Apps for Working Government Official Rules – (the “Official Rules”) 

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY. A PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.  

Apps for Working Government (the “Competition”) challenges software developers to create applications to educate people about partisan gridlock and empower them to do something about it.

1. Sponsor & Administrator

ChallengePost, Inc., 425 W. 13th Street, Suite #504, New York, NY 10014 (the “Sponsor”).

2. Competition Schedule

Submission Period: March 20, 2013 (10:00am Eastern Time) – June 19, 2013 (5:00pm Eastern Time)

Early Submission Deadline: May 1, 2013 (5:00pm Eastern Time)

Feedback Period: May 1, 2013 (5:00pm Eastern Time) – May 22, 2013 (5:00pm Eastern Time)

Final Judging Period: July 8, 2013 (10:00am Eastern Time) – July 22, 2013 (5:00pm Eastern Time)

Public Voting Period: July 8, 2013 (10:00am Eastern Time) – July 22, 2013 (5:00pm Eastern Time)

Winners Announced: On or around July 29, 2013 (10:00am Eastern Time) 

3. Eligibility 

A. The Competition is open only to: 

(i) individuals who are at the age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence at the time of entry:

(ii) teams of eligible individuals where each team member meets the eligibility requirements for individual Contestants; and 

(iii) corporations (including not-for-profit corporations and other nonprofit organizations), limited liability companies, partnerships, and other legal entities that, at the time of entry, have been duly organized or incorporated and validly exist, and (a) employ no more than fifty (50) people (“Organizations”) or (b) employ more than fifty (50) people (“Large Organizations”).

Large Organizations may compete only for the “Large Organization Recognition Award”, and are not eligible to compete for the Best New Applications awards, Best Existing Applications awards, Popular Choice Award – New Application, or Popular Choice Award – Existing Application.

B. Contestants must own or have access at their own expense to a computer, an Internet connection, and any other electronic devices, documentation, software or other items that Contestants may deem necessary to create and enter their Submission (defined below in Section 5(B)(ii)). 

C. Each team or Organization shall appoint one individual (the “Representative”) to represent and act, including entering a Submission, on behalf of said team, Organization, or Large Organization. The Representative must meet the eligibility requirements for an individual Contestant and must be duly authorized to submit on behalf of the team, Organization, or Large Organization. The Representative represents and warrants that: (i) he/she is duly authorized to act on behalf of the team, Organization, or Large Organization; and (ii) each member of the team (or in the case of Organization or Large Organization, each participating member) has read the Official Rules and agrees to abide by these Official Rules. The Representative will ensure that each participating member of the team, Organization, or Large Organization reads, agrees to, and complies with the Official Rules. 

D. An individual may join more than one team, Organization, or Large Organization and an individual who is part of a team, Organization, or Large Organization may also enter the Competition on an individual basis.  

E. The following individuals, teams, Organizations, and Large Organizations are not eligible regardless of whether or not they meet the criteria set forth above: 

(i) Individuals who are residents of, and Organizations, and Large Organizations domiciled in, Cuba, Sudan, Iran, North Korea, Syria or any other country designated by the United States Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (see http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/SDN-List/Pages/default.aspx for additional information).

(ii) the Sponsor, and any advertising agency, contractor or other organization involved with the design, production, promotion, execution, or distribution of the Competition (collectively “Promotion Entities”); all employees, representatives and agents of such Promotion Entities; and all members of any such employee, representative or agent’s immediate family or household; 

(iii) any individual involved with the design, production, promotion, execution, or distribution of the Competition, and each member of any such individual’s immediate family or household; 

(iv) any company or individual that employs any Judge or that otherwise has a material business relationship or affiliation with any Judge; and 

(v) any parent company, subsidiary, or other affiliate of any company described above. 

F. For purposes hereof: 

(i) the members of an individual’s immediate family include such individual’s spouse, children and step-children, parents and step-parents, and siblings and step-siblings; and 

(ii) the members of an individual’s household include any other person that shares the same residence as such individual for at least three (3) months out of the year.  

