Apparatus and method for generating licensed fanciful fonts for messaging services

A method for generating branded fanciful fonts in text messages created with a communication device, the method comprising the steps of:

• licensing from a brand owner a brand including a specified font set for text characters and brand design features identifying the brand, wherein the brand design features are not the text characters;
• wherein the brand owner is a university and the brand design features include two school colors, a nickname symbol and a mascot;
• creating a branded fanciful font set having a plurality of fanciful text characters by combining the brand design features with more than one of the text characters of the specified font set;
• wherein a first fanciful text character of the plurality of fanciful text characters combines the mascot with a portion of a first text character of the specified font set;
• wherein a second fanciful text character of the plurality of fanciful text characters combines at least one of the school colors with a second text character of the specified font set;
• wherein a third fanciful text character of the plurality of fanciful text characters combines the nickname symbol with a portion of a third text character of the specified font set;
• creating at least two themed branded fanciful font sets including the second fanciful text character, wherein the first fanciful text character is included only in a first of the at least two themed branded fanciful font sets and the third fanciful text character is included only in a second of the at least two themed fanciful font sets;
• and
• creating a font application that when executed by the communication device enables a user of the communication device to select one of the at least two themed branded fanciful font sets whereby when the user composes a text message with the communication device by inputting text using a keyboard displayed by the communication device in a display, the font application responds to the inputted text by creating the text message incorporating the selected themed branded fanciful font set and the communication device displays the text message incorporating the selected themed branded fanciful font set in the display.