Trademark usage and Branding guideline

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DRAFT OpenSolaris Trademark Policy DRAFT

(derived from the Ubuntu and Mozilla Trademark guidelines, published under the CC-BY-SA license) 

   THIS IS A WORK-IN-PROGRESS AND IS NOT APPROVED FOR USE
 
   This document has not been formally reviewed or accepted by Sun
   Draft 0.17 - Incorporate feedback (& answers to questions) from Sun internal audience,
                moved "still in progress/future guidelines" stuff to Talk:Trademark_usage_and_Branding_guideline

   Outstanding questions are shown in indented boxes like this, and are expected to
   be removed from the document as it gets closer to its final form.  -Plocher

Introduction

The objective of the OpenSolaris Trademark policy is to balance two interests: Sun's need to ensure that its trademarks remain reliable indicators of source and specific qualities of its technology, such as compatibility and security; and Sun's desire to encourage widespread use of the OpenSolaris Trademarks by the OpenSolaris community. This policy attempts to strike a proper balance.

The sections below describe what is allowed, what isn't allowed, and cases in which you should ask permission. If you have any doubt, or if you wish to discuss licensing issues, please contact Sun at

opensolaris-trademark AT Sun DOT Com

See Trademark_usage_and_Branding_Background for context and rationale that used to be in this document.

Overview

What branding and/or marks can I use if I...

  • ... duplicate the official OpenSolaris ISO image/CD/DVD?
    • You can call the result OpenSolaris,
    • You can call it something else and use the tagline Based on OpenSolaris
  • ... construct an exact replica from the same OpenSolaris Repository using the same recipe and binaries?
    • You can call it something else and use the tagline Based on OpenSolaris
    • (The community would like to be able to call the result OpenSolaris, but the repos, distro builder and other required components are not "there" yet to be able to actually do this)
  • ... recompile the exact same source code to build a distro?
    • You can call it something else and use the tagline Based on OpenSolaris
    • (While the community would like to call the result OpenSolaris, it isn't possible because the "quality control" link for a trademark becomes too hard to validate when someone else does the compilation - it is effectively impossible to ensure that the resulting binaries are really "the same" as those found in OpenSolaris)
  • ... want to form a User group?
    • You can call your group the "xxx OpenSolaris User Group"
  • ... want to use or reproduce logos?
    • You may make things with OpenSolaris logos on them, though only for yourself and your friends (i.e., for non commercial use)


The OpenSolaris Trademarks.

This policy encompasses a set of marks, in word and logo form, collectively referred to as "OpenSolaris Trademarks". This set of marks includes the following:

  • Sun's trademarks: Sun owns a number of trademarks, including OpenSolaris and Solaris. The trademarks are registered (or are in the process of registration) in both word and logo form.
  • Similar trademarks: Any mark containing the letters Solaris is considered to be similar to Sun's trademarks.
  • OpenSolaris taglines: The branding tags that are defined below.

When the OpenSolaris Trademarks maintain their strong association with quality and compatibility, the entire community benefits. Please follow these guidelines in all your uses of those marks.

Certain uses (including "Fair Uses") of the OpenSolaris Trademarks are fine and no specific permission from us is needed. These guidelines also identify certain uses of the OpenSolaris trademark(s) (such as "Built on OpenSolaris") that require permission or a license. Sun will update these guidelines as the ecosystem and corresponding branding programs develop.

Fair Use

Your proposed use of an OpenSolaris Trademark will often be "fair use" or permitted by Sun if:

