12/5/97

ATTENTION EDITORS: The following is an amended and condensed version of the opinion piece submitted to you 12/3/97. Please feel free to use on your op-ed page. Again, this op-ed is exclusive for your circulation area.

A headshot of the writer, Adrie Nab, is available for downloading at:

http://www.cats.ohiou.edu/~univnews/pix/ADRIE_NAB.JPG

If you have any questions, call Bryan McNulty, executive director of Ohio University News Services, at 614-593-1043 (office) or 614-593-6553 (home).

(771 words)

OP-ED

by Adrie H. Nab, Ohio University Vice President for University Relations

Ohio news media accounts have ranged from accurate to inaccurate and have produced more heat than light in their various descriptions of the Ohio-Ohio State dispute over Ohio University's "Ohio" trademark.

Some state newspapers, including the Dayton Daily News, have editorialized that we have tried to appropriate the name of the state. We have not. Trademark protections are very specific.

CNN, ESPN, the wire services, USA Today and most other national media refer in sports stories to Ohio University as "Ohio," just as they call Indiana University "Indiana," just as they call the University of Michigan "Michigan." The University of Michigan has a trademark for "Michigan." Indiana University holds a trademark for "Indiana." Why shouldn't Ohio University hold a trademark for "Ohio?"

Because context is important, news media rightfully use "Ohio University" or "Indiana University" if the use in the story could possibly confuse readers about whether the reference is to a state or university. One has not heard of similar disputes between Michigan State and Michigan, North Carolina State and North Carolina, Florida State and Florida, Arizona State and Arizona, and so on.

As a point of accuracy, the trademark of "Ohio" that was registered May 9, 1995 with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is limited strictly to use on athletic team uniforms, apparel and entertainment services -- it does not apply to the state or geographical area. There are a thousand and one uses of "Ohio" that obviously are not subject to our trademark protection.

The issue is not trivial. Anyone who knows how marketing works knows what is at stake in terms of merchandising, exposure and recognition. In terms of revenue alone, nationwide sales of college and university paraphernalia totals $2.5 billion, according to a report in The Cincinnati Enquirer. The Columbus Dispatch reported that Ohio State's trademark licensing revenue this year is about $2 million; Ohio University's trademark royalty revenue is just over $100,000, with more than half of the income generated from our key trademark, "Ohio," on licensed apparel sales. While revenue is much less a factor in our case, the differentiation and at times confusion in the public mind between Ohio University and Ohio State is a greater concern.

Inside the state, Ohioans have no problem distinguishing between Ohio University and Ohio State. But outside the state of Ohio, for whatever reasons -- be they Ohio State's football reputation or sheer number of graduates -- when one says "Ohio University," people often mentally insert "State" between "Ohio" and "University." They hear Ohio University; they think they hear "Ohio State University."

One of the classic examples: During President Clinton's 1992 inauguration parade, NBC "Nightly News" ended its show with a clip of the Ohio University marching band -- and told viewers they were watching "the band from Ohio State University." Other examples abound: When one of the nation's top Truman scholars, Ohio University Distinguished Professor Alonzo Hamby, had his Truman biography Man of the People, favorably reviewed in The New York Times Book Review, the reviewer identified him as "a professor of history at Ohio State University."

Notre Dame, Michigan and Ohio State are the top three universities in licensing revenues from their logos. An attorney for Ohio State was quoted in the Akron Beacon Journal as saying she considered Ohio University's registering its trademark as a "joke" because "frankly, we never believed it was ours to own." One wonders at such lack of curiosity; it has been rather difficult to miss all of those "Michigan" sweatshirts and banners at the big football game each November. And it is hard to believe that Ohio State, as competitive as it is with Michigan, was unaware of the "Michigan" trademark revenue, which remains just ahead of Ohio State's.

A Beacon Journal reporter implied that it was a stealthy move on our part to apply for a trademark for our name. The reporter said that in 1993, Ohio University "crept to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on little cat's feet and registered the name Ohio.'" In fact, we were late off the mark registering our key mark. Since the 1980s, Ohio State has registered its key mark "Ohio State" and dozens of others -- including the letter "O." That it didn't attempt to register "Ohio" is telling: It would have been like Michigan State attempting to also register "Michigan." It would have been ludicrous.

Adrie Nab
Vice President for University Relations
Ohio University
Athens, Ohio