Brand Policy – National Payments Corporation of India
These rules (“Rules”) apply to any party (e.g., a Payment gateway, developer, bank or
other NPCI
customer) wishing to use NPCI’s trademarks, service marks, logos, word marks,
graphics and
similar intellectual property (the “NPCI Brand Assets”) in promotional, advertising,
instructional or reference materials, on websites, or in connection with products or
services.
By using or reproducing a NPCI Brand Asset, you are agreeing to abide by these Rules
which form
a binding agreement between you and NPCI. If you are using a NPCI’s Brand on behalf
of a legal
entity such as your employer, you represent that you have the authority to bind such
entity, and
the terms “you” or “your” shall include such entity. If you do not agree to these
Rules, you are
not authorized to use NPCI Brand Assets.
The Rules are intended to promote consistent use of the NPCI brand. This makes it
easier for
people to instantly recognize references to NPCI and related products and prevents
market
confusion. The Rules are also intended to protect
the NPCI Brand Assets, which are valuable assets of the company (NPCI). NPCI
dedicates
substantial resources to the development and protection of its intellectual
property. In
addition to seeking registration of its trademarks and logos
around the world, NPCI enforces its rights against people and companies that misuse
its
trademarks and other NPCI Brand Assets. In following these Rules, you help NPCI
protect its
valuable trademark rights from dilution and disparagement while also strengthening
the NPCI
brand identities.
NPCI TRADEMARKS
The following is a partial list of the trademarks owned
by NPCI:
NPCI, RuPay, IMPS, AePS, CTS, NACH, NFS, *99#, UPI and
the former NPCI and its products’ logos.
OWNERSHIP OF NPCI BRAND ASSETS
You acknowledge that NPCI is the sole and
exclusive
owner of all NPCI Brand Assets and derivatives thereof and that all
goodwill derived from using any NPCI Brand Asset inures exclusively to the benefit
of NPCI. You
promise that you will
not interfere with NPCI’s rights in the NPCI Brand Assets, including by challenging
NPCI’s use,
registration, or
application to register any NPCI Brand Asset or by registering any NPCI Brand Asset
yourself
anywhere in the world.
USAGE RIGHTS
Except for the limited right to use NPCI Brand Assets
expressly
permitted under these Rules, no other rights of any kind
are granted hereunder, by implication or otherwise. You agree that you will not
harm, misuse, or
bring into disrepute
any NPCI Brand Asset, including by using any NPCI Brand Asset in connection with any
unlawful,
scandalous or fraudulent
activities. You agree to use NPCI Brand Assets in compliance with all applicable
laws, rules and
regulatory regimes. If
you are a licensee of a NPCI Brand Asset and have been provided with special
trademark usage
terms in your agreement
with NPCI, please follow those terms. If your agreement with NPCI does not provide
usage terms,
then follow these Rules.
If you have any questions regarding these Rules, please contact NPCI at contact@npci.org.in
UNAUTHORIZED USE OF NPCI BRAND ASSETS
- 1. NPCI Logos: Only NPCI and its authorized licensees may use NPCI logos,
word marks,
and graphic symbols (including the
NPCI mark – Fast Forward) in advertising, promotional and sales materials. If
you are
authorized to use NPCI logos in
your agreement with NPCI then you must use the NPCI logos only as specified in
your
agreement (and any associated usage
terms) and such use must always include appropriate terms that define the
relationship
authorized by your agreement
(e.g., integrator, service provider, licensee, etc.). You should not use NPCI
logos, marks
and images you may have found
elsewhere on the web.
- 2. Compatibility and Referential Use: If you are using NPCI products and
services you
may use NPCI word marks in a
referential manner on your website or in printed or electronic
promotional/advertising
materials to accurately describe
that your product or service is compatible with or utilizes the referenced NPCI
product or
service (including NPCI and
its product technology). Any such use must comply with the following
requirements:
- The NPCI word mark is not part of the name of your product or service.
- The NPCI word mark appears less prominent than the name of your product
or service.
- The NPCI word mark is used in a referential manner, using the phrase
“powered by.”
You may use this “Powered by NPCI” badge on your website or in your
product.
Download the “Built on NPCI” badges.
- Your product or service is in fact compatible with, or otherwise works
with or uses,
the referenced NPCI product or service.
