Licensing and Trademarks
The University of Delaware Licensing and Trademark Program was developed to promote, enhance, elevate and protect the University’s identity and brand and ensure the proper and appropriate use of its name, logos and trademarks. The University has registered many of University of Delaware’s names, logos and trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
As defined by the U.S. Patents & Trademarks Office, “a trademark is a word, phrase, symbol or design, or a combination of words, phrases, symbols or designs, that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others.” A trademark need not be registered in order to protect the rights to it, simply by using or displaying a mark acquires automatic trademark rights to the owner.
For any questions pertaining to trademarks, merchandising or becoming a licensed vendor for UD, please email trademark-licensing@udel.edu.
Follow this process when designing and ordering T-shirts, work shirts, garments, hats and other giveaway or promotional items for your unit or department. All items bearing the University of Delaware name or marks MUST be created through a CLC-licensed vendor. For additional guidance and support for this process, please be sure to work with the communications team that supports your college or campus unit.
- Carefully consider the apparel item you’d like to purchase (e.g., color, style, fabric) and the look of the graphic(s) to be featured on it. Determine the quantity needed.
- Consult UD’s Brand Style Guide.
- If possible, create a color mockup of the item’s design.
- Consult UD’s list of licensees and select 2–3 vendors that specialize in the type of item to be ordered. Contact the selected vendors for price quotes and choose the quote that meets your needs.
- Email trademark-licensing@udel.edu with a description of the item, how it will be used and the quantity to be purchased. Include a color mockup if you have one. Relay as much detail as possible in the description, including the logos to be used, if any, and what licensed vendor you are planning on using.
- If the design meets all UD guidelines, it will be approved and you will be authorized to proceed to the next step with the vendor. Through an online approval website, the vendor will submit the mockup design to UD Licensing, indicating all colors and design specifications.
- You will handle all payments, pick-ups and other transactions directly with the vendor.
- Any sales of items by groups or individuals at UD must read the policies listed on this page.
- A license must be obtained by the vendor for the use of any University of Delaware trademark, image, photograph or logo in or on a commercial product, including premium and promotional items.
- All departments of the University, recognized organizations and alumni clubs are required to purchase licensed merchandise from licensed vendors.
- While items consumed internally by the University, its departments, recognized campus organizations and alumni clubs are not required to pay royalties on items bearing University of Delaware trademarks produced for them and not for resale.
- Trademarks and logos are to be accurately reproduced and must appear in the exact form as registered, including the appropriate trademark designation and may not be altered without the express consent of the Office of Communications and Marketing.
- The names and marks of the University of Delaware shall not be used in the promotion of alcohol, tobacco, “recreational” drug products, gambling products, religious programs or unauthorized promotion of goods or services.
- Unlicensed and unauthorized merchandise bearing University of Delaware trademarks will cause, or is likely to cause, consumer confusion as well as dilution of the University of Delaware’s trademarks. Unauthorized and unlicensed use of University of Delaware’s trademarks may subject the user to disciplinary action and enforcement through available legal remedies, including seizure of the merchandise.
CLC Licensing has collaborated with other collegiate institutions to develop a set of unified labor code standards.
The CLC Licensing code is similar to the Fair Labor Association’s code, and sets forth workplace standards for factories that produce university licensed product that help ensure that licensees do not produce collegiate product utilizing child labor or sweat shop conditions.
The code provides standards that cover various topics, including wages and benefits, working hours, child labor, health and safety, and freedom of association. These standards are monitored through the Fair Labor Association, of which the University of Delaware is a member.
FRequently asked questions
Yes, in order for the University to maintain and protect its value, permission must be obtained from the Office of Communications and Marketing and a licensed vendor must be used.
Please contact OCM prior to production for approval or have your vendor submit the artwork for approval. RSOs must obtain approval through University Student Centers.
These requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Permission must first be obtained before using any University of Delaware mark.
Trademarks and logos are to be accurately reproduced and must appear in the exact form as registered, including the appropriate trademark designation and may not be altered without the express consent of the Office of Communications and Marketing.
A wide variety of products is licensed for the University, including apparel, glassware and decorative items, among others. The University will consider any product, but no product will be licensed by the University of Delaware until the University has approved it.
Licensed vendors do not pay royalties on products being sold to a campus department for internal use and paid for out of a department budget.
All departments of the University, recognized organizations and alumni clubs are required to purchase licensed merchandise from licensed vendors.
OCM maintains a list of licensed vendors which is available here on the OCM website. Vendors who are not already licensed can apply for this certification.
- Ensure the proper use of trademarks, service marks, logos and insignias on products associated with the University to maintain standards in keeping with the quality of the University of Delaware.
- Protect the University’s reputation, good name and image by permitting only appropriate uses and assuring that only quality products bear the University’s name, initials or logos through requiring that official licensees be used to imprint or produce any products bearing University marks unless they are produced on campus by authorized units.
- Generate royalty income to benefit student scholarships.
These policies and procedures are designed to provide guidance for users and to ensure that institutional images follow high standards befitting the University.
While items consumed internally by the University, its departments, recognized campus organizations and alumni clubs are not required to pay royalties on items bearing University of Delaware trademarks produced for them and not for resale, they must secure approval, in writing, from the Office of Communications and Marketing as outlined earlier in this section. Designs must be submitted and approved prior to manufacturing.
We are always complimented when a school wishes to use one of our marks as their mascot but our policy does not allow our marks to be used by any other business or educational institution including public or private schools. In setting this policy, many factors were taken into consideration including product liability, control of how the marks are used and who manufactures the product, and the policies of our peer institutions throughout the United States.
The “Officially Licensed Collegiate Products” hologram appears on all licensed merchandise for the University and the other Consortium members of CLC. Any merchandise not bearing these labels for schools represented by CLC but using a University mark may represent an infringement of trademark punishable by law.
Any promotion referencing the University requires the express written permission of the University and CLC. The University legally protects its marks and the institution’s image through the licensing program and unlicensed use of trademarks is subject to state and federal anti-counterfeiting laws.
If you do not see the “officially licensed” label or find out a product is not licensed, please email trademark-licensing@udel.edu. Companies who produce and sell unlicensed (counterfeit) products do not support the University of Delaware, unlike those who are licensed buy the University. If you would like to report counterfeit merchandise or have a questions regarding the authenticity or any product, please contact CLC.
Delaware state laws and United States federal laws prohibit the use, reproduction and counterfeiting of licensed trademarks, and infringement of these policies is punishable in varying degrees, depending on the type and severity of the infringement. For more information on possible penalties for trademark infringement, please visit www.clc.com.