View source for Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Trademarks

{{for|the Wikimedia Foundation's policy on its own trademarks|wmf:Trademark policy}}
{{Redirect|WP:CAMELCASE|information regarding use of CamelCase on older versions of Wikipedia|Wikipedia:CamelCase and Wikipedia}}
{{Redirect|WP:BRANDING|the essay|Wikipedia:Avoid branding}}
{{style-guideline|WP:MOSTM|MOS:TM|sortkey=Trademarks}}
{{nutshell|Follow standard English [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Text formatting|text formatting]] and capitalization rules, regardless of the preference of trademark owners.}}
{{Style}}

'''[[Trademark]]s''' include words and short phrases used by legal entities to identify themselves and their products and services. Often, these names are written in several ways with variations in capitalization, punctuation, and formatting. The advice in this page also applies to names and phrases used to identify individuals, movements, groups, forums, projects, events, and other non-commercial entities and their output.

When deciding how to format a trademark, editors should examine styles already in use by ''[[WP:IS|independent]]'' [[WP:RS|reliable sources]]. From among those, choose the style that most closely resembles standard English – regardless of the preference of the trademark owner. Do not invent new styles that are not used by independent reliable sources. This practice helps ensure consistency in language and avoids drawing undue attention to some subjects rather than others. Listed below are more specific recommendations for frequently occurring nonstandard formats.

This guideline (in its entirety) applies to all trademarks, all [[service mark]]s, all [[Trade name|business names]], and all other names of business entities.

