, so content and works bearing these two licenses cannot be used within a module. Content and works licensed under the remaining five Creative Commons licenses can be used within a module:
CC 0: both moral and economic rights are waived. The content or work can be used without any restrictions but *the attribution right should be respected for academic purposes.*
CC BY: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. *Respecting the attribution right is the only requirement.*
CC BY-SA: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. *Respecting the attribution right is required* and any new content or work must be shared alike (must be made available through the use of a CC BY-SA license).
CC BY-NC: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for non-commercial purposes only (commercial use requires authorization or permission from the copyright owner). *Respecting the attribution right is required.*
CC BY-NC-SA: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for non-commercial purposes only (commercial use requires authorization or permission from the copyright owner). *Respecting the attribution right is required* and any new content or work must be shared alike (must be made available through the use of a CC BY-NC-SA license).
*It will be important to acknowledge the Creative Commons licenses of content and works used within a module* as anyone accessing your module via the Ed Tech tool used to prepare and develop the module, as well as students using the module via a course site, will need to know whether the Creative Commons-licensed content and works must be shared alike (SA) or can only be used for non-commercial purposes (NC).
Creative Commons-licensed Images
The chart linked below was prepared by the Copyright Advisory Office in an effort to address questions frequently asked by Queen's faculty. The chart links to image search tools, with information about conducting searches for Creative Commons-licensed images, and online sources of Creative Commons-licensed image collections, with information about the scope of use and attribution statements.
Creative Commons-licensed Music and Sheet Music
The chart linked below was prepared by the Copyright Advisory Office in an effort to address questions frequently asked by Queen's faculty. The first page of the chart includes links to online sources of Creative Commons-licensed music, with information about the scope of use and attribution statements. The second page of the chart includes links to public domain and Creative Commons-licensed collections of sheeting music, with information about the scope of use and attribution statements.
If you have questions about Creative Commons-licensed content or works, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Library-licensed Content and Works
Queen's University Library has licensed the use of content and works, such as eBooks, journal articles, and discipline-specific eResources, for educational use by Queen's faculty, students, researchers, and staff. Library-licensed content and works are available through databases and can be accessed through the use of search tools. While the content and works themselves cannot be used within a module, the databases will feature persistent linking or other sharing options so that students can be directed to the original content and works within the databases. The url that will display at the top of your browser will be unique to your logged in search session - rather than use that url, please make use of the persistent linking or other sharing options within the databases. Students may be prompted to log in so that they're recognized as authorized users but, once logged in, they will be able to access the content and works that you've directed them to through the persistent links or other sharing options.
Subscription-based Content
Websites, platforms, and online services that require the creation of accounts, logging in, subscriptions, or the payment of fees, are not publicly accessible online sources of content. The use of content from these websites, platforms, and online services is governed by their Terms of Use or Terms of Service that are agreed to or accepted when accounts are created or subscriptions are initiated. The Terms of Use or Terms of Service will include sections that address intellectual property and permitted uses and these sections will either permit or prohibit the educational use of content within (shared to, posted to, uploaded to, transmitted through, stored within, etc.) the website, platform, or online service. Before incorporating content from such websites, platforms, or online services into a module, please consult the Terms of Use or Terms of Service that you agreed to or accepted.
Social Media
Content from social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, X, etc.) can be incorporated into a module that you intend to communicate to students via a course site, if you have an account with the respective social media platform. When you created your account, you would have agreed to or accepted the social media platform's Terms of Use or Terms of Service and, by doing so, you would have granted the social media platform and its users some or all of the economic rights to the content that you make available through (share to, post to, upload to, transmit through, store within, etc.) that social media platform. This means that others can make use of your content but it also means that you can make use of their content. At your discretion, and if you have accounts with social media platforms, you can incorporate content from social media platforms into a module. *The username of the account that posted/shared the content, the date that the content was posted/shared, and the name of the social media platform, should be acknowledged by way of an attribution statement, citation, or credit line, when content from social media is reproduced, distributed, displayed, and communicated to students.*
If you come across content, from any source, that you would like to use within a module but have questions or concerns about whether and how that content can be used, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
*Attribution Statements in Modules*
Content from any source should be accompanied by an attribution statement when it is reproduced and incorporated into a module that is intended to be communicated to students via a course site. Attribution statements should acknowledge the authors (artists, photographers, graphic designers, musicians, videographers, etc.) of the content and the sources of the content. Attribution statements can be credit lines or citations (the Copyright Act requires attribution statements but does not prescribe specific citation styles or formats). Ideally, attribution statements should accompany the content when it appears in the module. If you are using numerous pieces of content and space on the slide/screen is limited, the pieces of content could be numbered and a corresponding list of attribution statements could be made available at the end of the module - similar to references at the end of an article or credits at the end of a film. The attribution statements must be within the module so that the content within the module can be associated with their authors and sources. The attribution statements should not be within a different document or file even if the document/file and the module have the same name or are available to students alongside each other within a course site.