  • the trademark is used in a manner consistent with the Usage Guidelines below
  • there is no commercial intent behind or impact from the use
  • what you are referring to is in fact the thing that the OpenSolaris Trademark represents, and it is from Sun or the OpenSolaris Community. If someone is confused into thinking that what isn't OpenSolaris is in fact OpenSolaris, you are probably doing something wrong.
  • there is no suggestion (through words or appearance) that your project is approved, sponsored, or affiliated with the OpenSolaris Community (or its related projects) unless it actually has been approved by and is accountable to the OpenSolaris Community's Governing Board (OGB).
  • there is no suggestion (through words or appearance) that your project is approved, sponsored, or affiliated with Sun unless it actually is.
  • you do not incorporate other proprietary or commercial names in names, titles of publications, user groups or conferences that also incorporate OpenSolaris Trademarks. For example, do not use titles in formats such as XYZCorp OpenSolaris Journal, Acme Corporation OpenSolaris User Group or ABCCo OpenSolaris Conference.
  • your use of the OpenSolaris Trademark does not include or imply any commitment by Sun to provide support, service, indemnification or updates.
  • You use the "™" symbol with the first or most prominent mention of an OpenSolaris Trademark unless your editorial convention is never to use symbols with any company's marks, including your own. (The HTML markup for '™' is '™')
  • You include the notice "[TRADEMARK] is a trademark or registered trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries" The notice should be on a single page, linked from all pages that contain the Trademarks (with a "legal" or "trademarks" link in the footer) if you are working on the web. For printed or online pdf materials, place the notice in an appropriate location with other legal notices (e.g., on the title page of a book, in the footnotes of a white paper, on the last slide of a presentation, etc.).
  • The OpenSolaris Community welcomes comment and constructive criticism, and tries to have a good sense of humor. It’s fine to use the OpenSolaris Trademarks in your discussion, commentary, criticism or parody, in ways that unequivocally do not imply endorsement. Please do not include mock or parody products with names based on the OpenSolaris trademarks. It is not “fair use” to use the OpenSolaris Trademark in a manner that disparages OpenSolaris technology or the community, Sun or its products or services.

Naming

Trademark law treats the names of companies, products (including non-commercial distributions) and services as “trademark use” that requires permission or a license from the trademark owner. The following guidelines should help you with naming:

  • Company/business names.
    You should not include an OpenSolaris Trademark in the name of your company or business. There is more about permissible User Group names below.
  • Product/Distribution Names.
    It is not a “fair use” to include an OpenSolaris Trademark in the name of any product or distribution. This is a classic “trademark use”.
  • Names of the official binary & unmodified derivatives.
    Sun has named the official binary distribution OpenSolaris. If you redistribute this official binary distribution from the OpenSolaris Community without any modifications (no sub-setting, no super-setting), you do not need to change the name. If you construct the distribution out of a different set of packages, however, you may not use OpenSolaris for the name of the entire distribution.
  • Names of other official components.
    Sun will use the OpenSolaris Trademark to name official installation recipes, bootstrap cores and repositories. Where it is applicable and authorized, you may continue to use these names if you redistribute or mirror these components without modification. If you create your own installation recipes, bootstrap cores, or repositories, you should use a different name, e.g., Acme Repository. Use of the “for OpenSolaris” tagline may be an appropriate “fair use,” see below.
  • Names of services.
    Naming support, training, consulting and even non-commercial informational services is “trademark use,” just like naming a product. Use a different name for your services that relate to the OpenSolaris technology; the “for OpenSolaris” tagline may be an appropriate fair use.

Descriptions and Taglines

OpenSolaris

You can continue using the OpenSolaris name if you redistribute an official binary distribution from the OpenSolaris Community without any modifications (no sub-setting, no super-setting) and you include the notice "[TRADEMARK] is a trademark or registered trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries"

You may not use the name OpenSolaris for distributions

  • bundled with or constructed out of a different set of components, or
  • recompiled from source code

Tagline: Based on OpenSolaris

It is considered fair use to use the text phrase “based on OpenSolaris” to describe your distributions, as long as they meet one the following criteria:

  1. It is simply a redistribution of an official OpenSolaris binary distribution from the OpenSolaris Community, but modified by sub-setting or super-setting packages from an official Sun-supported OpenSolaris repository,
  2. Your binary distribution was created from a recipe that consists of a minimal OpenSolaris bootstrap core plus packages from an official Sun-supported OpenSolaris repository, or
  3. Your binary distribution is a simple recompilation (or port to a new architecture) of OpenSolaris. That is, it is created from, and is a complete implementation of the OpenSolaris source code retrieved from OpenSolaris.org, and the vast majority of your code is identical to the upstream OpenSolaris.org code used to create one of the above binary distributions.