== General rules ==
{{shortcut|MOS:TMRULES|MOS:CAMELCASE}}
* Capitalize trademarks, being proper names. For details, follow the same style as for titles of published works {{crossref|(See {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Capital letters|Composition titles}}).}}
**''use:'' [[Nintendo|{{xt|Nintendo}}]], [[Illumos|{{xt|Illumos}}]] <!-- Replace "Illumos" with better examples, see [[Wikipedia_talk:Manual_of_Style/Trademarks/Archive_17#More_examples_of_capitalized_trademarks]] -->
**''avoid:'' {{!xt|nintendo}}, {{!xt|illumos}}
* Don't expect readers to know, based on trademarks or brand names, what item is being discussed. For example:
** ''use:'' {{xt|Police in Miami confiscated 25 stolen [[Rolex]] watches.}}
** ''avoid:'' {{!xt|Police in Miami confiscated 25 stolen Rolexes.}}
** ''however:'' {{xt|Police in Miami confiscated 25 stolen [[Apple Watch]]es.}} (This capitalization is appropriate because the product type is {{em|included}} in the formal name of the product.)
* Follow standard English [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Text formatting|text formatting]] and [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Capital letters|capitalization]] practices, even if the trademark owner considers nonstandard formatting "official", as long as this is a style already in widespread use, rather than inventing a new one: {{crossref|selfref=no|(But see exception below under {{slink||Trademarks that begin with a lowercase letter}}.)}}
** ''use:'' [[Time (magazine)|{{xt|''Time''}}]], [[Kiss (band)|{{xt|Kiss}}]], [[Asus|{{xt|Asus}}]], [[Sony Mobile|{{xt|Sony Mobile}}]]. (Capitalize [[IKEA|{{xt|IKEA}}]], [[IBM|{{xt|IBM}}]], [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Abbreviations#Acronyms|as acronyms/initialisms]].)
** ''avoid:'' {{!xt|''TIME''}}, {{!xt|KISS}}, {{!xt|ASUS}},  {{!xt|SONY Mobile}}
* Using all-caps is preferred if the letters are pronounced individually, even if they don't (or no longer) stand for anything.  For instance, use {{xt|SAT}} for the testing system (formerly the Scholastic Assessment Test) and {{xt|KFC}} for the fast-food restaurant (formerly Kentucky Fried Chicken). Using all-lowercase letters may likewise be acceptable if it is done universally by sources, such as with the webcomic ''{{xt|xkcd}}''.
* {{anchor|®}}Do not use the ™ and ® symbols, or similar, in either article text or citations, unless unavoidably necessary for context.
** ''use:'' [[LittleBigPlanet|{{xt|''LittleBigPlanet''}}]], [[Realtor|{{xt|Realtor}}]]
** ''avoid:'' {{!xt|''LittleBigPlanet™''}},  {{!xt|REALTOR®}}
* Avoid using special characters that are not pronounced, are included purely for decoration, or simply substitute for English words or letters (e.g., "♥" used for "love", "!" used for "i") or for normal punctuation, unless a significant majority of reliable sources that are independent of the subject consistently include the special character in the subject's name. Similarly, avoid special stylization, such as superscripting or boldface, in an attempt to emulate a trademark. {{crossref|(See also {{section link|Wikipedia:Article titles#Special characters}}.)}}
** ''use:'' [[Macy's|{{xt|Macy's}}]], [[Skate (magazine)|{{xt|''Skate''}}]], [[Yellow Tail (wine)|{{xt|Yellow Tail}}]], [[Seven (1995 film)|{{xt|''Seven''}}]], [[Alien 3|{{xt|''Alien 3''}}]], [[Toys "R" Us|{{xt|Toys "R" Us}}]]{{efn|''Toys "R" Us'' has quotation marks around the ''R'' because it is treated this way consistently in reliable sources (probably because the company does this itself in running text, despite that punctuation not 
being in their graphical logo). This example should {{em|not}} be taken as an instruction to add quotation marks to symbol-for-word substitutions in other proper names, e.g. the film title ''[[2 Fast 2 Furious]]''.}}
** ''avoid:'' {{!xt|macy<sup>★</sup>s}}, {{!xt|''skate.''}}, {{!xt|[ yellow tail ]}}, {{!xt|''Se7en''}}, {{!xt|''Alien<sup>3</sup>''}}, {{!xt|Toys Я Us}}
** When a name is almost never written except in a particular stylized form, use that form on Wikipedia: [[Deadmau5|{{xt|Deadmau5}}]], [[3M|{{xt|3M}}]], ''[[2 Fast 2 Furious|{{xt|2 Fast 2 Furious}}]]''
*Trademarks in "[[CamelCase]]" are a judgment call; the style may be used where it reflects general usage and makes the trademark more readable.
** [[Oxycodone|{{xtn|OxyContin}}]] or {{xtn|Oxycontin}} {{snd}}''editor's choice''
** ''however:'' [[PlayStation|{{xt|PlayStation}}]] only (camelcase preferred because {{!xt|Playstation}} is not widely-used.)
** Initial lowercase in certain trademarks almost never written any other way, such as [[iPhone|{{xt|iPhone}}]] and [[eBay|{{xt|eBay}}]], are accepted on Wikipedia, though for page naming there are [[Wikipedia:Page name#Technical restrictions and limitations|technical limitations]] and methods of [[WP:DISPLAYTITLE|displaying the title appropriately]].
* Do not "correct" the spelling, punctuation, diacritics, or grammar of trademarks to be different from anything found in reliable sources—the name should be ''recognizable'' as referring to the topic.
** ''correct:'' [[Craigslist|{{xt|Craigslist}}]], [[Uber|{{xt|Uber}}]], [[National Basketball Players Association|{{xt|National Basketball Players Association}}]], [[Tumblr|{{xt|Tumblr}}]]
** ''wrong:'' {{!xt|Craig's List}}, {{!xt|Über}} or {{!xt|Ueber}}, {{!xt|National Basketball Players' Association}}, {{!xt|Tumbler}}
* {{anchor|TMTHE}}Do not capitalize the word ''the'' in a trademark {{cross reference|(see {{section link|WP:Manual of Style/Capital letters#Institutions}}, and {{section link|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Capital letters#Capitalization of The|nopage=y}})}} regardless how the name is styled in logos and the like, except at the beginning of a sentence.{{efn|name=Sentence case|1=Wikipedia uses [[sentence case]] for sentences, [[WP:Article titles|article titles]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Layout|section titles]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Tables|table headers]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Images|image captions]], [[WP:Manual of Style/Lists|list entries]] (in most cases), and entries in [[WP:Infobox|infoboxes]] and similar templates, among other things.  Any instructions in MoS about the start of a sentence apply to items using sentence case.<!-- Please keep this footnote synched with the version at the main WP:MOS page.-->}} Titles of published works [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Titles#Indefinite and definite articles|{{em|do}} have an initial ''The'' capitalized]]; bands and the like [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Music#Names (definite article)|do not]]. Rarely, an exception may apply, but only when consistently treated this way in most reliable sources (e.g. [[The The|{{xt|The The}}]]); when expanding an acronym that starts with ''T'' for ''The'' (as in [[The International Cat Association|{{xt|The International Cat Association}}]]{{xt| (TICA)}}); and when the name of a publisher begins with the name of a publication with an initial ''The'' (thus [[The New York Times Company|{{xt|The New York Times Company}}]], per ''[[The New York Times|{{xt|The New York Times}}]]'').