4. Competition Submission Period 

A. Contestants must enter a Submission between March 20, 2013 at 10:00am Eastern Time, USA and June 19, 2013 at 5:00pm Eastern Time (the “Competition Submission Period”). The Sponsor’s computer is the official time keeping device for this Competition.

B. Any Submission entered following the Competition Submission Period shall be disqualified.  

C. Contestants may enter their Submission prior to the Early Submission Deadline on May 1, 2013 at 5:00pm Eastern Time, USA. If the Submission is eligible, the Contestant will receive feedback on how to improve the Submission from a panel selected by the Sponsor. Feedback will be provided during the Feedback Period (see section 9 below for more information).

5. Registration and Submission 

A. Registration 

(i) Beginning on March 20, 2013 at 10:00am Eastern Time, visit http://AppsForOpenGov.ChallengePost.com (the “Competition Website”) and click “Sign Up” to create a ChallengePost account, or click “Log In” and log in with an existing ChallengePost account. There is no charge for creating a ChallengePost account. 

(ii) After a Contestant signs up on the Competition Website a confirmation email will be sent to the email address provided by the Contestant. The Contestant should use the confirmation email to verify their email address. 

(iii) Contestant should indicate their agreement in participating by clicking “Register” on the Competition Website and confirming their registration in order to receive important Competition updates.  

(iv) In the event of a dispute pertaining to this Competition, the authorized account holder of the email address used to sign up for the ChallengePost account used to enter the Submission will be deemed to be the Contestant (in case of an individual) and the Contestant’s Representative, in the case of a team, Organization, or Large Organization. The “authorized account holder” is the natural person or legal entity assigned an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address. Contestants generally and potential winners may be required to show proof of being the authorized account holder.

B. Submission 

(i) Contestants must create a working software application that runs on a desktop or mobile operating system or web browser (each an “Application”). 

(ii) During the Competition Submission Period, Contestant must visit the Competition Website and confirm that he or she has or, if Contestant is a Representative, all participating members of their team, Organization, or Large Organization have, read and agree to the Official Rules.  Then, Contestant must submit its Submission by providing: 

a. the name of the Application;

b. a text description of the Application, including how it can be used to educate or empower people to do something about the problem of partisan gridlock and increase legislative productivity;

c. at least one image (screenshot) of the working Application;

d. a link to a video posted on YouTube.com or Vimeo.com that clearly demonstrates the Application’s functionality and features (by walking through the Application); 

e. a website URL where the Application can be downloaded or accessed (if the Application is available to the public on the web or for download via an app store);

f. if the Application is not available on a public website URL, an uploaded ZIP file containing an installation file for the Application, OR a private link (in the testing instructions) for downloading the Application, OR, for iOS Applications a build shared via Testflight.

g. step-by-step testing instructions including the minimum operating system or web browser version required for testing and login instructions, if a login is required;

h. participating team members (if applicable);

i. Indication of whether the Application is new for the Competition or existed prior to the start of the Competition;

j. the Application category (Education or Solution & Action Tool; see Section 6(C)(ii) for description);

k. the Application platform (Android, Blackberry, iOS, Windows Phone, Mobile Web, Web, Mac OS, Windows OS, Muitiple, or Other)

l. the submitter type (individual, team, or organization);

m. the Organization name, if the submitter is an Organization or Large Organization;

n. the Contestant Representative’s phone number. 

(a-n above, are collectively a “Submission”) 

(iii) For sake of clarity, all parts of the Submission must be entered at the same time on the Competition Website. All Submissions must be received by no later than 5:00pm Eastern Time on June 19, 2013.   

(iv) Once a Submission has been submitted and the Competition Submission Period has ended, a Contestant may not make any changes or alterations to the Submission. Contestants may save draft versions of their Submission before entering it on the Competition Website.

