37
votes
Accepted
Would this be considered as plagiarism?
No, not at all.
It doesn't have nearly enough similarities to count as plagiarism. Yes, they both feature a tree. As do many, many logos. The style is different, the use of colors, the whole setup is ...
- 2,706
26
votes
Accepted
Can I stylize the trademark symbol to match logo design?
I am not a trademark attorney which is really who you should ask.
My understanding is the ™ is merely an indicator that the mark is being used in an effort to register it. ™ means "We intend to make ...
- 199k
9
votes
Accepted
is creating a logo that contains a similar visual element to another conceptual logo a copyright infringement?
Artwork is copyrighted when it is created. It doesn't matter if it is a concept or not, it is still copyrighted.
If someone were inclined to try and prove you used the Bactolab logo as a basis, they ...
- 199k
7
votes
Using fan art for book cover
There are three issues here:
The easy one. Do you have permission or a license from the artist? Or did they artist release their work under something like Creative Commons? If no, you're stealing ...
- 26.7k
6
votes
Would this be considered as plagiarism?
There is not nearly enough similarity between both logos. Also by definition you are not plagiarizing, since you are not trying to use someone else's work as if it yours. I don't think there is ...
- 61
6
votes
Using fan art for book cover
If it's clearly Radcliff's likeness, then you'll probably run into a problem. It's to do with a persons privacy rights, and to prevent them looking like they endorse things that they don't.
If it is ...
6
votes
Accepted
Can I use company logos in my portfolio?
The reproduction or publication of any company's intellectual property, which includes logos, should only be done with the permission of the company(s) involved. If a company owns a logo which is ...
- 384
5
votes
Is it legal to display third-party logos as part of "As featured in" on sites/printed ads without their consent?
Each company or organization has their own terms about this.
So you might want to read them for each logo before adding them on your website or marketing material.
For example, you cannot add a ...
- 13.6k
5
votes
Accepted
Reserved Font Names for SIL/OFL & Registering/Trademarking Commercial Fonts
I will preface this by saying that I am not a lawyer. I am pretty familiar with font legal/business issues from my decade-plus at Adobe working with their lead font lawyer, and 20 years in the type ...
5
votes
Would this be considered as plagiarism?
There is no legal threshold that you can go over to be "safe" as the law is interpreted by the judge. In this case I do not see any problems. The greens are different the style is different and even ...
- 151
4
votes
Would this be considered as plagiarism?
There is a difference between "plagiarism" and "copyright infringement". Plagiarism means pretending that you created something when you didn't. If your graphics designer claims he created your logo, ...
- 161
4
votes
When do you need to put your trademark beside your logo, and when you don't?
I am not a lawyer. If you are seeking legal advice regarding trademarks, consult a trademark attorney.
The ™ symbol is used to notify others that you intend to register the mark, phrase, icon, ...
- 199k
3
votes
Reserved Font Names for SIL/OFL & Registering/Trademarking Commercial Fonts
This is only a partial answer. The rest of the question is addressed very well by Thomas Phinney’s answer
Otherwise, if I'm not careful, it sounds like anyone could just copyright my work as their ...
- 14.3k
3
votes
Why do people upload their work to Adobe and other stock sites if they can't be used for intended purposes?
There are a few different ways a logo could be used:
As a central part of the branding of your company. This is probably the way people usually think of logos. But certainly not the only one.
The ...
- 55.4k
3
votes
Copyright, Trademark, branding
All artwork is copyrighted to the artist or his/her employer the moment it's created. You don't technically need to do anything to have a copyright. Merely being able to prove the dates of your file ...
- 199k
3
votes
Is the distinctive color combination of Google logo copyrighted ?
Caveat: I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV.
As Google themselves have shown - by borrowing the same 4 colours used by Microsoft for the Windows logo - you can't copyright a colour combination.
...
- 4,260
2
votes
Variation of umbrella logo for "children's" department
If I were you, I would only alter the logo if this Children's division will have separate functions inside of it—If it's a new 'bucket'. OR if this logo will have more of a presence than typical ...
- 1,521
2
votes
Using fan art for book cover
You always need permission from the original author of any published work. When you create a work (read: anything) that work is yours. If you use fan art of a work as part of a larger commercial work ...
- 121
2
votes
Accepted
What is the status of numbers in the Mollerup's taxonomy for trademarks?
Generally speaking, you can’t trademark numbers because they are not distinctive enough. There are exceptions, but they prove the rule because they are things like Boeing’s “747” where the number ...
- 1,947
2
votes
Would this be considered as plagiarism?
Just to add, No it doesn't. Think of it this way You have some letters in your logo, doesn't mean you can file lawsuit against others too on a copyright charge.
If your tree looked the same, had the ...
- 121
2
votes
Registering gradients in logo as a trademark?
What is registred as a trademark is the logo, no its "accidents".
The proper way to make a logo is to design a distinctive shape with meaning (or not), not necessary its colors; far less a gradient.
...
- 33.8k
2
votes
is creating a logo that contains a similar visual element to another conceptual logo a copyright infringement?
If the molecule can be found from elsewhere as public domain stuff and you are sure it's older than the work you show as source of your derivative, then feel free. Otherwise you take a risk
to lose ...
- 51.5k
2
votes
Trademarking Multiple Logos
Trademarking is not a "register and you're done" process.
Trademarking often requires extended use within an industry to show you are utilizing that brand extensively in that industry. And due to ...
- 199k
2
votes
Trademarking Multiple Logos
A trademark registration for each design iteration of a logo can be expensive. However, it is not necessary to register each individual design to gain protection. Register the logo as a "standard ...
- 41
2
votes
Can we use images of historic figures in our artwork?
Edit: this question has been edited after it was posted, but originally suggested that "historical people" are themselves copyrightable.
You should ask your lawyer for legal advice.
People are ...
- 74.8k
2
votes
How can I automatically add the Trademark symbol to specific words in Indesign CC while typing?
I am doing this with m2 in surface areas. Assuming you're using a Paragraph Style, you can attach a GREP Style to that and each time there's a word of any length ending in 'tm' followed by a space or ...
- 27.6k
2
votes
How can I automatically add the Trademark symbol to specific words in Indesign CC while typing?
You can achieve what you want with the Autocorrect feature. (well... almost*)
The thing is that adding a glyph into the "correction" field is a bit tricky, but doable. Here's how:
First, go ...
- 4,553
1
vote
Resources for Logo Design Trademarking
You could either point them to the place where they need to file for it (depending on your country of origin) or to a lawyer that specializes in trademark.
In Canada, you will need to go through the ...
- 8,425
1
vote
Resources for Logo Design Trademarking
In the US, you can go to the Patent and Trademark Office:
https://www.uspto.gov/trademark
2 things in particular are useful:
The trademark search - horrid interface, but lets you find which names ...
- 595
1
vote
Accepted
Our company's new logo looks similar to another logo. Will this be a problem in the future?
Back when I was doing commercial art for my living, I'd occasionally run across news of some lawsuit based on a logo (symbol) causing confusion. The standard is (or was, anyway) not whether the logos ...
- 355
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible