Why is TANDEM^® protected as mark?

At first sight it might seem surprising that a non-profit foundation uses a registered trade mark. There are three reasons for this:

1.
When the tandem partnership mediation was developed, the idea was not to make money but to establish as much as possible direct contact between people of as many different countries as possible. In time, schools that offer partner mediations with courses, did so in order to finance their activities. So the fee is limited and the licence for the use of the trade-mark is assigned preferentially to non-profit associations and cooperatives. Where it concerns small-to-medium businesses or family businesses, they are run in any case by teachers.

2.
Cultural exchange cannot function without international cooperation. Whoever joins the Tandem Foundation commits himself/herself to co-operation with the other members, in a fair and democratic way. This is one of the pre-requisites for the authorised use of the trade-mark.

3.
Nowadays, as 'Tandem' or 'exchange' is becoming more fashionable, you need to be sure that there are common standards, fundamental training and scientific advice. In the sense the trade-mark is to become more and more a guarantee of quality for language-learners.

The trade-mark does not affect the liberty of research and teaching, as it is not currently implemented where non-profit making public institutions are concerned.
It has in the past, however, already been successfully applied several times in the interest of protecting jobs and the quality standard of the TANDEM^® Network. Offenders have largely been those private organizations driven by the profit motive but who have had to face legal costs and other payments relating to damages arising out of harm done to the prestige and protected trade-mark of Tandem.