Fayetteville Policies and Procedures  221.1 

Sponsorship Acknowledgement on Web Sites

The University of Arkansas maintains the following policy regarding the acknowledgement, on web pages, of event and program sponsors. This policy applies to all webpages within the University of Arkansas web domain.

Definitions

  • Sponsor recognition: The use of text or a logo to recognize the contribution of a sponsor to the university.
  • Deep-linking: On the World Wide Web, deep linking is making a hyperlink that points to a specific page or image on a website, instead of that website's main or home page.

Policy Purpose

  • To comply with Internal Revenue Service regulations concerning tax-exempt status and advertisement and sponsorship.
    The IRS defines sponsorship as “a payment for which there is no expectation that the sponsor will receive a substantial return benefit”. Under IRS rules, the income received by a sponsored organization is not subject to tax as unrelated business income.
  • To establish clear and relevant guidelines for how sponsor recognition is displayed within university websites.

Monitoring and Enforcement

  • Proposed recognition is to be approved by the Associate Vice Chancellor for University Relations, or designate, prior to display on a university website.
  • The Office of University Relations has the responsibility for monitoring the Web and identifying offices that may be in violation of this policy.
  • In consultation with an office determined to be in violation, University Relations will set a reasonable time for removing from the Web material that does not conform to policy.
  • If an office should wish to appeal a decision to remove its material from the Web, it may submit a formal appeal to University Relations at urelinfo@uark.edu. That office will promptly forward the appeal to the Associate Vice Chancellor for Budget, Financial Planning, and Business Affairs, for consideration.
    Material in question may be removed from the Web during the appeal process. All appeals will be considered by the Associate Vice Chancellor for Budget, Financial Planning, and Business Affairs, with whom the final authority rests.

All sponsor recognition, placed on and/or otherwise affiliated with any University of Arkansas Web property shall comply with the following general guidelines and restrictions:

  • All proposed sponsor recognition use must fall within the scope and function of the university’s mission.
  • Any university or university-affiliated unit must contact the Associate Vice Chancellor for University Relations prior to placement of any sponsor recognition on a university website. University Relations will decide if the sponsor recognition warrants placement within the university’s website.
  • All approved sponsor recognition on a university website will consist of text and/or the sponsor’s logo, which may include a link to the sponsor’s Home page. No “deep-linking” within the sponsor’s website is allowed.
  • The focus of all content on sponsorships shall be on the identity of the sponsor rather than on specific products and/or services of the sponsor.
  • Any sponsor’s home page to which an end-user clicks through must allow the site visitor to return to the university webpage without trace of any frames and/or pop-up advertising that originates from the sponsor’s home page.

Exceptions

Certain ubiquitous third-party images may be incorporated within the University of Arkansas websites only in the course of assisting the Web user in using the content provided on a webpage.

Examples of these types of exceptions may include (but are not limited to):

  • Adobe® Reader or PDF references
  • Google® (when associated with Google’s search engines and appliances)
  • Microsoft® and/or Apple® or affiliated applications (Word, iTunes, etc.)
  • Approved Social Media outlets (Facebook®, Twitter®, etc).
  • Web-based service providers with whom the University has a contractual obligation (Blackboard)
  • Not-for-profit agencies (e.g., NSF) that are supporting or partnering with a particular unit or program
  • For-profit entities operating under contract to support specific units or programs such as Athletics, University Bookstore

In general, these images must link only to the Web service provided (i.e., to download Adobe® Reader) and not link to the third-party’s Home page.

Other exceptions are made on a case by case basis with those websites hosted off of the university’s network. Please consult with University Relations to see if your project fits within this exception.

Reformatted for Web May 15, 2014
February 15, 2012