:navigation-title: 04-01 Identify Conflict of Interest in trademark usage .. include:: /Includes.rst.txt .. _t3a-board-decision-2026-04-01-coi-trademark-usage: ================================================================ Board Decision: Identify Conflict of Interest in trademark usage ================================================================ :Start of voting: 27 March 2026 :Voting deadline: 1 April 2026 :Decision owner: `Rachel Foucard`_ :Decision status: ❌ Rejected, with **3 yes, 2 no and 2 abstains** Attendance and voting ===================== ==================== ============ ========== Board Member Attendance Vote ==================== ============ ========== `Olivier Dobberkau`_ Asynchronous ❌ No `Stefan Busemann`_ Asynchronous ❌ No `Boris Hinzer`_ Asynchronous ⚪ Abstain `Rachel Foucard`_ Asynchronous ✅ Yes `Martin Helmich`_ Asynchronous ✅ Yes `Jana Höffner`_ Asynchronous ✅ Yes `Thomas Maroschik`_ Asynchronous ⚪ Abstain ==================== ============ ========== .. _Olivier Dobberkau: https://my.typo3.org/u/oli4 .. _Stefan Busemann: https://my.typo3.org/u/stefan.busemann .. _Martin Helmich: https://my.typo3.org/u/mhelmich .. _Jana Höffner: https://my.typo3.org/u/janahh .. _Thomas Maroschik: https://my.typo3.org/u/tmaroschik .. _Rachel Foucard: https://my.typo3.org/u/rakel .. _Boris Hinzer: https://my.typo3.org/u/web-vision Decision description ==================== Facts/Problem ------------- A community member raised the question in an internal channel whether presenting a partner's product under an official TYPO3 domain and branding could create the impression of an official TYPO3 offering. This raised concerns about the separation between TYPO3 GmbH activities and individual company interests, and about a possible impression of preferential treatment. Objective --------- The reported conflict of interest must follow the CoI management process as described in our internal documentation: [Internal link to 2023-06-Conflict-of-Interests-Resolution]. It means **first, identifying if it is a conflict of interest or not, and if so, which type and severity.** This decision paper is covering only these first decisions. Obligations to cooperate ------------------------ The Board members have to handle the reported CoI properly. The involved entities and/or persons have to cooperate with the board to provide any needed information. Financial and human resources impacts ------------------------------------- No financial or human resources impact Resolution/Petitum ------------------ The Board must first decide if it is actually a conflict of interest, and if so, which type and severity: For this first step, the Board is asked to decide whether the reported situation concerning the use of the official TYPO3 domain [PRODUCT-DOMAIN] qualifies as a conflict of interest and, if so, how it should be classified in terms of type and severity under the current Conflict of Interest Policy. | **Is it a conflict of interest?** | Is it in the matrix (2023-06-Conflict of Interest Mapping V2)? | And/Or, does a person (with a critical position) involved in this matter have a private interest that is linked to the outcome of the (sensitive) process? Voting result: **3 yes, 2 no** | **If it is a conflict of interest, what type (perceived/potential/real)?** | Perceived: Would a reasonable outsider think private interest might have influenced the official role? | Potential: Could the person's private interest actually come into conflict with their official responsibilities, even if that has not happened yet? | Real: Did a person with a relevant private interest actually take part in, influence, or control an official decision or process affecting that interest? Voting result: **3 perceived, 1 potential, 1 real** | **And what is the impact severity (low/high)?** | Could this conflict reasonably influence an important decision, create unfair advantage, expose the organization to legal/reputational harm, or seriously damage trust? Voting result: **4 low** The question whether the matter constitutes a conflict of interest did not reach the required majority. The follow-up votes on type and severity are documented for completeness, but have no binding effect. Discarded alternatives ---------------------- None Attachments ----------- ... Comments -------- 1. `Martin Helmich`_: I rated this as a perceived conflict of interest with low impact severity, because in my opinion it is already well mitigated by the way the partner program works: this form of trademark usage is open to all technology partners, and the entry requirements for that program are documented publicly. .. _Martin Helmich: https://my.typo3.org/u/mhelmich