The graphic below illustrates whether and how content from various sources can be incorporated into a module.
The information in this section is intended to address the creation of videos that are embedded within or linked to from within course sites. In order to comply with copyright, course sites must be password-protected and within Queen's University's learning management systems, such as onQ, Elentra, or the Smith School of Business' portals.
Ed Tech tools like Camtasia and Powtoon offer workspaces for the preparation and development of videos. While completed videos are accessed and used by students from within course sites, versions of the completed videos will remain within the Ed Tech tools and will be available to other users of those Ed Tech tools. As such the strategies for complying with copyright when preparing and developing videos will differ from the strategies for complying with copyright when preparing and developing course sites, online classes, and recorded lectures (which are addressed on our Copyright in Course Sites page).
An Ed Tech Toolkit has been made available by the Centre for Teaching and Learning at Queen's University. The list below was prepared by the Copyright Advisory Office for the Ed Tech Toolkit Working Group. The list includes reviews of numerous Ed Tech tools' Terms of Use or Terms of Service and highlights the treatment and management of intellectual property (content), whether and how artificial intelligence is used, and includes links to privacy policies and any accessibility-related information. Please be aware that most Ed Tech tools' Terms of Use or Terms of Service state that users are responsible for any content that the share too, post to, upload to, transmit through, store within, etc., the Ed Tech tool and many prohibit users from sharing, posting, uploading, transmitting, storing, etc., any content to which they do not own the intellectual property rights.
Option 1: If you are creating videos using Ed Tech tools like Camtasia and Powtoon, please refer to the best practices above for the use of categories or types of content within or in association with modules.
Option 2: If you are using software like Zoom to create a video that you will a) upload directly to your course site; b) upload directly to your private YouTube channel so that you can embed the video within your course site; or c) upload directly to your private YouTube channel so that you can link to the video from within your course site; please refer to the best practices below for the use of categories or types of content within videos.
Content from Print Sources and Physical Formats
Content from print sources and physical formats can be used within a video that is produced and made available via a course site (via a private YouTube channel) to students enrolled in the course in accordance with section 29.21 of the Copyright Act. Section 29.21 is an exception that permits the production of non-commercial user-generated content, such as a video. In order to make use of this exception, the following conditions must be met:
- the new work (video) is produced solely for non-commercial purposes (use by students via a course site, a private YouTube channel);
- the print source or physical format must be legitimate (not an infringing copy);
- the new work (video) will not have a substantial adverse effect, financial or otherwise, on the exploitation or potential exploitation of the content (from the print source or physical format) or on an existing or potential market for it, including that the new work (video) is not a substitute for the content or the source of the content (the print source or physical format); and
- *the author(s) and source of the content must be acknowledged when content from print sources and physical formats is used within a new work (video).*
When using content from print sources or physical formats in a video that will be made available to students directly within a course site or within a course site via a private YouTube channel, it would be best to consider the amount of content from any one print source or physical format in accordance with the following fair dealing factor that was prescribed by the Supreme Court of Canada in the decision regarding CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law Society of Upper Canada (2004):
The amount of the dealing: in proportion to the copyright-protected material or work, how much of the copyright-protected material or work is being reproduced, distributed, communicated, performed, exhibited, or translated/adapted? Is that amount substantial or insubstantial? Is a single short excerpt involved in the dealing or are multiple short excerpts involved in the dealing? Has the amount of the dealing been considered from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives?
Please note that the Fair Dealing Requirements (Appendix A of Queen's University's Copyright Compliance and Administration Policy) define 'a short excerpt' as up to 10% of a copyright-protected material or work. Documents addressing short excerpts from physical formats of audiovisual works, musical works, and sound recordings are linked below. The use of content from physical formats of audiovisual works, musical works, and sound recordings would be contingent on any existing technological protection measures or digital locks not being circumvented or broken.
