Please note that by entering you agree to undergo a background check conducted by MySpace.com and, if necessary, to sign waiver forms authorizing the release of personal and background information. Applicants must be of good moral character. Sponsor reserves the right to exclude anyone convicted of a crime (other than moving violations of a misdemeanor type that did not involve personal injury, drugs or alcohol). Applicants must have nothing in their background that would be an embarrassment to Sponsor, and applicants may not be elected officials or currently running for any political office (local, state or federal).
1. DESCRIPTION: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. The "Convention Citizen Journalist Contest” ("Contest") is a video submission Contest offering the opportunity to compete for a chance to attend the Democratic or Republican National Conventions, as described in these Official Rules. The Contest submission period begins on June 26, 2008 and ends at 12:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time (“PDT”) on Monday, July 16, 2008 ("Submission Period"). The Sponsors of this Contest are MySpace, Inc., NBC News, a division of NBC Universal, Inc. (“NBC ”), and MSNBC Interactive News LLC (“MSNBC”), One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052 (collectively, “Sponsor”) and. The Contest will flow as described below, on or about the stated dates:
2. ELIGIBILITY: Contest is open to entrants (“Entrant”) who are legal residents of the 50 United States and Washington, D.C. Entrants must be at least 18 years of age and have reached the age of majority in the jurisdiction within which they reside at time of entry submission. Entrants must have Internet access as of June 25, 2008. Finalists must be available to travel to either Denver, Colorado for the Democratic National Convention, tentatively scheduled for the week of August 25-28, or to Minneapolis-St. Paul for the Republican National Convention, tentatively scheduled for the week of September 1-4, 2008. Each Entrant must be the rightful owner (or have authorized use) of the e-mail address identified in the Entrant's entry as of June 25, 2008. In the event of a dispute as to the identity of a winner, the winner will be deemed to be the natural person in whose name the e-mail account is registered. Employees, shareholders, officers, directors, agents, and representatives of Sponsor, and each of their respective parent companies, affiliates, divisions, subsidiaries, agents, representatives and promotion and advertising agencies (collectively, “Contest Entities”), together with the immediate family members and those living in the same household of such persons, are not eligible to participate in the Contest. Void outside of the 50 United States, Washington, D.C. and where prohibited.
3. HOW TO ENTER (PHASE 1): To enter, visit the Contest web site during the Submission Period by logging on to http://myspace.com/decision08 (the “Contest Homepage”) and following the on-screen instructions to completely and accurately provide all of the information and materials required for entry into the Contest (“Video”). Registered users of the MySpace.com website (“Website”) who meet the eligibility requirements above, will be invited to submit short video pieces (under two [2] minutes in length) based on one of the following directive: Create a two minute video demonstrating why you are the right person for the gig: Why will you get the scoop no one else can? How are you going to stand out in the crowd?
Entrant must comply with all Video requirements, as detailed below. Entry is not complete until Entrant has followed the online prompts to upload the digital file containing their Submission and affirmatively accepted the Official Rules.
Video Requirements
Videos must:
Videos must NOT:
Any music featured in the Video must be originally written, performed and produced by Entrant only and must be available to publicize and broadcast on a license-free, no compensation basis. Entrants who submit Videos which violate any of these requirements may be deemed ineligible to receive the prize and their Video may be void at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. All Submissions must be received by 12:00 PM on Wednesday, July 16, 2008. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify in their sole and absolute discretion any Videos deemed inappropriate or that do not comply with the Website’s Terms of Use. Sponsor reserves the right to allow for minor fluctuations between the Entrant’s timing device and the actual runtime of the Submission on the Website, based on clear intent to comply with the Official Rules, as determined in the Sponsor’s sole discretion. The Entrant should be able to provide on request all appropriate clearances, permissions and releases for the Submission, including releases from the submitting Entrant appearing in the Submission. Votes/rankings generated by a script, macro or other automated means will be disqualified. Incomplete or unintelligible entries will be disqualified. Sponsor reserves the right to determine in their sole discretion which entries have satisfied the entry requirements. Entrants may enter more than once, as long as all entries comply with the Contest criteria. ELIGIBLE ENTRANTS MUST SUBMIT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THESE OFFICIAL RULES. NO OTHER METHOD OF SUBMISSION WILL BE ACCEPTED.
