I. Preamble
1. In 2004, the Administrative Affairs Committee laid down some general guidelines on when the University Name (as defined in Paragraph 2 below) might or might not be used on packaging, advertising materials or any other documents for the promotion of external bodies and/or their products or services (“Commercial Purposes”). In view of the increasing requests from internal and external parties to use University Name in different commercial promotional materials, the 2004 guidelines are recapped and supplemented in this Guidelines.
II. General Principles
2. The University’s name, including “The Chinese University of Hong Kong” and “香港中文大學”, all abbreviations and acronyms such as “CU”, “CUHK”, “中大” and “港中大” and any logo, emblem, trademarks and signatures, whether as shown in https://marketing.cpr.cuhk.edu.hk/portal/emblem-and-logo/ or in any other form of visual identity that connotes an association with the University (“University Name”), is property of the University.
3. As a publicly-funded institution, the University has the responsibility to avoid conflict of interest and to safeguard its reputation. The University Name shall not be used for any Commercial Purposes without prior written permission of the University to avoid misrepresentation and misuse.
4. The general principles on use of University Name for Commercial Purposes are:
4.1 The permission to allow any party to use the University Name for any Commercial Purposes shall not suggest, imply or indicate, either directly or indirectly, the University’s endorsement, support, favor of, association with, or opposition to any party, activity, programme, event, policy, product, service or the like.
4.2 Except for a statement of fact describing exactly the scientific research/input made by the University on a product, the University Name or the name of its affiliated unit should not be used for Commercial Purposes.
5. The aforesaid general principles shall apply to:
5.1 all individuals, groups, organisations and companies, including but not limited to startup companies of CUHK staff, students and alumni; and
5.2 all media, including but not limited to, print, radio, television, video, motion pictures and all forms of electronic media (e.g. internet websites, electronic mail, social media, applications for computers or mobile devices).
III. Seeking Approval to Use University Name for Commercial Purposes
6. There are increasing requests from contracting parties under licences of intellectual property rights or agreements for service/knowledge transfer (these agreements are handled by Office of Research and Knowledge Transfer Services (“ORKTS”)) to use the University Name for Commercial Purposes. ORTKS shall be the primary contact point and responsible administrative unit to process such requests.
7. ORKTS has formulated Standard Operating Procedures to review and approve the requests. As a guideline, use of University Name for Commercial Purposes would only be allowed if:
7.1 the use of University Name is solely for informative purpose;
7.2 the statement associated with the University Name is factual and accurate describing exactly the scientific research on, and/or input by a University unit for a product or service; and
7.3 the University Name is in a size, colour and position that is not prominent.
8. Upon approval, ORKTS will inform the Communications and Public Relations Office (“CPRO”). CPRO will then provide ORKTS with guidelines on the correct usage of the University brand to supply to the relevant party. CPRO will actively monitor for any breaches of the University’s brand guidelines or any usage of the University’s brand which falls outside the principles articulated in paragraph 7 of this document.
9. Below are some precedents of approved use of University Name by ORKTS:
| Media | Approved Use |
| Leaflet, poster, newspaper advertisement | 專利技術由香港中文大學授權 (in small print) |
| Packing | 香港中文大學獨家授權 (in small print) |
| TV advertisement | 經香港著名大學驗證 獲得香港著名大學科學證實 (not allowed to use University Name) |
10. Any promotional material reviewed by ORKTS shall be published/used as is. The University may impose other conditions and/or disclaimers on the use of University Name requests as it considers appropriate and fit.
Approved by AAPC on 14 December 2021
FAQ
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Can a third-party company use the University Name in its company name or trademark?
No. CUHK does not permit external parties to use the University Name, in whole or in part, in any trademark, business name, trade name, domain name, or as the name of an independent entity as such usage inherently suggests an association with or an endorsement from CUHK. For details, please refer to Paragraph 4.1 of the Guidelines. This core principle applies to companies founded by CUHK staff, students, or alumni, regardless of whether the business idea or intellectual property originated from CUHK research. Unauthorized use or misuse of the University Name may result in enforcement actions to protect CUHK's intellectual property rights and reputation.
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If my company has approval to use the University Name, does this permit unrestricted use across all media or indefinitely?
No. Approval for the use of the University Name is never a blanket permission. Each approval is granted on a case-by-case basis and is strictly limited by the following conditions:
- Scope-Specific: Approval applies only to the specified purpose and media (e.g., product packaging). It does not extend to other uses or platforms.
- Time-Bound: Approvals are granted for a defined period which may or may not be subject to renewal. Using the University Name beyond the approved timeframe requires application and re-evaluation by the University.
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If my company has approval to use the University Name, can our affiliates (e.g., subsidiaries, parent companies, or partner entities) also use it?
No. Approval is non-transferable and is granted only to the entity explicitly named in the written approval. Separate approval must be sought for any related entities. Applicant shall be liable for any acts of omissions of any such entities.
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Why was another company permitted to use the University Name in the way I request, but my application was denied?
Each application is evaluated independently based on its specific context, merits, and alignment with University policies. Past approvals do not set binding precedents, and CUHK reserves the right to assess each request on a case-by-case basis.