Wikipedia talk:Logos

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Contents 1 Historical logos 2 Logo tags TFD 3 Logoturka.com - Logobank 4 Can logos created by users from scratch be freely licensed? 5 Freely licensed logos 6 SVG logos?

[edit] Historical logos

Can we get a clarification on the use of historical logos? Some people seem to be saying that historical logos violate fair use unless there is discussion of the logo itself in the article. I say that a historical logo is an identification of the subject of the article at a previous time, and thus is acceptable without any commentary necessary (other than identifying the logo as historical, rather than current). DHowell 23:42, 29 November 2006 (UTC)

how old? If it's old enough, fair use isnt even an issue, since trademark and copyright protection will have long since expired in every country wikipedia seems to care about for such things. Sparr 10:01, 17 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Logo tags TFD

A number of logo tags have been nominated for deletion. Please see Template:Zoo logos and other to help build a consensus on the best way to manage fair use logo templates. Thank you. BigDT 20:21, 11 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Logoturka.com - Logobank

Vectorel company logotypies. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 85.99.157.19 (talk) 10:29, 3 January 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Can logos created by users from scratch be freely licensed?

For example: Image:Weston logo.png.

Another one: Can logotypes created by a user from scratch derived from descriptions and/or logos be not copyrighted, and hence by freely licensed? An example: Image:DLSU M Logotype.png. --Howard the Duck 12:48, 4 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Freely licensed logos

What should be done about logos that can be proven to be licensed under a free license like the GPL? One example is Image:GPLLinksysLogo.png, which I uploaded to the Wikimedia Commons along with a proof that it is a GPL'd logo. Should this policy be updated to handle logos where freely licensed logos can be found? Jesse Viviano 06:16, 12 January 2007 (UTC)

No response on this one. Maybe because your question is unclear. Can you please be more specific in what you are proposing?↔NMajdan•talk 14:14, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] SVG logos?

The template states that logos should only be in low resolution to qualify as fair use; WP:LOGO states that logos should not be in SVG format. However, there are numerous (fair-use tagged) logos in [[Category:Images which should be in SVG format]]. Should the {{SVG}} tag be removed from these logos? (This would also help clear a little of the backlog from IWSBISF.) Stannered 13:38, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

I think they should as well. SVG images can be rendered into any size, including sizes that would violate Wikipedia's terms of Fair Use. So, yes, I believe the request for logos to be converted to SVG should be denied. This also might be a good question to ask at WT:FU.↔NMajdan•talk 14:12, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

I think not having SVG logos amounts to copyright paranoia. Logos will always be trademarked and copyrighted. This will never change and free versions will never be available. Fair use actually should only be applied to photographs, where there is commercial gain to be sought from high quality photos, not corporate logos which are heavily protected by laws. =Nichalp «Talk»= 15:57, 25 March 2007 (UTC)

I would disagree, although I don't have much of a backround in copyright law. Surely this statement:

"Overly high-resolution versions of logos should be avoided, however, as they are less likely to be fair use. Do not use SVG formats, as this can infringe on fair use. However, if vector artwork is available, they can be rasterized to a screen-resolution PNG format."

on the project page must have been put there for a reason? All logos are copyrighted, and unlicensed copyrighted content can only be used on Wikipedia under a claim of fair use, no? Stannered 16:38, 25 March 2007 (UTC)

There is a difference how fair use is applied. One is for photographs, where the fair use criteria makes sense. (We are borrowing content which is used only for illustrative purposes). Photographs taken are by default copyrighted. Logos on the other hand are not only copyrighted, but also trademarked. So, if you're using a 60x60 px logo, or a 600x600 px logo, the outcome is the same: You cannot use it for commercial gain or misrepresentation of the company. I don't think flags, emblems and seals are too different from logos. Yet, we have no problems with svg flags etc. =Nichalp «Talk»= 18:43, 25 March 2007 (UTC)

The only SVG flags I've seen have been marked as some kind of Public Domain; or licensed by the creator of the file. I've had less to do with emblems and seals, but from what I've seen there, I think the same problem as with logos exists. Stannered 20:57, 25 March 2007 (UTC)