(v) Applications can not be changed after the Competition Submission Period and before the end of the Judging Period, unless the Contestant has provided an installation file or shared build and testing instructions on the Enter an Application form on the Competition Website. This should be done in one of the following ways:

a. For Android applications, Contestants should upload or provide a private link to a .apk file

b. For iOS applications, Contestants should either upload a .ipa file provisioned with the appropriate UDID (see below) OR share the Application build via TestFlight (enter the Sponsor TestFlight email address: Marny@ChallengePost.com and UDID to share a build for testing). UDIDs: 

iPad (iOS 5.0.1) e21acf963c60919f6f0aa23d42cef5f06e25ee2d

iPod Touch 4th Gen (iOS 5.0.1)13d9c9e50d705446c07fc5d2c3c3144c69ffc576

iPhone 4 (iOS 9b208) d6d3f69fde72561928c0fd7c541ea1511acf7729

c. For Windows Phone applications, Contestants should upload a .xap file OR include a private link to the Application with the testing instructions.

d. For Blackberry application, Contestants should upload a .bar file OR include a private link to the Application with the testing instructions.

e. For Mac or Windows desktop applications, Contestants should upload appropriate installation files OR provide private link(s) for downloading the Application with the testing instructions.

Web or mobile web Applications must not be updated after the Competition Submission Period and before the end of the Judging Period. Doing so may cause the Contestant's Submission to be disqualified. 

(vi) The Sponsor, at their sole discretion, may permit a Contestant to modify part of the Submission after the Competition Submission Deadline for the purpose of removing material that potentially infringes a third party mark or right, discloses personally identifiable information, or is otherwise inappropriate. The modified Submission must remain substantively the same as the original Submission with the only modification being what is permitted by the Sponsor. Any modifications beyond what is permitted may result in disqualification.

6. Submission Requirements 

A. Language Requirements 

All Submission materials must be in English. 

B. Text Description, Image and Video Requirements 

(i) The text description must describe the Application’s key features and functionality and how the Application can be used to educate or empower people to do something about the problem of partisan gridlock and increase legislative productivity.

(ii) The image(s) must be photographs or screenshots of your working Application. 

(iii) The video portion of the Submission: 

a. should be no longer than five (5) minutes;

b. must clearly demonstrate the Application’s features and functionality related to one of the categories defined below in section 6(C)(ii) (by walking through the Application); and

c. must not include music or other copyrighted material or use third party trademarks unless the Contestant has written permission to use such material. 

(iv) If the video is primarily promotional rather than a demonstration of the Application’s functionality and features related to one of the categories defined below in section 6(C)(ii) (by walking through the Application), the Submission may be disqualified at the Sponsor’s sole discretion.  

C. Application Requirements

In addition to the requirements described above in Section 5(B): 

(i) The Application must be able to be successfully installed and capable of running consistently as described on the platform for which it is intended. 

(ii) Contestants must enter an Application in one of the following categories (the “Categories”): 

a. Educational. Education Applications must visualize or analyze data to illustrate the problem of partisan gridlock, legislative productivity (or lack thereof) and/or the related consequences, or analyze and evaluate the polarization or productivity of Congress, state legislatures, or individual lawmakers or government officials.

b. Solutions & Action Tools: Solutions & Action Tools must include functionality designed specifically to enable citizens to communicate with legislators or others in government or mobilize other citizens, or help legislators and other government officials to advance collaboration.

Contestant will indicate at the time of entry no more than one category from Educational or Solutions & Action Tools, which applies to their Application. At any time, and at its sole discretion, the Sponsor will have the ability to re-assign a submitted Submission from one Category to another or to disqualify a Submission that does not meet either of the Category requirements. Submissions in both Categories will be eligible to win the same prizes. 

(iii) Both newly created Applications that were not publicly available prior to the start of the Competition Submission Period (“New Applications”) and Applications that existed prior to the start of the Competition Submission Period (“Existing Applications”) will be eligible, provided they meet the requirements of these Official Rules. Contestants will indicate at the time of entry whether their Application is a New Application or Existing Application. The Sponsor may require the Contestant to provide additional information to verify whether their Application is a New Application or Existing Application. At any time, and at its sole discretion, the Sponsor will have the ability to re-assign a submitted Submission.

(iv) Contestants are encouraged to utilize APIs and data from third parties in their Applications. Contestants must be authorized to use such APIs or data in the manner utilized by the Application.   