=== Mergers, partnerships, and other combined names ===
The names of merged companies, partnerships, consolidated divisions, and merged product lines vary by organization, and there are {{plain link|1=https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_largest_law_firms_by_revenue&oldid=676865589|2=many styles}}. Beware assumptions about how such names are constructed and what they mean; a complex real example is [[Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Discover & Co.|{{xt|Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Discover & Co.}}]], which resulted from a merger of two corporations, while its name, built from parts of those of previous entities that were themselves the results of mergers, consists of two last names, a first and last name, a company name, and an abbreviation.

The ampersand (<code>&</code>) is frequently used in trademarks (e.g. [[AT&T|{{xt|AT&T}}]]), and the plus symbol (<code>+</code>) occasionally (as in [[Springer Science+Business Media|{{xt|Springer Science+Business Media}}]]), as substitutes for the word "and".  A long-standing trend has been to drop the word entirely (along with commas sometimes) in long, multi-party business names, especially after mergers or the addition of a partner (for example, [[Harcourt (publisher)|{{xt|Harcourt, Brace & Company}}]] became {{xt|Harcourt Brace Jovanovich}}, later part of [[Houghton Mifflin Harcourt|{{xt|Houghton Mifflin Harcourt}}]]).

More recently, some have even taken to removing spaces and using camelcase (e.g. [[DaimlerChrysler|{{xt|DaimlerChrysler}}]]), sometimes unpredictably (as in [[JPMorgan Chase|{{xt|JPMorgan Chase}}]]).

* Leave compressed names as-is: Do not add "and", a symbol for it, commas, or spaces to such names (e.g. "{{!xt|Houghton, Mifflin & Harcourt}}") where independent, reliable sources do not consistently use them, and do not remove them (e.g. "{{!xt|HoughtonMifflinHarcourt}}") if they are consistently used.
* The compressed form is not always the one to use: As with the other considerations above, if reliable sources overwhelmingly favor a particular spelling and punctuation, use it in Wikipedia, but do not simply attempt to mimic graphical marketing materials: [[Gulf and Western Industries]] is the proper corporation name (Gulf and Western for short), not the {{!xt|Gulf+Western}} of their logo; while more concise, it is less recognizable and less common.

If in doubt about a modern company, their website's small print, contact page, or legal disclaimers (privacy policy, etc.) may provide the official company name, and online searches of corporation registrations and of trademarks can also be used for this purpose. (Note, however, that Wikipedia article titles are usually given [[Wikipedia:Article titles#Use commonly recognizable names|the most common name]] in reliable sources, which [[Wikipedia:Official names|might not be the official name]].)

=== Trademarks that begin with a lowercase letter ===
{{Shortcut|MOS:TMLOWER}}
{{see also|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Capital letters}}
Trademarks that officially begin with a lowercase letter raise several problems because they break the normal capitalization rules of English that proper names are written with initial capital letters wherever they occur in a sentence. 

* With the exception that immediately follows, trademarks promoted without any capitals are capitalized like any other:
** ''use:'' {{xt|I found a ''[[Thirtysomething (TV series)|Thirtysomething]]'' DVD and a pair of [[Adidas]] shoes while browsing [[Craigslist]].}}
** ''avoid:'' {{!xt|I found a ''thirtysomething'' DVD and a pair of adidas shoes while browsing craigslist.}}
* The exception is trademarks that begin with a one-letter lowercase prefix pronounced as a separate letter. These are often not capitalized if the second letter is capitalized, but should otherwise follow normal capitalization rules:
** ''use:'' {{xt|He said that [[eBay]] is where he bought his [[iPod]].}}
** ''avoid:'' {{!xt|He said that EBay is where he bought his IPod.}}
* In such a case, rephrase to avoid beginning sentences with lowercase trademarks:
** ''use:'' {{xt|''He bought his iPod on eBay.''}}
** ''avoid:'' {{!xt|eBay is where he bought his iPod.}}
Not all trademarks with a pronunciation that could have fit this pattern actually do so, and should not be re-styled to conform to it (use [[NEdit|{{xt|NEdit}}]] not "{{!xt|nEdit}}", [[E-Trade|{{xt|E-Trade}}]] not "{{!xt|eTrade}}"; [[Xbox|{{xt|Xbox}}]], not "{{!xt|xBox}}").

