Can I Modify The Design Of Stock Patches?

When it comes to designing your own customized patches one of the questions that always comes up is the issue of copyright infringement. It's obvious you can't legally use any images that are copyrighted or trademarked without specific, written permission from the owners. Things that are in the public domain, like military insignias and logos, are fair game for anyone to use. But that leaves us with the sticky area of stock patches.

Stock patches are those that are considered generic in nature. Sometimes they are text-only patches while other times they feature graphic images or generic logos. As a general rule the text-only patches will be fair game; it's the ones with the graphic images and logos you have to be concerned about.

For example, a stock patch featuring the head of a bald eagle may not necessarily be trademarked, but the artist may choose to limit the rights to a specific patch manufacturer. In that case you'd have to get both the permission of the artist and the manufacture to use the image. The same can be said for logos that appear to be generic. Since you and I have no idea what the arrangements are between artists and manufactures we would simply have to guess as to whether or not we could use their work.

If you have any questions about a design you're working on, based on a stock patch, your best bet is to contact the supplier and find out if the image is protected. They should be held till you right away. If not, they can certainly contact the artist or manufacturing inquire on your behalf. Whatever you do, don't just assume the stock patches in question are fair game. It's a good way get into trouble.

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