If you have questions or concerns about using content from print sources or physical formats in videos, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Textbook and Publisher-Issued Supplemental and Instructional Materials
Permission from publishers will be required in order to include content from textbooks and any publisher-issued supplemental and instructional materials within a video. Queen's faculty are encouraged to use the Copyright Advisory Office's Permissions & Licensing service.
Content from Online Sources
Content from online sources can be used within a video that is produced and made available via a course site (via a private YouTube channel) to students enrolled in the course in accordance with section 29.21 of the Copyright Act. Section 29.21 is an exception that permits the production of non-commercial user-generated content, such as a video. In order to make use of this exception, the following conditions must be met:
- the new work (video) is produced solely for non-commercial purposes (use by students via a course site, a private YouTube channel);
- the content and online source must be legitimate (not an infringing copy);
- the new work (video) will not have a substantial adverse effect, financial or otherwise, on the exploitation or potential exploitation of the content or on an existing or potential market for it, including that the new work (video) is not a substitute for the content or the online source of the content; and
- *the author(s) and source of the content must be acknowledged when content from online sources is used within a new work (video).*
When using content from online sources within a video that will be made available to students directly within a course site or within a course site via a private YouTube channel, it would be best to consider the conditions for the educational use of publicly accessible online content that are outlined in section 30.04 of the Copyright Act:
- the content must be publicly accessible (you must be able to access the content without creating an account, logging in to a website, subscribing to a website, platform, or online service, or paying any fees);
- the content must be legitimate (not an infringing copy) and must have been made available online to the public by the copyright owner (consult verified accounts and trusted websites, consider the validity of the usernames of those who posted or uploaded the content, and avoid content that is accompanied by disclaimers that state 'no copyright infringement intended');
- the content must not be accompanied by clearly visible copyright notices that prohibit educational or non-commercial use;
- access to and use of the content must not be restricted by technological protection measures or digital locks (avoid images that have been watermarked, avoid text that cannot be downloaded or copied and pasted, and avoid music and videos that cannot be played in your geographic location); and
- *the author(s) and source of the content must be acknowledged when publicly accessible online content is reproduced, distributed, displayed, performed, and communicated to students.*
If you have questions or concerns about using content from online sources within videos, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Open Educational Resources
Open Educational Resources, or content from them, can be used within a video. Queen's University Library's Open Educational Resources page and Open Educational Resources Guide include detailed information about the use, adaptation, and development of Open Educational Resources.
Creative Commons-licensed Content and Works
Creative Commons-licensed content and works are protected by copyright. Authors of Creative Commons-licensed content and works have elected to employ Creative Commons licenses to pre-authorize the use of their copyright-protected content and works by permitting the exercising of some or all of their economic rights and retaining their moral right of attribution. There are seven Creative Commons licenses that permit specific uses of content and works and range from least to most restrictive. Two of the Creative Commons licenses, CC BY-ND and CC BY-NC-ND, do not permit adaptations or the creation of derivative works, so content and works bearing these two licenses cannot be used within a video. Content and works licensed under the remaining five Creative Commons licenses can be used within a video:
CC 0: both moral and economic rights are waived. The content or work can be used without any restrictions but *the attribution right should be respected for academic purposes.*
CC BY: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. *Respecting the attribution right is the only requirement.*
CC BY-SA: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. *Respecting the attribution right is required* and any new content or work must be shared alike (must be made available through the use of a CC BY-SA license).
CC BY-NC: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for non-commercial purposes only (commercial use requires authorization or permission from the copyright owner). *Respecting the attribution right is required.*
CC BY-NC-SA: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for non-commercial purposes only (commercial use requires authorization or permission from the copyright owner). *Respecting the attribution right is required* and any new content or work must be shared alike (must be made available through the use of a CC BY-NC-SA license).
*It will be important to acknowledge the Creative Commons licenses of content and works used within a video* as students accessing your video will need to know whether the Creative Commons-licensed content and works must be shared alike (SA) or can only be used for non-commercial purposes (NC).