4. JUDGING PERIOD (Phase 2): The Judging Period: Begins on 7/16/08. A panel of Judges selected by Sponsor, in its sole discretion, will judge the submitted Videos and select 5 Finalists based on the following criteria:
5. MYSPACE USER VOTING (PHASE 3): Contest voting will begin on Monday, July 21, 2008 at 12:00 PM PST and end Monday, July 28, 2008 at 12:00PM PST. All Video will be voted upon according to registered-users' judgment and interpretation of the creative content. Submissions will be judged solely on the subjective opinions of the registered MySpace users who choose to participate in the voting process. Registered MySpace users are eligible to vote on each Video by logging in to their MySpace account navigating to the Contest page and following the onscreen prompts. Submissions will be voted upon using a ”thumbs-up” and “thumbs-down” method. Voting is unlimited, meaning that each MySpace registered user may vote on any and all Contest submissions as often as desired. In the event of a tie, the Sponsor will host a 24-hour voting-round between tied entries in accordance with the aforementioned criteria. In the event of such a tie, additional details regarding the tie-breaker will be made available on the Contest site. All decisions of the Sponsor are final on all aspects of the Contest.
6. WINNER NOTIFICATION AND ANNOUNCEMENT (PHASE 4): Each of the potential Grand Prize Winners, as determined by the Voting Round, will be notified by telephone, email and/or overnight mail on or about July 29, 2008 and will be required to respond (as directed) to the notification attempt. The failure to respond timely to the notification may result in forfeiture of participation in the Contest and, in such case, Sponsor will select an alternate Grand Prize Winner according to the Voting Round results. Potential Grand Prize Winners will be required to execute and return a notarized affidavit of eligibility and liability/publicity release (where legally permissible) and other documents required by the Sponsor within a reasonable amount of time, as determined by the Sponsor in its sole discretion.
7. PRIZES: Two (2) Grand Prizes: Two Grand Prize winners (individually, a “Grand Prize Winner” and collectively, the “Grand Prize Winners” or “Winners”), will each receive a trip to attend either the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul on September 1-4, 2008, or the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado on August 25-28, 2008 as a “citizen journalist.” Sponsor shall determine, in its sole discretion, which convention the Winner will attend. All decisions of Sponsor are final. Prize package includes: Round-trip coach airfare, ground transportation, five (5) night’s standard, double occupancy hotel accommodations, a stipend for meals and credentials for each Grand Prize Winner (which will give each Grand Prize Winner access to the official convention spaces and speeches to "report" from inside the convention center);
Two (2) runners-up will receive approximately $50 worth of MySpace merchandise.
Total Cumulative ARV of Prizes is $6,100, depending upon winner's point of travel origin. Airport, airline and hotel to be selected by Sponsors in their sole discretion. Transportation and accommodations are subject to availability, blackout periods, government restrictions and regulations, other restrictions may apply. All other expenses not specifically mentioned herein are solely the responsibility of prize winner.
Winners will be responsible for any and all federal, state and/or local taxes resulting from acceptance of any and all Prizes associated with this Contest. Winners cannot assign or transfer the prize to another person. All travel-related prizes are for designated Winners only. No prize substitution or changes are allowed except at the discretion of Sponsor. All prizes are subject to availability. If a prize or any portion of a prize cannot be awarded due to circumstances beyond the control of Sponsor, a substitute prize of equal or greater retail value may be awarded; provided, however, that if prizes are awarded but unclaimed/forfeited by recipient, prize may not be re-awarded in Sponsor’s sole discretion. Other restrictions may apply. Limit one prize per person, per household. Final value of Grand Prize depends on winner’s place of residence and cost and availability of airfare and hotel at time of booking and travel and may be substantially higher or lower than estimated value. All travel tickets are subject to terms and conditions stated on tickets. Exact trip dates will be specified by the Sponsor and no substitutions will be allowed. All travel must be completed on dates, times and to/from airports designated and/or approved by Sponsor. If the applicable permanent residence of a Winner is within 150 miles of a travel destination city, Sponsor reserves the right to offer ground transportation to such city in lieu of air transportation. Winner must have valid identification and any other documents necessary for air travel. In the event a Grand Prize Winner engages in behavior during travel that (as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion) is obnoxious or threatening, illegal or that is intended to threaten or harass any other person, Sponsor reserves the right to terminate the travel early, and send such winner home with no further obligations or compensation whatsoever under these Official Contest Rules (which may, in Sponsor’s sole discretion result in such winner’s disqualification from the Contest and forfeiture of any (and/or all) prize(s).
