united-states internet trademark australia branding
Can I display university logos on my website under &quot;Used by students and faculty from&quot;
<p>I have a website mostly used by students and university faculty, and I'd like to display those universities' logos on my website.</p>
<p>Examples are: Yale, NYU, UCONN, University of Dallas, University of Sydney, Texas University, Hawaii University, etc</p>
<p>Can I do that? I'm not sure. Maybe I have to contact all of them get individual approval.</p>
<p><a href="https://yaleidentity.yale.edu/yale-logo-wordmarks" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Yale's guidelines</a> talk about publications - but my website is not a publication. (&quot;Only with the approval of the Director of Marketing and Trademark Licensing may the Yale logo or wordmarks be used in non-Yale publications or event displays.&quot;)</p>
<p><a href="https://www.quora.com/Can-I-use-a-colleges-logo-on-my-website-without-violating-trademark-law" rel="nofollow noreferrer">This Quora answer</a> suggests it varies case-to-case - hence this question.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/7ck04o/comment/dpqhm6n/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web2x&amp;context=3" rel="nofollow noreferrer">This Reddit answer</a> suggests that, in order for it to be <em>not</em> okay, the user of logo has to also do it &quot;without the consent of the plaintiff (<em>university</em>) in a manner that is likely to cause confusion among ordinary consumers as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or approval of the goods.&quot;</p>
<p>The answer to <a href="https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/31069/can-i-use-brand-logos-on-a-website-template-im-going-to-be-selling">an older question of mine</a> here on Law suggests I'm in the clear.</p>
<p>Thank you</p>

<p>In the answer to that older question of yours, criterion (2) is probably violated by your plan:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>only so much of the mark as is reasonably necessary to identify the product or service is used</p>
</blockquote>
<p>You could just as easily (in fact, more easily) identify the schools by writing their names in plain text rather than using their wordmarks or logos.  According to <a href="https://www.gibsondunn.com/wp-content/uploads/documents/publications/Davies-Tobin-Fair-Use-Implications-of-Using-the-Logos-of-Others-%20-Dallas-Bar-Association-2-2017.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this article from the Dallas Bar Association</a>, some courts have found use of logos excessive when just the words would do:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Other courts declined to apply fair use for a tourist map using a stylized form of &quot;DISNEYLAND&quot; accompanied by the castle logo, or for a collector's guide using the &quot;TY&quot; Heart logo along with bold lettering.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The above linked article notes at the end that &quot;application of the fair use doctrine is a fact-intensive inquiry&quot;, which is a fancy way of saying &quot;fair use depends on the situation and lawyers get paid lots of money to argue about it.&quot;</p>
<p>Finally, the above article also provides some practical guidelines that are worth considering as well.  These include:</p>
<blockquote>
<ul>
<li>Circumventing the issue by obtaining permission from the IP owner to use its logo</li>
<li>Avoiding logos or distinctive lettering, if words are sufficient to identify the products of others;</li>
<li>Including additional description and referential phrases (e.g. &quot;runs on&quot; or &quot;compatible with&quot;), rather than a bare listing of logos;</li>
<li>Including a conspicuous disclaimer of endorsement, sponsorship, and affiliation that is at least as large as the logos</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