Creative Commons-licensed Images
The chart linked below was prepared by the Copyright Advisory Office in an effort to address questions frequently asked by Queen's faculty. The chart links to image search tools, with information about conducting searches for Creative Commons-licensed images, and online sources of Creative Commons-licensed image collections, with information about the scope of use and attribution statements.
Creative Commons-licensed Music and Sheet Music
The chart linked below was prepared by the Copyright Advisory Office in an effort to address questions frequently asked by Queen's faculty. The first page of the chart includes links to online sources of Creative Commons-licensed music, with information about the scope of use and attribution statements. The second page of the chart includes links to public domain and Creative Commons-licensed collections of sheeting music, with information about the scope of use and attribution statements.
If you have questions about Creative Commons-licensed content or works, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Library-licensed Content and Works
Permission from publishers will be required in order to include content from Library-licensed content and works within a video. Queen's faculty are encouraged to use the Copyright Advisory Office's Permissions & Licensing service.
Subscription-based Content
Websites, platforms, and online services that require the creation of accounts, logging in, subscriptions, or the payment of fees, are not publicly accessible online sources of content. The use of content from these websites, platforms, and online services is governed by their Terms of Use or Terms of Service that are agreed to or accepted when accounts are created or subscriptions are initiated. The Terms of Use or Terms of Service will include sections that address intellectual property and permitted uses and these sections will either permit or prohibit the educational use of content within (shared to, posted to, uploaded to, transmitted through, stored within, etc.) the website, platform, or online service. Before incorporating content from such websites, platforms, or online services into a video, please consult the Terms of Use or Terms of Service that you agreed to or accepted.
Social Media
Content from social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, X, etc.) can be incorporated into a video, that you intend to communicate to students via a course site or via a private YouTube channel, if you have an account with the respective social media platform. When you created your account, you would have agreed to or accepted the social media platform's Terms of Use or Terms of Service and, by doing so, you would have granted the social media platform and its users some or all of the economic rights to the content that you make available through (share to, post to, upload to, transmit through, store within, etc.) that social media platform. This means that others can make use of your content but it also means that you can make use of their content. At your discretion, and if you have accounts with social media platforms, you can incorporate content from social media platforms into a video. *The username of the account that posted/shared the content, the date that the content was posted/shared, and the name of the social media platform, should be acknowledged by way of an attribution statement, citation, or credit line, when content from social media is reproduced, distributed, displayed, and communicated to students.*
If you come across content, from any source, that you would like to use within a video but have questions or concerns about whether and how that content can be used, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
*Attribution Statements in Videos*
Content from any source should be accompanied by an attribution statement when it is reproduced and incorporated into a video that is intended to be performed/streamed/screened by students via a course site or via a private YouTube channel. Attribution statements should acknowledge the authors (artists, photographers, graphic designers, musicians, videographers, etc.) of the content and the sources of the content. Attribution statements can be credit lines or citations (the Copyright Act requires attribution statements but does not prescribe specific citation styles or formats). Ideally, attribution statements should accompany the content when it appears in the video. If you are using numerous pieces of content and space on the screen is limited, the pieces of content could be numbered and a corresponding list of attribution statements could be made available at the end of the video - similar to references at the end of an article or credits at the end of a film. The attribution statements must be within the video so that the content within the video can be associated with their authors and sources. The attribution statements should not be within a different document or file even if the document/file and the video have the same name or are available to students alongside each other within a course site.
The graphic below illustrates whether and how content from various sources can be incorporated into a video.
The information in this section is intended to address the creation of audio recordings, such as voice memos and podcasts, that are made available to students via a course site. In order to comply with copyright, course sites must be password-protected and within Queen's University's learning management systems, such as onQ, Elentra, or the Smith School of Business' portals.
The following are best practices for the use of categories or types of content within audio recordings.