(v) The Contestant may offer the Application to the public for free or charge a fee for access. However, each Application must be available free of charge for testing, evaluation and use by the Competition Sponsor and judges during the Competition and until the Judging Period ends at 5:00 Eastern Time on July 22, 2013. 

(vi) Submissions requiring approval from a third party, such as an app store, in order to be accessible to the public, must be submitted to such third party or app store for review before the end of the Competition Submission Period.

D. General Requirements 

(i) Submissions must not:

a. violate any law or regulation;

b. depict hatred;

c. be in bad taste;

d. denigrate (or be derogatory towards) any person or group of persons or any race, ethnic group or culture;

e. threaten a specific community in society, including any specific race, ethnic group or culture;

f. incite violence or be likely to incite violence;

g. contain vulgar or obscene language or excessive violence;

h. contain pornography, obscenity or sexual activity; or

i. disparage the Sponsor.  

(ii) Submissions must not attempt to duplicate a prior Submission already submitted in this Competition. Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any Submission that is a duplicate or substantially similar to another Submission. 

(iii) Submissions must be free of malware. Contestant agrees that the Sponsor may conduct testing on the Application to determine whether malware or other security threats may be present.  Submissions not complying with these requirements may be disqualified. 

(iv) Each Application will be tested by the Sponsor or their designees. Submissions may be disqualified if the Application does not function as depicted in the video or expressed in the text description, at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. 

(v) A Contestant may submit more than one Submission. However, each Submission must be unique, as determined by Sponsor in their sole discretion. If a Contestant enters two or more Submissions that are substantially similar, the Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify Submissions or require the Contestant to choose one Submission to enter into the Competition.

(vi) Contestants must not imply endorsement of their Application by the Sponsor or Sponsor’s partners in the Competition in any of the Submission components or in any advertising or media, including websites and app stores, featuring the Contestant’s Application. 

(vii) Submissions must: (a) be the original work product of the Contestant; (b) be solely owned by Contestant and with no other person or entity having any right or interest in it; and (c) not violate the Intellectual Property rights or other rights including but not limited to copyright, trademark, patent, contract, and/or privacy rights, of any other person or entity. A Contestant may contract with a third party for technical assistance to create the Submission provided the Submission components are solely the Contestant’s work product and the result of the Contestant’s ideas and creativity, and the Contestant owns all rights to them. Contestants may submit open source Applications as long as each collaborator is identified as a member of the Contestant team.

(viii) By entering a Submission, Contestant represents, warrants and agrees that the Submission (including, without limitation, the Application) is the original work of the Contestant and complies with the Official Rules.  

Contestant further represents, warrants and agrees that any use of the Submission by the Sponsor and/or Judges (or any of their respective partners, subsidiaries and affiliates) as authorized by these Official Rules, shall not: 

a. infringe upon, misappropriate or otherwise violate any intellectual property right or proprietary right including, without limitation, any statutory or common law trademark, copyright or patent, nor any privacy rights, moral rights nor any other rights of any person or entity; or

b. constitute or result in any misappropriation or other violation of any person’s publicity rights or right of privacy. 

7. Submission Rights

A. Subject to the licenses described below, any applicable intellectual property rights to a Submission will remain with the Contestant.

B. Submissions will include components that will be displayed publicly on the Competition Website and other media, with attribution to the Contestant (the “Public Submission”) and components that will not be displayed publicly (the “Non-Public Submission”). The Public Submission includes the Submission name, text description, video, images, submitter type, whether the Application is new or existed prior to the Competition, Organization name (if applicable) and website URL. The Non-Public Submission includes uploaded files, testing instructions, and the Contestant Representative’s phone number. 

C. The Sponsor, and any third parties acting on the Sponsor’s behalf, will have a royalty-free, non-exclusive, worldwide license to display publicly and use for promotional purposes the Public Submission, in perpetuity. This license includes posting or linking to the Public Submission on Sponsor’s websites and applications, including the Competition Website, Sponsor websites and applications, and partner websites, and inclusion of the Submission in any other media, worldwide. The Non-Public Submission may be viewed by the Sponsor and Judges for screening and evaluation purposes. The Sponsor and any third parties acting on their behalf will also have the right to publicize Contestant’s name and, as applicable, the names of Contestant’s team members, Organization, or Large Organization which participated in the Submission on the Competition Website for a period of two years following the conclusion of the Competition. 