Note that you should not use these phrases as or in the name of your distribution. 

   This is similar to the Ubuntu concept of REMIX, and allows for new processor ports.

   Can this provide for the following restrictions, or do we simply 
   leave it up to the community to shun poor quality stuff?:
   
   We would strongly discourage, and likely would consider the 
   following to be problematic:
       * use of packages or applications that are not packaged for, or 
         installable from an OpenSolaris compatible repository 
       * use of packages or applications that do not install or operate 
         correctly on the OpenSolaris Distribution.

Community Advocacy and User Groups

Using a term in the name such as "user group," "special interest group," etc., makes clear the relationship between OpenSolaris and the group, and does not create confusion about the source of products. It is a fair use. In user group names, it is not necessary to include an extra noun that identifies the Sun product (e.g., "OpenSolaris User Group" is acceptable; it is not necessary to say "OpenSolaris Technology User Group"). These principles apply only to user groups that are not conducting commercial activities. If you are administering a user group that includes the OpenSolaris Trademark in its name:

  • DO NOT claim any trademark rights in the name or attempt to register the name or your logo with a trademark office;
  • DO NOT register the name as a trade name or business name, or conduct any business under the name (e.g., do not register domain names under your user group name).

Logos and Merchandise

When it comes to Sun's [OpenSolaris Trademarked logos] ("logos," for short), there are some cool things you can do and some cool things you can't do - at least not without asking Sun.

You may make t-shirts, desktop wallpaper, or baseball caps with OpenSolaris logos on them, though only for yourself and your friends (meaning people from whom you don't receive anything of value in return).

You can't put the OpenSolaris logo on anything that you produce commercially -- at least not without receiving Sun's permission. You can’t use the OpenSolaris logo on any distributions or components, such as repositories, without permission.

You also can't modify the OpenSolaris logos, except its size. Any scaling must retain the original proportions of the logo.

  • If presented in multiple colors, the logo should only use the "official" logo colors (which includes black and white versions, where appropriate).
  • You may use transparency and gradient/depth tools but should retain the "official" colors.
  • A monochrome version may be acceptable in certain situations, if the use requires it (e.g. desktop backgrounds). 
   Do we need reusable logos for "Built for OpenSolaris" or "Based on OpenSolaris"?

Use of Marks on Online Services

Online Services: Trademark law considers all web sites to be services – from e-commerce, to community sites, to blogs and personal home pages. Many sites provide only non-commercial, informational services, but trademark law applies to the naming in two ways – the domain name you use and the name of the content or service you provide. In general, don't use the trademarks in the domain name, or as the title or name of your website/service, but it is OK to use them as file, folder or path names in URLs.

For details on this and related topics, please see Sun's general trademark policy at http://www.sun.com/policies/trademarks/

Derived works not covered by the above

If you are producing a distribution or product which is based on OpenSolaris but which has changes beyond those allowed above, fair use allows you to state (and we would encourage you to do so) that your product "uses OpenSolaris technology", or is "a derivative of OpenSolaris", but, in general, you may not claim compatibility with OpenSolaris or use the OpenSolaris Trademarks or taglines to refer to your product.

In some cases you may be allowed to use the OpenSolaris Trademarks, but we'll need to discuss that (use the email address above). In that event, these products will need a trademark license, and such a license can be revoked if the nature of your divergence from OpenSolaris changes. Products which include very invasive changes, such as a new kernel, the inclusion of packages which are not part of the OpenSolaris ecosystem of repositories, or anything else that significantly impacts the technical quality or user experience would fall into this category are unlikely to be approved. (Note that if you are including packages which are not part of the OpenSolaris ecosystem of repositories, we encourage you to work within the OpenSolaris community to submit and maintain those packages within the repositories in order to minimize this issue.)

Other Trademark guidelines may be developed in the future.

Legally, for the purposes of many nations' trademark laws, all other uses of the OpenSolaris Trademark need to be reserved by Sun, but terms for use are negotiable. Specifically, nothing here precludes the development of additional guidelines and subsequent adoption by Sun as such needs present themselves.

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