To: UC Davis Campus Community
From: Strategic Communications Trademark Licensing
Michael Harris, Senior Trademark Licensing Manager
Subject: Campuswide Licensing Royalty Rate Increase
This memorandum serves to inform the UC Davis campus community of a royalty rate increase that not only applies to traditional university retail and promotional products but also expands the scope of licensing to accommodate new co-branding opportunities with organizations large and small that seek to bear the mark of UC Davis. This change is implemented to be on par with our UC peers and to drive more revenue to the university’s centralized funds.
Effective January 1, 2026, a 14% royalty rate will be added to all campus orders across both retail and promotional item orders. This increase, established in partnership with our licensing agency, College Licensing Company (CLC), will apply to all licensed vendor orders for any items for resale for any reason including, but not limited to, those to be sold to the general public; sold to members, family and/or friends; sold to faculty, staff and/or students; and sold for fundraising within a department, college, student club or student organization. This increase will also apply to promotional products given away for free to consumers across events or activities. Licensed vendors have been notified of this increase. For more information, see UC Davis Policy and Procedure Manual Chapter 310, Communications and Technology, Section 65, Use of the University’s Name, Seal, and Other Trademarks.
Promotional royalty exempt items include:
- Staff and faculty uniforms
- Uniforms for student/athletic clubs
- Items purchased directly by UC Davis and used for operation of the department such as stationery, business cards, name plates, name tags, equipment, related categories, etc.
All other uses of university marks and logos, unless listed above, are royalty bearing. If you seek a further exemption, you are invited to submit your request via this Royalty Exemption Form.
We understand any increase in costs can impact departmental budgets. We encourage all departments and units to carefully review their current licensing and promotional/swag order needs and plan accordingly.
Should you have any questions or require further clarification regarding these royalty increases or their impact on your specific department, please contact Michael Harris, Trademark Senior Licensing Manager at [email protected] or 530-376-7111.
For more information on our university’s Trademark Licensing program, please visit the Licensing page of our online Brand Communications Guide.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation as we work to ensure the continued operational efficiency and to foster growth opportunities for our university.
UC Davis Trademark Licensing