8. Display of Submissions 

A. Eligible Submissions will be posted on the Competition Website on a rolling basis after being screened and/or tested by the Sponsor for basic functionality, accuracy of messaging, integrity (i.e., security) and appropriateness of content. The Sponsor has the right to request additional information and be provided access to the Application in person or via any reasonable manner to verify the Application functions and operates as stated in the Submission. Failure by a Contestant to respond or honor such a request may result in disqualification of the Submission.  

B. Posting of a Submission to the Competition Website does not constitute a final determination by the Sponsor that the Submission met requirements. Accordingly a Submission may still be disqualified even after it has been publically displayed. 

9. Early Submission and Feedback

A. All Contestant's entering eligible Submissions prior to the Early Submission Deadline will receive feedback from a panel selected by the Sponsor. All members of the panel will be and remain fair and impartial. Feedback will include suggestions on how the Contestant's Submission could be improved. Feedback will be provided for the following areas, where applicable:

(i) User Experience & Design (including suggestions on improving usability and design, graphics, typography, and visual aesthetic; may also include notes on any bugs encountered);

(ii) Stakeholder relevance (including suggestions for enhancing the relevance of the Application for intended stakeholders - voters, lawmakers, media, and others); and

(iii) Impact (including suggestions for improving the impact of the Application on educating people about gridlock or enabling actions or collaboration to improve legislative productivity; this could include suggestions of relevant data to incorporate, or new or modified functionality.

B. The panel selected by the Sponsor will do their best to provide feedback to help Contestants improve their Submission. Such feedback may not be comprehensive and may not cover all issues relevant to the evaluation of the Submission by the Judges.  The Sponsor, panel providing feedback, and Judges make no warranties or representations as to whether a Contestant's incorporation of the feedback into their Submission, or decision to ignore the feedback, will affect their chances of winning a prize. Potential prize winners will be selected solely on the basis of the juding criteria described in these rules and used by the Judges to evaluate the Submissions following the end of the Competition Submission Period.

10. Winner Selection and Judging Criteria 

A. All eligible Submissions will be judged by an expert panel of impartial judges (the “Judges”) selected by the Sponsor. Eligible Submissions may initially be screened by a qualified internal panel selected by the Sponsor at its sole discretion. The internal panel will judge these Submissions on the criteria identified in these Official Rules to select finalist Submissions. Finalist Submissions will then be judged by the expert judging panel determined by the Sponsor and identified on the Competition Website. The internal panel and expert judging panel are not required to test the Application and may choose to judge based solely on the text description and video provided in the Submission. The Sponsor reserves the right to substitute or modify the judging panel at any time for any reason. 

B. All Judges shall be and remain fair and impartial. Any Judge may recuse him or herself from judging a Submission if the Judge, the Sponsor considers that it is inappropriate, for any reason, for the Judge to evaluate a specific Submission or group of Submissions. 

C. A Contestant’s likelihood of winning will depend primarily on the number and quality of all of the Submissions, as determined by the Judges using the criteria in these Official Rules. The dates for the judging panel are July 8, 2013 at 10:00am Eastern Time and July 22, 2013 at 5:00pm Eastern Time (the “Judging Period”). 

11. Best New Applications

A. Criteria (equally weighted): 

(i) Quality of Idea (Includes creativity and originality)

(ii) Implementation of Idea & UX (Includes how well the idea was executed by the developer as well as design, graphics, typography, and visual aesthetic)

(iii) Potential Impact (Includes potential impact on partisan gridlock and legislative productivity through education and/or citizen or lawmaker action or collaboration)

B. The two (2) Contestants whose Submissions are New Applications and earn the highest overall scores will become potential winners of the Prizes identified below in Section 15.  