=== Indicating stylizations ===
{{Shortcut|MOS:TMSTYLE}}
In the article about a trademark, it is conventional to give the normal English spelling in the [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Lead section|lead section]], followed by a note, such as "(stylized as ...)" (or "(stylised as ...)" depending on the article's [[MOS:ENGVAR|variety of English]]), with the stylized version (which may include simple stylization, like capitalization changes, decorative characters, or superscripting, but not colorization, attempts to emulate font choices, or other elaborate effects),{{efn|An exception to the "elaborate effects" rule is made at the articles on the [[TeX]] and [[LaTeX]] text formatting systems, because the more detailed stylizations represent the actual treatment in reliable sources, and also serve to illustrate what these electronic typesetting systems do.}} then resume using an alternative that follows the usual rules of spelling and punctuation, for the remainder of the article. In other articles that mention the subject, use only the normal English spelling, not the stylization. 

However, if the title of the article is the stylized version of the name (e.g. [[iPod|{{xt|iPod}}]]), it should be given in the boldfaced title recapitulation at the beginning of the lead (i.e., without a "stylized as" note), and used throughout the text (and, in most cases, in other articles that mention it). The lead may also have a note (e.g., "sometimes also written ...") indicating the unstylized version if it is also commonly attested in reliable sources, especially if any confusion could result from its absence. <!-- We should cover whether to boldface it; there seems to be some dispute about this matter, in various topics, from soap opera character maiden names, to superhero aliases, to Classical music catalogue numbers. There should probably be a general RFC about it at WP:VPPOL. -->

When a stylization appears only in a logo rather than within text (in either primary or independent reliable sources), it generally does not need to be mentioned at the top of the article. For example, [[Facebook]] uses a lower case "f" in its logo, while within text it solely uses "Facebook" to refer to itself. Similarly, [[Wikipedia]] uses "W{{small|IKIPEDI}}A" in the logo but elsewhere uses "Wikipedia" (although the relevant information is still discussed at [[Wikipedia logo]]). [[Adidas]], on the other hand, uses "[https://www.adidas-group.com/en/group/profile/ adidas]" rather than "Adidas" in running text when referring to the company, and the stylism is therefore mentioned.

== Use of graphic logos ==
{{see also|Wikipedia:Non-free content|Wikipedia:Logos|Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Icons}}
Product logos and corporate logos, such as the stylized rendition of the word ''Dell'' used by [[Dell Inc.]], whether copyrighted or not, may be used once in the [[WP:INFOBOX|infobox]] or corner of articles about the related product, service, company, or entity.  

Although many companies claim copyright over their logos, the use of the logo in an encyclopedia article may be considered [[fair use]].  Please [[Wikipedia:Untagged images|tag]] logo images with {{tl|non-free logo}}. Some logos are [[free content]] because they are in the [[public domain]] or are under a free license: for example, logos consisting of short text may [[threshold of originality|not be eligible]] for copyright protection, and old logos that were published without a copyright notice have likely fallen into the public domain. When this is definitely the case, the {{tl|trademark}} tag may be used instead. However, when in doubt, err on the side of caution per non-free content policy by assuming that the logo is copyrighted.

Note that non-free logos should only be used in the infoboxes of the primary article(s) to which they are affiliated; i.e. a company logo may be used in the article about that company, but not in a separate article about one of the company's products.

Distinguish clearly between the trademark and the company name when, as with Dell, it is customary to do so. Company names should normally be given in the most common form in English; only specify ''International Business Machines Corporation'' to state that that ''is'' the legal name, otherwise call it [[IBM]], as our sources do.

== See also ==
* [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Capital letters]]
* {{sectionlink|Wikipedia:Article titles|Use commonly recognizable names}}

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}
{{Style wide}}

[[Category:Wikipedia Manual of Style (legal)]]