The Matrix.org Foundation Trademark Policy

The Matrix.org Foundation (the “Foundation”) is a not-for-profit organisation responsible for nurturing and maintaining the Matrix ecosystem. It is the Foundation’s responsibility to ensure that the Matrix brand can be trusted by those looking to rely on it.

The Foundation stewards projects which are freely available for download and modification, so it’s important that our trademarks are used in accordance with this policy. This policy is intended to help users understand whether a product/service claiming to be compatible with the Matrix protocol is compatible in reality, and whether such products/services are officially supported by the Foundation. If you're using any of the Foundation’s trademarks, you must follow the guidelines outlined in this policy.

To report potential misuse of the Foundation’s trademarks, please contact us at legal@matrix.org.

This document was derived in part from the Mozilla Trademark Guidelines, the Python Software Foundation Trademark Usage Policy and the Rust Language Trademark Policy.

A complete list of our trademarks can be found in the brand guidelines section of our website.

🔗1. Scope and purpose

We want the Foundation’s trademarks to be used by projects compatible with the Matrix protocol as defined by its official specification, and by those who are supporting the Foundation and its ecosystem.

They may not be used:

In software or projects which support an incompatible version of the protocol.
In a manner that is misleading or implies association of unrelated projects with the Foundation
In a manner that confuses the users as to whether the Matrix protocol and the Foundation’s software is open source and free.
By commercial organisations using the brand for profit and for any purpose other than growing the ecosystem without referencing or supporting the Foundation.

The following sections within this policy aim to clarify how to use the Foundation’s trademarks in an appropriate way. If in doubt about a particular use please contact us at legal@matrix.org.

🔗2. Approved uses of the Foundation’s trademarks

You may use the Foundation’s trademarks without requesting prior written permission in the following situations:

Referencing the Foundation’s wordmarks in text to accurately describe or link to the Matrix protocol, the unmodified Matrix.org Foundation software, products, services, or technologies.
Including the Foundation’s logos in visuals where you're truthfully referencing or linking to the Matrix protocol or the products or services provided or hosted by the Foundation.
Explaining that your software is compatible with the Matrix protocol as defined by its official specification, available at https://spec.matrix.org/latest/.
Using the Matrix trademarks for social and small non-profit events like meetups, tutorials, and the like is allowed for events that are free to attend. Your materials for the event must not imply that the event is officially endorsed or run by The Matrix.org Foundation unless you have written permission. For commercial events (including sponsored ones), please contact us at legal@matrix.org.
Describing a social media account, page, or community — provided it doesn’t mislead users about affiliation with the Foundation.

🔗3. Uses of the Foundation’s trademarks that require explicit approval

All uses which are not included in section 2 of this policy require prior written consent from the Foundation.

This includes, but is not limited to, use in commercial products, company names, domain names or commercial applications which are related to the Matrix protocol. This is primarily to ensure that when the users buy Matrix products they are actually buying products compatible with the protocol.

Derived logos must also be approved by the Foundation. We will easily approve derived logos for not-for-profit efforts that we know support the Foundation or the ecosystem as a whole. It is less likely we will approve derived logos for commercial products to avoid confusion with official commercial products/services provided by the Foundation.

Commercial sales

Commercial sales where a substantial element of what is being sold is the Matrix name or logo may be subject to a royalty. Examples of this use include clothing items, cups, bags, stickers, or other small purchasable items that prominently feature the Matrix name or logo.

Please reach out to legal@matrix.org for inquiries.

🔗4. How to use the Foundation’s trademarks properly

🔗General Guidelines

Do:

Provide ample space around Foundation logos to keep them visually distinct (refer to Matrix.org Foundation’s assets guidelines, to be published soon).
Use trademarks exactly as they appear in the official Foundation brand guidelines.
Use the Foundation’s wordmarks as a noun or an adjective only (e.g., “contact us on Matrix” or “the Matrix server”), not as verbs. Do not pluralise or make possessive forms.
Accompany use with a trademark attribution such as the examples made available in the brand guidelines area of our website.

Do not:

Incorporate the Foundation’s trademarks in your business, product, service, app, domain, or publication names unless it is compatible with the Matrix protocol defined by its official specification or supporting the Foundation or the ecosystem.
Create logos, or other materials for commercial products or services that are confusingly similar to the Foundation’s branding.
Use trademarks in a way that implies the Foundation’s sponsorship, endorsement, or affiliation without prior written permission.
Display the Foundation’s branding more prominently than your own branding.
Place the Foundation’s trademarks on merchandise for sale (e.g., T-shirts, mugs) unless this has been approved in writing by the Foundation. See section 3 of this policy.
Alter, abbreviate, or combine the Foundation’s trademarks with other words, symbols, or imagery, unless approved by the Foundation.

In addition to the above, and subject to any written agreement you may have with the Foundation, social media accounts and pages:

May not use the Foundation’s logos in a way that implies official affiliation (including in profile or cover images).

For example, you cannot name your account, page, or community “Matrix Foundation Official Representatives”. However, it would be acceptable to name your account, page, or community “Fans of Matrix” or “Information about the Matrix Protocol” as long as you do not use the Foundation’s logos or otherwise suggest any affiliation with the Foundation.

🔗6. Guidelines for Open Source Projects

While the open-source licenses governing the Foundation’s code define what you may do with the code itself, they do not grant permission to use the Foundation’s trademarks.

If you are building on or modifying the Foundation’s open-source code, or if you are building products on top of the Matrix protocol:

You must:

Comply with the relevant open-source license terms.
Choose a distinct brand and identity to clearly indicate your project is not affiliated with the Foundation.
Follow the General Guidelines above.

You must not:

Use the Foundation’s trademarks (in whole or in part) in the name, branding, or presentation of your project in a way that implies affiliation to or endorsement by the Foundation.
Create the impression that your software is officially released, endorsed, or maintained by the Foundation.

You may:

Clearly (in plain text only) state that your project “works with” or “is compatible with” the Foundation’s software or with the Matrix protocol, if accurate.
Acknowledge that your project is built on the Foundation’s open-source technology, as long as you clarify that it is not officially associated with the Foundation.

🔗Questions?

For any further inquiries, please contact us at legal@matrix.org.

🔗Document History

1.0.0 - first version of the document - March 2026