Shorthand Guide to Using the Windows Trademark of Microsoft Corporation

Updated: December 4, 1995

1. Our Marks Are Important

Microsoft Corporation's trademarks and service marks are valuable corporate assets. This guide will assist you in the proper use of the Microsoft® Windows® trademark.

2. Product Names

Without a specific trademark license from Microsoft, Microsoft's marks may never be incorporated as part of the name of a product or service of another company. You may not include the word Windows, or any potentially confusing variation, in the name of your product. This same rule applies to other Microsoft marks, such as Microsoft®, which should never be included in your product name or company name.

3. Packaging and Advertising

The compatibility of an application (or program) with the Windows operating system may be noted on packaging, collateral material, or advertising (but not included in the product name) by using phrases such as "for use with," "compatible with," or "for" the Windows operating system. On all such materials your product name must appear more prominently than the Windows mark, and the Windows mark should be visually distinguished from your product name by putting it in a different font, or color, or on a different line. This is important to avoid any implication that your product is produced, endorsed, or supported by Microsoft.

Here are some examples:

Do Say:

XYZ for the Windows® operating system

Do Not Say:

XYZ Windows

Windows XYZ

Correctly referencing the Windows mark means doing all of the following:

Using the symbol "®" with our marks Windows and Microsoft. The symbol should be placed next to the last letter of the mark, at the upper right or at the base line. In advertising copy, the symbol should be used at the first or most prominent mention.
Placing the generic product name, "the descriptor," immediately after the mark. The descriptor for the Windows operating system is "operating system."
Including the following notice(s) on such material: "Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation."
and (if Microsoft is used) "Microsoft is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation."

4. Always Use Our Trademarks as Proper Adjectives

Trademarks identify a company's goods or services. A trademark is a proper adjective that modifies the generic name of a product or service. Microsoft is our house mark to identify all products and services that originate from us. Our Windows mark identifies our operating system.

Examples:

Proper Adjective	Generic Name or Description
Microsoft®	software
Windows®	operating system

5. Do Not Combine the Trademarks with an Improper Generic Name

Windows is the mark we use to identify our operating system. Applications (programs) designed to run on the Windows operating system are not "Windows applications," but rather, "applications for the Windows operating system."

Examples:

Do Say:	Application(s) for the Windows® operating system or Windows®-based application(s)
Do Not Say:	Windows® application(s)

Do Say:	user of the Windows® operating system
Do Not Say:	Windows® user

6. Do Not Use Our Trademarks in the Possessive or Plural Form

Examples:

Do Say:	Scalable fonts in Windows®
Do Not Say:	Windows' scalable fonts

Do Say:	The company ordered two copies of Windows®.
Do Not Say:	The company ordered two Windows.

7. Do Not Abbreviate or Create Acronyms

Our marks should not be abbreviated.

Examples:

Do Not Say:	Win
	WOS (for Windows operating system)

8. Company Names

Microsoft marks may never be incorporated in your company name, whether a corporate name or d/b/a.

Examples:

Do Not Say:	Windows, Inc.
	XYZ Windows Company

9. Internet (or Web) Site Names

Follow the guidelines outlined above when using the names Windows and Microsoft on your Internet site. Internet sites may use a term such as "about Windows®" in the title of their sites; however, the site's title should not begin with either Windows or Microsoft. Do not use either Windows or Microsoft in your Internet domain name.

10. The Flag Logo

The flag logo of Microsoft is a valuable symbol for our Windows operating system and related products. The flag logo may never be used without a license from Microsoft. For details regarding licensing criteria for the flag logo for use with products that are "Ready to Run" or are compatible with the Windows operating system, OEMs, ISVs, and IHVs are invited to contact:

Systems Marketing
Windows Logo Department
Microsoft Corporation
One Microsoft Way
Redmond, WA 98052-6399
Fax: (425) 936-7329

11. The Windows "Start" Logo

The Windows Start logo (also known as the "Start Button") is a trademark of Microsoft and is reserved for use by Microsoft only. Do not use the Windows Start logo or any modifications of the Windows Start logo in your communications.