What are Amazon's rules on Alexa skill names?

When it comes to choosing the main command, or "invocation" phrase, that Alexa will use to launch your skill, Amazon has some requirements which can cause issues for stations.

Your skill's invocation can be different to how it appears when written down or spoken by Alexa. For example, you could have "Coast 104" as the written name but "coast one oh four" as the invocation or spoken name to ensure Alexa correctly understands what listeners are asking for, and calls your station by the name listeners will know it as.

On this page, we'll run you through ones we have encountered before and suggested ways of proceeding:

Use of intellectual property

You cannot use someone else's intellectual property to trigger your Alexa skill, no matter how tempting it might be to hear your station when you say "Alexa, play Capital" or "play Z100"!

Amazon usually detects any blatant infringement, but it's safer not to take the risk of your station's Amazon Developer account being suspended by chancing it.

To submit proof of your entitlement to use a trademark, log in to your Amazon Developer Console, go to Distribution > Privacy & Compliance, and use the Testing Instructions form to provide the required information, including external links and contact details.

More than one word is needed

Skill invocations need to be more than one word, unless you can prove to Amazon you own the word as your brand/intellectual property.

For most stations, this won't be an issue, but if your brand name is only one word like "Heart" or "Shape", you will need to submit documentation to Amazon proving you are entitled to use it in all the territories where your skill will be distributed. This may be proof of trademark registration or a license agreement with the rights owner.

To submit proof of your entitlement to use a one-word invocation, log in to your Amazon Developer Console, go to Distribution > Privacy & Compliance, and use the Testing Instructions form to provide the required information, including external links and contact details.

If your station has a one-word name but you do not have any legal claim over the name, such as "Hits", you could prefix your broadcast area before the name - so listeners could ask Alexa to "play Denver's Hits" instead. This also ensures listeners get the correct station and not one with a similar name.

Names can't be used on their own

Amazon doesn't allow the names of people or places to be used as skill invocations on their own. They need to be combined with other words to describe the skill.

For example, "Jack" wouldn't be allowed, but "Jack FM" would. Likewise, "Norwich" couldn't be an invocation on its own, but "Radio Norwich" could.

Use of articles and prepositions

Two-word invocation names will be rejected if one of them is a definite article (the), an indefinite article (a or an) or a preposition (for, to, of, about, up, by, at, off, or with). So "Alexa, play The Hits" would not be allowed, but "play Hits Radio" would be.

Using words Amazon has reserved for system use

Any "launch phrases" Alexa uses when opening a skill cannot be part of the invocation. These include play, run, start, resume, use, open, launch, ask, tell, load, begin or enable.

Amazon also disallows the use of connecting words like to, from, in, using, with, about, for, that, by, if, and or weather.

You also cannot use any of Amazon's "wake words," such as Amazon, Alexa, Echo, or the words skill or app. From our experience, any words which sound too similar to words like oops or cancel can be misinterpreted by Alexa as someone wishing to stop what they were saying and start over.

Formatting & phonetics

Unlike written skill names, invocation names must always be written in lowercase, with numbers spelt out. Acronyms or abbreviations that are pronounced as individual letters should have letters separated by periods, while abbreviations read out as a word should not. For any words with irregular spellings, it may also be best to use phonetic spelling.

For example, 2BR's skill invocation would be "two b. r." and Channel 103 would be "channel one oh three". BBC Radio 1 would use "b. b. c. radio one", while NASA Radio could use "nasa radio". A community radio station in the English town of Frome may want to consider using "froom" in its invocation to avoid any confusion.

Ensure your skill name is distinctive enough to be easily found

Amazon doesn't allow third-party developed skills to "create confusion" with built-in Alexa features, such as podcasts or weather.

You can still include these in your Aiir skill as a custom intent, but you should avoid referencing them in your main invocation.