8. RIGHTS IN SUBMISSIONS: In consideration of my Video being reviewed and evaluated for this Contest, each Entrant hereby grants to the Sponsor and the exclusive, irrevocable, fully paid, universal license to use, copy, sublicense, transmit, distribute, publicly perform, publish, delete or display such Video, or any portion thereof, in any media now known or hereafter devised including, but not limited to all forms of television and all forms of internet and wireless protocol. Each Entrant authorizes the Sponsor and, and any entities affiliated or in privity with the Sponsor and, to utilize, for eternity and in any manner they see fit, the Video submitted to Sponsor, and to make derivative works from such materials solely in connection with the Contest (i.e., to create promotional materials). Each Entrant releases the Contest Entities, and their assignees and licensees, from any and all claims or liability (now known or hereafter arising), including but not limited to any claims for defense and/or indemnity, in connection therewith. Each Entrant agrees and acknowledges that participation in the Contest, including, without limitation, the Entrant's decision to provide the Entrant's submission to Sponsor for purposes of the Contest, shall not give rise to any confidential, fiduciary, implied-in-fact, implied-in-law, or other special relationship between the Contest Entities and Entrant, does not place the Contest Entities in a position that is any different from the position held by members of the general public with regard to elements of the Entrant's video submission, and that the only contracts, express or implied, between the Contest Entities and Entrant are as set forth in these Official Rules and the release forms. The Grand Prize Winners may be required to complete and execute additional documents and have third parties execute Sponsor’s documents in connection with the rights granted to the Contest Entities as a condition of prize acceptance. In addition, by participating in the Contest and submitting a Video, each Entrant hereby grants permission (except where prohibited by law) for the Contest Entities to use Entrant’s Video, name, likeness, voice, quotes, comments, biographical information, photograph and/or image for the purpose of advertising, trade, or promotion without further notice, permission, compensation or consideration in any and all media now known or hereafter developed throughout the universe, unless prohibited by law. Except as required by law or permitted pursuant to these Contest Official Rules, the Contest Entities will not share an Entrant’s information with any third parties.
9. NATURE OF RELATIONSHIP/WAIVER OF EQUITABLE RELIEF: Each Entrant understands and acknowledges that the Contest Entities have wide access to ideas, stories, designs, and other literary materials, and that new ideas are constantly being submitted to it or being developed by their own employees. Each Entrant also acknowledges that many ideas or stories may be competitive with, similar or identical to the Submission and/or each other in theme, idea, plot, format or other respects. Each Entrant acknowledges and agrees that such Entrant will not be entitled to any compensation as a result of any Contest Entity’s use of any such similar or identical material. Each Entrant acknowledges and agrees that the Contest Entities do not now and shall not have in the future any duty or liability, direct or indirect, vicarious, contributory, or otherwise, with respect to the infringement or protection of the copyright in and to the Submission. Finally, each Entrant acknowledges that, with respect to any claim by Entrant relating to or arising out of a Contest Entities’ actual or alleged exploitation or use of any Submission or other material submitted in connection with the Contest, the damage, if any, thereby caused to the applicable Entrant will not be irreparable or otherwise sufficient to entitle such Entrant to seek injunctive or other equitable relief or in any way enjoin the production, distribution, exhibition or other exploitation of the Video or any other production based on or allegedly based on the Submission, and the Entrant’s rights and remedies in any such event shall be strictly limited to the right to recover damages, if any, in an action at law.
10. RIGHTS OF SPONSOR / DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY: Sponsor, in consultation with the Contest Entities, shall have the right and sole discretion to edit, to refuse to air or transmit, or cease to air or transmit any Video whatsoever which it finds to be in violation of the provisions hereof, or which it finds in its sole discretion to be otherwise objectionable for any reason, including with respect to Sponsor’s broadcast standards and practices and other program policies. Sponsor also reserves the right to replace the Grand Prize Winning Video with the Video of an alternate eligible Entrant in accordance with these Official Rules if such Video and/or Entrant is withdrawn from or removed from the Contest for any reason, including without limitation, Entrant’s failure to have Sponsor’s documents executed by third parties. Sponsor also reserves the right, in their sole discretion, to terminate the Contest for any reason in the event that there is an error, problem or cause which impacts the operation, administration or security of the Contest or the Contest Entities and, in such situation, to select the winner(s) from the eligible Entries received prior to the action taken or in such manner as deemed fair and appropriate by Sponsor. The opinions expressed in the Videos are not necessarily (and in some cases not at all) those of the Contest Entities. The Contest Entities are not responsible for any materials provided by Entrants which are deemed harmful or offensive to others or for any harm incurred as a result of the Video’s creation. The Contest Entities are not responsible in any way for any injury, loss or damage which occurs as a result of an opinion expressed or information provided in the Videos transmitted on the Website or on television. The Contest Entities make no warranties, express or implied, as to the content or the accuracy or reliability of any information or statements contained in the Videos. All statements and opinions made by Entrants are those of such Entrants only, and the Contest Entities neither endorse nor shall be held responsible for the reliability or accuracy of same. Sponsor is not responsible for the content or practices of third party Web sites that may be linked to the Contest Homepage. This site may also be linked to Web sites operated by companies affiliated with Sponsor. Visitors to those sites should refer to each site’s separate privacy policies and practices.
