Let me tell you a story about a new friend and his quest to create an enlightened community….
My friend, like me, was inspired by a conference that we’ll call FRED. Like me, he thought FRED was amazing: a clearinghouse of innovation and enlightened ideals, free from the constrictions of zealotry and intra-disciplinary myopia. He was so inspired that he started a FRED Meet-Up group. He wanted to help form a community built around the intellectual and philanthropic topics promulgated by the FRED presenters.
One day, FRED’s organization contacted my friend. FRED said my friend couldn’t use their logo without express permission, even if, as was the case here, it was used to directly promote the FRED conference. My friend had to dissolve the FRED Meet-Up.
FRED later came back with a compromise we’ll call FREDy. FREDy is an arm of the FRED conference, but it would be purely for enthusiasts. Under the conditions of FREDy licensing, one can build FRED-style events, but they are not FRED events officially or legally. It’s a win-win for FRED: if the events are successful and high quality, they add luster to the FRED brand; if they are unsuccessful and poor quality, FRED can distance themselves from any ill repute. Lastly, though a FREDy conference takes considerable time and effort, FREDy hosts are strictly forbidden from making money off the events.
My friend now has no community and a bad aftertaste from FRED’s branding policing.