EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — The Walt Disney Co. has agreed that the University of Oregon feathered mascot that appears at sporting events is not Donald Duck and thus the mascot is no longer subject to Disney’s trademark.
The Register-Guard says that for years, a long-standing agreement allowed the university to use certain images of Donald Duck. Up until this week, those images included the fluffy mascot costume worn by students on the sidelines at athletic events.
The university previously had to get Disney’s permission to use the Duck in any setting outside those described in the formal licensing agreements.
The University of Oregon-Disney licensing agreement remains in effect for the printed logos on sweat shirts and the like. But the costumed Duck mascot now answers only to the university.
