Trademark policy/Section 3

Section 3 When you may use the Wikimedia marks without asking us

3.1 Use of trademarks on the Wikimedia sites You may use and remix the Wikimedia marks on the Wikimedia sites as you please.

3.2 Community-focused events You may use the trademarks for events that promote our mission and are intended to be predominantly attended by Wikimedia community members. These are events like hackathons, editor meetups, photographer excursions, and WikiCons.

For example, you can put the Wikipedia puzzle globe logo on banners and posters at an edit-a-thon you've organized.

GLAM initiatives and photo contests require a Wikilicense under Section 4.1. This provision also does not allow you to use the marks for fundraising.

3.3 Outreach and recruiting new contributors You may use the marks consistent with our mission to educate people about the Wikimedia sites and to recruit new contributors, as long as you make it clear that you do not work for the Wikimedia Foundation. You can create educational material or banners to decorate a public fair stand or to publicize an edit-a-thon. But, please don't sell any of them.

This provision does not allow you to use the marks for fundraising.

3.4 Community logo use The Wikimedia Community logo can be used freely. But you may not file trademark applications incorporating the logo. The Wikimedia community wants to ensure that the logo remains available for all to use.

3.5 Discussing something other than Wikimedia sites (fair use) Wordmarks can sometimes have a primary meaning, in addition to representing a brand (like the words "apple" or "facebook"). Our wordmarks were not real words before our projects were created. But we will interpret fair use broadly to include the use of our wordmarks when you really mean to talk about something other than the Wikimedia sites.

3.6 Refer to Wikimedia sites (nominative use) You can use the non-stylized wordmarks (e.g. "Wikipedia") to describe:

A Wikimedia site or another aspect of the Wikimedia movement in a text (e.g. "I love reading about coal balls on Wikipedia"). A derivative work of Wikimedia content in a way that is not misleading (e.g. "the encyclopedic content on this site is derived from Wikipedia"). You may also use all Wikimedia marks on your own website as a hyperlink to the Wikimedia sites. The use of logos in hyperlinks should follow the Visual Identity Guidelines (for example, the marks may be resized, but not modified in any other way).

Here are some other specific cases of nominative use:

3.6.1 News reporting You may use the Wikimedia marks to make truthful statements about the Wikimedia sites in news reports and commentary.

3.6.2 Personal blogs and social media You can use the Wikimedia marks to make truthful statements about the Wikimedia sites in personal blogs and social media. But please don't do it to imply endorsement by or affiliation to the Wikimedia Foundation. To avoid confusion, don't use the Wikimedia logos in the background, as your profile image, or in the header of your blog. You should also not use the marks in the name of your blog or in your social media username. This section is not meant to restrict your use of the Community logo under Section 3.4.

3.6.3 Artistic, scientific, literary, political, and other non-commercial uses You can use the Wikimedia marks to discuss the Wikimedia sites in artistic, scientific, literary, and political work.

But please send us a request if you want to place a Wikimedia mark on the cover of your book, display a Wikimedia mark in a movie, or organize an event or presentation that could be interpreted to be endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. For more information, please see Section 4.

You may also use the marks in satire or jokes. To avoid confusing users that your work is affiliated with the Wikimedia sites, it may be helpful to mark your work as "satire" or "parody."

3.7 Make your own branded stuff You may create things with the marks for your own use. These can be t-shirts, caps, desktop wallpapers, lanyards and even cakes! But please don't sell them, and make sure that your design follows the Visual Identity Guidelines. If you want to sell your branded stuff, you can request a license under Section 4.6.