Content from Print Sources and Physical Formats
Content from print sources and physical formats can be used within an audio recording that is produced and made available via a course site to students enrolled in the course in accordance with section 29.21 of the Copyright Act. Section 29.21 is an exception that permits the production of non-commercial user-generated content, such as an audio recording. In order to make use of this exception, the following conditions must be met:
- the new work (audio recording) is produced solely for non-commercial purposes (use by students via a course site);
- the print source or physical format must be legitimate (not an infringing copy);
- the new work (audio recording) will not have a substantial adverse effect, financial or otherwise, on the exploitation or potential exploitation of the content (from the print source or physical format) or on an existing or potential market for it, including that the new work (audio recording) is not a substitute for the content or the source of the content (print source or physical format); and
- *the author(s) and source of the content must be acknowledged when content from print sources and physical formats is used within a new work (audio recording).*
When using content from print sources and physical formats in audio recordings, that will be made available via a course site to students enrolled in the course, it would be best to consider the amount of content from any one print source or physical format in accordance with the following fair dealing factor that was prescribed by the Supreme Court of Canada in the decision regarding CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law Society of Upper Canada (2004):
The amount of the dealing: in proportion to the copyright-protected material or work, how much of the copyright-protected material or work is being reproduced, distributed, communicated, performed, exhibited, or translated/adapted? Is that amount substantial or insubstantial? Is a single short excerpt involved in the dealing or are multiple short excerpts involved in the dealing? Has the amount of the dealing been considered from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives?
Please note that the Fair Dealing Requirements (Appendix A of Queen's University's Copyright Compliance and Administration Policy) define 'a short excerpt' as up to 10% of a copyright-protected material or work. Documents addressing short excerpts from audiovisual works, musical works, and sound recordings are linked below. The use of content from physical formats of audiovisual works, musical works, and sound recordings would be contingent on any existing technological protection measures or digital locks not being circumvented or broken.
If you have questions or concerns about using content from print sources and physical formats within audio recordings, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Textbook and Publisher-Issued Supplemental and Instructional Materials
Permission from publishers will be required in order to include content from textbooks and any publisher-issued supplemental and instructional materials within audio recordings. Queen's faculty are encouraged to use the Copyright Advisory Office's Permissions & Licensing service.
Content from Online Sources
Content from online sources can be used within an audio recording that is produced and made available via a course site to students enrolled in the course in accordance with section 29.21 of the Copyright Act. Section 29.21 is an exception that permits the production of non-commercial user-generated content, such as an audio recording. In order to make use of this exception, the following conditions must be met:
- the new work (audio recording) is produced solely for non-commercial purposes (use by students via a course site);
- the content and online source must be legitimate (not an infringing copy);
- the new work (audio recording) will not have a substantial adverse effect, financial or otherwise, on the exploitation or potential exploitation of the content or on an existing or potential market for it, including that the new work (audio recording) is not a substitute for the content or the source of the content; and
- *the author(s) and source of the content must be acknowledged when content from online sources is used within a new work (audio recording).*
When using content from online sources within audio recordings that will be made available via a course site to students enrolled in the course, it would be best to consider the conditions for the educational use of publicly accessible online content that are outlined in section 30.04 of the Copyright Act:
- the content must be publicly accessible (you must be able to access the content without creating an account, logging in to a website, subscribing to a website, platform, or online service, or paying any fees);
- the content must be legitimate (not an infringing copy) and must have been made available online to the public by the copyright owner (consult verified accounts and trusted websites, consider the validity of the usernames of those who posted or uploaded the content, and avoid content that is accompanied by disclaimers that state 'no copyright infringement intended');
- the content must not be accompanied by clearly visible copyright notices that prohibit educational or non-commercial use;
- access to and use of the content must not be restricted by technological protection measures or digital locks (avoid images that have been watermarked, avoid text that cannot be downloaded or copied and pasted, and avoid music and videos that cannot be played in your geographic location); and
- *the author(s) and source of the content must be acknowledged when publicly accessible online content is reproduced, distributed, displayed, performed, and communicated to students.*
If you have questions or concerns about using content from online sources within audio recordings, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Open Educational Resources
Open Educational Resources, or content from them, can be used within an audio recording. Queen's University Library's Open Educational Resources page and Open Educational Resources Guide include detailed information about the use, adaptation, and development of Open Educational Resources.
Creative Commons-licensed Content and Works
Creative Commons-licensed content and works are protected by copyright. Authors of Creative Commons-licensed content and works have elected to employ Creative Commons licenses to pre-authorize the use of their copyright-protected content and works by permitting the exercising of some or all of their economic rights and retaining their moral right or attribution. There are seven Creative Commons licenses that permit specific uses of content and works and range from least to most restrictive. Two of the Creative Commons licenses, CC BY-ND and CC BY-NC-ND, do not permit adaptations or the creation of derivative works, so content and works bearing these two licenses cannot be used within an audio recording. Content and works licensed under the remaining five Creative Commons licenses can be used within an audio recording:
CC 0: both moral and economic rights are waived. The content or work can be used without any restrictions but *the attribution right should be respected for academic purposes.*
CC BY: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. *Respecting the attribution right is the only requirement.*
CC BY-SA: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. *Respecting the attribution right is required* and any new content or work must be shared alike (must be made available through the use of a CC BY-SA license).