- All packaging and marketing and promotional materials for your product
or service
includes a disclaimer of affiliation with NPCI, similar to the
following:
“[PRODUCT/SERVICE NAME] is a [PRODUCT/SERVICE] of [YOU] and has not
been authorized, endorsed, sponsored or otherwise approved by NPCI or
its
affiliates.”
- The reference to NPCI does not create a sense of endorsement,
sponsorship, or false
association with NPCI or NPCI products or services.
- Your use does not show NPCI or its products or services in a false or
derogatory
light.
- 3. Events and Publications: You may use a NPCI or ‘National Payments
Corporation of
India’ word mark in connection with events, seminars, conferences and articles
(and related
promotional materials) in a referential manner provided that you comply with the
following
requirements:
- our use of a NPCI word mark in any title is less prominent than the rest
of the
title.
Acceptable: ABC Conference Regarding the Promise of
Distributed
Technologies and the NPCI Protocol.
- Your use reflects favourably on both NPCI and NPCI products and
services.
- Your name and logo appear more prominently than the NPCI word mark on
all printed
and electronic materials advertising or marketing the article or event.
To be clear,
you may not present NPCI Brand Assets in a way that makes them the most
distinctive
or prominent feature of what you’re creating.
- NPCI logos may not be included without NPCI’s written permission.
- A disclaimer of sponsorship, affiliation or endorsement by NPCI, similar
to the
following, is included on the publication and all related marketing
materials: “This
[SITE, POST, BLOG, ARTICLE, EVENT, ETC.] is independent of NPCI
and has not been authorized, endorsed, sponsored or otherwise approved
by NPCI or
its affiliates.”
- A trademark attribution notice is included in a credit section giving
notice of
NPCI’s ownership of its trademarks.
- 4. Websites: Websites that serve only as non-commercial
electronic
informational forums concerning payments, banking, virtual currency, blockchain
technology,
and NPCI products and services may use the appropriate NPCI word mark in a
referential
manner, provided that such use complies with the guidelines set forth in Section
3 above.
UNAUTHORIZED USE OF NPCI BRAND ASSETS
- 1. No Registration of Domain Name: You may not register, in whole or in
part, as a
trademark, domain name or otherwise any NPCI Brand Asset or an alteration or
derivative
thereof. You may not use an identical or virtually identical NPCI trademark, in
whole or in
part, as a second level domain name.
Unacceptable: NPCI-Gateway.com or
BestNPCIWallet.org
- 2. Company, Product, or Service Name: You may not use, in whole or in
part, any NPCI
Brand Asset, or an alteration or derivative thereof, as part of a company name,
trade name,
product name, or service name. For the avoidance of doubt, you may not combine
any NPCI
Brand Assets with your name, marks or generic terms.
- 3. Variations, or Derivatives: You may not modify NPCI Brand Assets in
any way, such
as by changing a design or colour or adding words or elements. You cannot use a
variation,
phonetic equivalent, foreign language equivalent, take off or abbreviation of
any NPCI Brand
Assets for any purpose without NPCI’s express written permission.
- 4. Disparaging Manner: You may not use NPCI Brand Assets in a disparaging
manner. You
may not feature NPCI Brand Assets on materials associated with illegal
activities (e.g.,
unlawful trades and fraudulent schemes).
- 5. Endorsement: You may not use NPCI Brand Assets in a manner that would
imply
NPCI’s affiliation with or endorsement, sponsorship, or support of your company
or its
activities, products or services. You may not use the NPCI Brand Assets in any
way that
would confuse others as to the relationship between you and NPCI or as to who
offers your
products or services.
- 6. Trade Dress: You may not imitate or make use of the layout or trade
dress of
NPCI’s websites, technology, products or advertising. You may not use any
trademarks, names,
domain names, logos, or other content that imitates or could be confused with
NPCI.
- 7. Copyrights: You may not use any image or copyrighted materials on
NPCI’s website,
such as charts, graphs, and product descriptions or announcements without NPCI’s
express
written permission.
- 8. Slogans and Taglines:You may not use or imitate a NPCI and its
products slogan or
tagline.
STYLE GUIDE AND RULES FOR THE PROPER USE OF NPCI TRADEMARKS
Always spell
and
graphically represent NPCI’s trademarks exactly as they are shown in the Style Guide
Do not
shorten or
abbreviate NPCI Brand Assets. Do not make up names that contain NPCI Brand Assets.