Visual Mining’s trademarks and service marks (“Visual Mining trademarks”) are valuable assets that Visual Mining needs to protect. We ask that you help us by properly using and crediting Visual Mining trademarks in accordance with these guidelines. For information about proper use of Visual Mining logos, logotypes, signatures, and design marks, please review the Third Party Usage Guidelines for Visual Mining Logos.
- Permissible Use
- Prohibited Use
- Correct Use
- Trademark Symbols and Credit Lines
- “Visual Mining” as a Trade Name
- Questions
You may generally use Visual Mining trademarks to refer to the associated Visual Mining products or services. For instance, an authorized reseller can note in its advertisements that it is selling NetCharts Server, Visual Mining’s graphical reporting server. Similarly, an Visual Mining customer may issue a press release stating that it has implemented NetCharts software.
Relationship of Products or Services
You may indicate the relationship of your products or services to Visual Mining products or services by using accurate, descriptive tag lines such as “for NetCharts graphical reporting server,” “for use with NetCharts Reporting Suite applications,” and “works with NetCharts software” in connection with your product or service name. Within text or body copy, such tag lines may appear in the same type as your product or service name. On product, packaging, advertising and other collateral where your product or service name is displayed apart from body copy, make sure that the tag line appears in significantly smaller type than your name. You should also distinguish the tag line from your mark by using a different font or color. However, NetCharts or the tag line should never appear in the NetCharts logo colors. This is important to avert any implication that your product or service is produced or endorsed by Visual Mining.
Titles
Visual Mining permits use of its marks in single volume book titles (not magazines or periodicals) where such use is descriptive or referential. To avoid misleading the public as to Visual Mining sponsorship, affiliation or endorsement, the Visual Mining mark must not appear more prominently than the rest of the title, and do not use Visual Mining logos on the cover. In addition, we request that you include a disclaimer of association with Visual Mining on the copyright page.
You may not use Visual Mining trademarks in a manner which could cause confusion as to Visual Mining sponsorship, affiliation or endorsement. Take particular care not to use Visual Mining marks as set out below.
Company, Product or Service Names
Do not use Visual Mining trademarks or potentially confusing variations as all or part of your company, product or service names. If you wish to note the relationship of your products or services to Visual Mining products or services, please use an appropriate tag line as detailed above. For example, “XYZ for Visual Mining NetCharts products ” not “VMI-XYZ” or “XYZ Visual Mining”
Logos
For more information regarding use of Visual Mining logos, please review the Third Party Usage Guidelines for Visual Mining Logos.
Trade Dress
You must not imitate Visual Mining trade dress, type style or logos. For instance, do not copy Visual Mining packaging for use with your product or display your product name in the distinctive logotype associated with the Visual Mining logo.
Domain Names
Do not use Visual Mining trademarks or potentially confusing variations in your Internet domain name. This helps prevent Internet users from being confused as to whether you or Visual Mining is the source of the Website.
Proper use of Visual Mining trademarks reinforces their role as brands for our products and services, and helps prevent them from becoming generic names that can be used by anyone. Examples of former trademarks that became generic terms are “aspirin,” “cellophane,” and “escalator.” By adhering to the following rules, you help protect Visual Mining’s investment in its trademarks.
Use a Generic Term
Use a generic term in association with each Visual Mining trademark the first time the mark appears in text, and as often as possible after that. You need not include generic names in headlines, package titles and documentation titles. For example, “NetCharts graphing software”, “NetCharts reporting software “, and “NetCharts graphical reporting server.”
Use as Adjectives
Visual Mining trademarks are adjectives and should not be used as verbs, or in the possessive or plural form. For example, “NetCharts software’s benefits..” not “NetCharts’ benefits…”
Avoid Variations
Do not vary Visual Mining trademarks by changing their spelling or abbreviating them. For example, “NetCharts Reporting Suite” not “ReportSuite.”
Trademark Symbols and Credit Lines
Proper trademark attribution through trademark symbols and credit lines helps makes the public aware of our trademarks, and helps prevent them from becoming generic terms. Credit lines also help clarify that they belong to Visual Mining. Accordingly, Visual Mining would appreciate you attributing ownership of Visual Mining trademarks to Visual Mining, a division of NetCharts-GB, LLC by using trademark symbols (™ or SM or ®) and credit lines as detailed below.
Trademark Symbols
Use the ® symbol with the most prominent appearance of the “NetCharts” mark on products, packaging, manuals, advertisements, promotional materials and Web pages (e.g., in the headline of an advertisement), and the first use of the mark in text or body copy. This includes situations where “NetCharts” is a part of a product or service name (e.g., NetCharts Reporting Suite, NetCharts Server). You do not need to use trademark symbols with other Visual Mining trademarks.
Example: XYZ Develops New Product for NetCharts Server
XYZ Corporation, a member of the Visual Mining Partner Network program, has developed the ABC software cartridge for use with the industry-leading Visual Mining graphical reporting server software. The ABC software cartridge is one of numerous products XYZ has developed that complement leading NetCharts products.
“NetCharts” receives a trademark symbol in the headline because this is the most prominent appearance, and when it appears as part of the “NetCharts Server” name because this is the first appearance in text. While there is no trademark symbol after “NetCharts” when it appears in front of the term “products” since we already used a symbol the first time that the term “NetCharts” appeared in body copy. It is always acceptable, though not necessary, to continue using the ® after “NetCharts” throughout the document.
Credit Line
All products, packaging, manuals, advertisements, promotional materials and Web pages bearing Visual Mining trademarks should include the following trademark credit line:
“NetCharts is a registered trademark of Visual Mining, a division of NetCharts-GB, LLC and/or its affiliates.”
The credit line may appear anywhere on the collateral, but typically is displayed on a copyright page, the back of a package or at the end of a document or web page.
“Visual Mining” as a Trade Name
Trade names are the actual business names of companies. Trademarks and trade names are not the same, even though many companies use their trade names as trademarks. If you are using “Visual Mining” as a substitute for Visual Mining, a division of NetCharts-GB, LLC, you are using it as a trade name. Because they are nouns, trade names can be used in the possessive and do not require a generic term or a trademark symbol. Thus, you should not use a ® after “Visual Mining” when it appears as part of the full corporate name or as a trade name.
Examples:
- Corporate Name: This software was developed by Visual Mining, a division of NetCharts-GB, LLC
- Trade Name: This software was developed by Visual Mining.
- Trademark: NetCharts Pro
If you have any questions regarding Visual Mining trademarks, please contact the Visual Mining Legal Department at +1.301.795.2200 or legal@visualmining.com.