CC BY-NC: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for non-commercial purposes only (commercial use requires authorization or permission from the copyright owner). *Respecting the attribution right is required.*
CC BY-NC-SA: economic rights are waived, the content or work can be used for non-commercial purposes only (commercial use requires authorization or permission from the copyright owner). *Respecting the attribution right is required* and any new content or work must be shared alike (must be made available through the use of a CC BY-NC-SA license).
*It will be important to acknowledge the Creative Commons licenses of content and works used within an audio recording* as students accessing your audio recording will need to know whether the Creative Commons-licensed content and works must be shared alike (SA) or can only be used for non-commercial purposes (NC).
Creative Commons-licensed Music
The chart linked below was prepared by the Copyright Advisory Office in an effort to address questions frequently asked by Queen's faculty. The first page of the chart includes links to online sources of Creative Commons-licensed music, with information about the scope of use and attribution statements.
If you have questions about Creative Commons-licensed content or works, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
Library-licensed Content and Works
Minimal amounts of text from eBooks or journal articles may be quoted/read aloud within an audio recording but permission from publishers will be required in order to quote/read aloud text in excess of a paragraph (for example) or works in their entirety. Permission from publishers will also be required in order to include music or audio from any library-licensed collections within an audio recording. Queen's faculty are encouraged to use the Copyright Advisory Office's Permissions & Licensing service.
Subscription-based Content
Websites, platforms, and online services that require the creation of accounts, logging in, subscriptions, or the payment of fees, are not publicly accessible online sources of content. The use of content from these websites, platforms, and online services is governed by their Terms of Use or Terms of Service that are agreed to or accepted when accounts are created or subscriptions are initiated. The Terms of Use or Terms of Service will include sections that address intellectual property and permitted uses and these sections will either permit or prohibit the educational use of content within (shared to, posted to, uploaded to, transmitted through, stored within, etc.) the website, platform, or online service. Before incorporating content from such websites, platforms, or online services into an audio recording, please consult the Terms of Use or Terms of Service that you agreed to or accepted.
Social Media
Content from social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, X, etc.) can be incorporated into an audio recording, that you intend to communicate to students via a course site, if you have an account with the respective social media platform. When you created your account, you would have agreed to or accepted the social media platform's Terms of Use or Terms of Service and, by doing so, you would have granted the social media platform and its users some or all of the economic rights to the content that you make available through (share to, post to, upload to, transmit through, store within, etc.) that social media platform. This means that others can make use of your content but it also means that you can make use of their content. At your discretion, and if you have accounts with social media platforms, you can incorporate content from social media platforms into an audio recording. *The username of the account that posted/shared the content, the date that the content was posted/shared, and the name of the social media platform, should be acknowledged by way of an attribution statement, citation, or credit line, when content from social media is reproduced, distributed, displayed, and communicated to students.*
If you come across content, from any source, that you would like to use within an audio recording but have questions or concerns about whether and how that content can be used, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office for assistance: qcopy@queensu.ca.
*Attribution Statements in Audio Recordings*
Content from any source should be accompanied by a spoken attribution statement when it is reproduced and incorporated into an audio recording that is intended to be performed/streamed by students via a course site. Attribution statements should acknowledge the authors (artists, photographers, graphic designers, musicians, videographers, etc.) of the content and the sources of the content. Attribution statements can be credit lines or citations (the Copyright Act requires attribution statements but does not prescribe specific citation styles or formats). Attribution statements could introduce or follow the content when it appears in the audio recording or attribution statements could be read aloud at the end of the audio recording - similar to references at the end of an article or credits at the end of a film. Attribution statements should be within the audio recording so that the content within the audio recording can be associated with their authors and sources. The attribution statements should not be within a different document or file even if the document/file and the video have the same name or are available to students alongside each other within a course site.
The graphic below illustrates whether and how content from various sources can be incorporated into an audio recording.