11. WARRANTY: It is an express condition of submission and eligibility that each Entrant warrants and represents that Entrant’s Video is solely owned by Entrant and solely created by Entrant for the purpose of entering this Contest, and that no other party has any rights or interest in the Videos. Entrant further represents and warrants that the Videos and any use thereof by the Contest Entities, and each of their respective parent companies, subsidiaries and affiliates in connection with programming, advertising, promotion and publicity, shall not infringe upon any statutory or common law copyright and shall not constitute a defamation, or invasion of the right of privacy or publicity, or infringement of any other right of any kind of any third party.
12. INDEMNITY: The Contest may also be promoted by a third party or parties (each a “Promotional Partner,” collectively “Promotional Partners”). Entrant shall indemnify and hold harmless the Contest Entities, any Promotional Partners, and each of their respective parents, affiliates, successors, assigns and licensees, and each of their respective employees, shareholders, officers, directors, agents and representatives from and against any and all liability, claims, loss, damage, injury or expense, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, arising in connection with any third party action arising out of a breach or allegation which if true would constitute a breach, of any of Entrant’s representations, warranties or obligations herein.
13. GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS: By participating, each Entrant agrees that the Contest Entities and each of their respective agents, representatives, parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries and legal advisors, and each of their respective employees, shareholders, officers, and directors are not responsible or liable for, and shall be released and held harmless from: (i) late, lost, delayed, damaged, incomplete, illegible, unintelligible, misdirected or otherwise undeliverable mail, postage-due notices, release forms, affidavits or other correspondence; (ii) telephone, electronic, hardware or software program, network, Internet or computer malfunctions, failures, or difficulties of any kind; (iii) any condition caused by events beyond the control of the Contest Entities that may cause the Contest to be disrupted or corrupted; (iv) any printing, human, typographical or other errors or ambiguities in (or involving) any materials associated with the Contest; (v) any and all losses, damages, rights, claims and action of any kind in connection with or resulting from participation in the Contest; (vi) acceptance, possession, or use of any grant, including without limitation, personal injury, death and property damage arising there from; and (vii) claims based on publicity rights, defamation or invasion of privacy. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to suspend or cancel the Contest at any time for any reason, including, without limitation, if a computer virus, bug or other technical problem corrupts the administration, security, or proper conduct of the Contest, strikes, lock-outs, acts of God, technical difficulties, and other events not within the reasonable control of Sponsor. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of the Contest, or the rights and obligations of Entrants and the Contest Entities in connection with the Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of California, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules or provisions (whether of the State of California or any other jurisdiction) that would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of California. In the event of a claim or dispute, Entrants’ sole remedy shall be limited to their remedy at law for damages, if any, and Entrants shall not have the right to in any way enjoin or restrain the distribution, advertising, publicizing or other exploitation (in any form of media) of the Website, the Contest, and/or any intellectual property owned or licensed by the Contest Entities or their respective parent companies and affiliated entities. Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to prohibit any Entrant from participating in the Contest or to disqualify any individual it finds, in its sole determination, to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Contest; to be attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest by cheating, hacking, deception, or any other unfair playing practices; to be acting in violation of the Official Rules; or to be acting in a disruptive manner, or with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other person. Sponsor may suspend or discontinue the Contest if, in its sole opinion, there is any actual or suspected tampering of the Contest, or any other malfunction, event or activity that may affect the integrity of the Contest. SPONSOR SHALL NOT BE OBLIGATED TO AWARD ANY PRIZE THAT RELATES TO OR ARISES OUT OF IMPROPER OR MISTAKEN PRIZE NOTIFICATION, OPERATION OR FUNCTION OF THIS CONTEST.
14. PRIVACY POLICY: Any personal information supplied by you to MySpace will be subject to MySpace’s privacy policy posted at http://collect.myspace.com/misc/privacy.html?z=1. By entering the Contest, you grant MySpace permission to share your email address and any other personally identifiable information with the Contest Entities solely for the purpose of administration and prize fulfillment. MySpace will not sell, rent, transfer or otherwise disclose your personal data to any third party other than as described above herein.
15: SPONSOR: MySpace, Inc., 407 North Maple Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, NBC News, a division of NBC Universal, Inc., 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, N.Y. 10112, and MSNBC Interactive News LLC, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052.
16. PRIZE WINNER LIST/OFFICIAL RULES: For the prize winners or a copy of these Official Rules, mail a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: “Convention Citizen Journalist Contest”, c/o MySpace, 407 N. Maple Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210(VT residents may omit return postage) by December 31, 2008.