C. Tie Breakers. In the event of a tie between two or more Submissions, the tied Submission with the highest score in the first criterion listed above shall be deemed the higher scoring Submission. In the event any ties remain, this process will be repeated by comparing the tied Submissions’ scores on the second, and third criterion listed above, respectively. If two or more Submissions are tied on all three criteria, the panel of Judges will vote on the tied submissions (the “Tie-Breaker Criteria”).

D. Large Organizations and Contestants submitting Existing Applications are not eligible to compete for the Best New Applications awards.

12. Best Existing Applications

A. Criteria (equally weighted): 

(i) Quality of Idea (Includes creativity and originality)

(ii) Implementation of Idea & UX (Includes how well the idea was executed by the developer as well as design, graphics, typography, and visual aesthetic)

(iii) Potential Impact (Includes potential impact on partisan gridlock and legislative productivity through education and/or citizen or lawmaker action or collaboration)

B. The two (2) Contestants whose Submissions are Existing Applications and earn the highest overall scores will become potential winners of the Prizes identified below in Section 15.  In the event of a tie between or among two or more Submissions for the Best Existing Applications awards, the winning Submission shall be determined by the Tie-Breaker Criteria.

C. Large Organizations and Contestants submitting New Applications are not eligible to compete for the Best Existing Applications awards.

13. Popular Choice Award – New Application, Existing Application

A. The public voting is scheduled to take place between July 8, 2013 at 10:00am Eastern Time, USA and July 22, 2013 at 5:00pm Eastern Time, USA (the “Voting Period”). Public voting will determine the potential winner of the Popular Choice Award – New Application and Popular Choice Award – Existing Application. Large Organizations shall not be eligible to compete for or win a Popular Choice Award.

B. The potential winners of the Popular Choice Awards will be determined on the basis of the verified vote counts, as determined by the Sponsor. The Sponsor reserves the right to extend the Voting Period at any time for any reason.

D. Two (2) potential winners of the Popular Choice Award prizes (described in Section 15 below) will be selected based solely on the highest number of votes received from Registered Visitors on the Competition Website for New Applications and Existing Applications, respectively.  If there is a tie between or among two or more Submissions for the Popular Choice Awards, the higher scoring Submission will be determined by the Tie-Breaker Criteria (described in Section 10(c) above).

E. The likelihood of being selected to win a Popular Choice Award depends on the total number of verified votes received on the Submissions relative to other Contestants with New Applications or Existing Applications.

F. Use of an automated process or similar device to submit an electronic vote is strictly prohibited. Any attempt to circumvent the one-vote limit per Submission, including the use of multiple email addresses or any form of automated vote processes will subject all votes from the person or entity to disqualification. The Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any Contestant at their sole discretion, if a Contestant receives multiple and/or irregular votes from the same user or users, or receives votes in a manner that otherwise may indicate automated or non-automated vote manipulation. If the voting process for the Popular Choice Awards fails to operate properly or appears to be tampered with or tainted with errors, fraud or unfair practices, the Sponsor at their sole discretion reserves the right to determine the winner by using non-suspect votes, or by any other means the Sponsor deems appropriate.  If no alternative means of determining a winner of the Popular Choice Award is available, the Sponsor may eliminate the Popular Choice Award. Contestants may not pay or otherwise compensate anyone or provide any other type of consideration in exchange for votes.

14.  Large Organization Recognition Award

A. Criteria (equally weighted): 

(i) Quality of Idea (Includes creativity and originality)

(ii) Implementation of Idea & UX (Includes how well the idea was executed by the developer as well as design, graphics, typography, and visual aesthetic)

(iii) Potential Impact (Includes potential impact on partisan gridlock and legislative productivity through education and/or citizen or lawmaker action or collaboration)

B. One Large Organization Contestant whose Submission earns the highest overall score for the Large Organization Recognition Award will become potential winner of the non-cash Prize identified below in Section 15. In the event of a tie between or among two or more Submissions for the Large Organization Recognition Award, the winning Submission shall be determined by the Tie-Breaker Criteria.

C. The likelihood of a Large Organization being selected to win the Large Organization Recognition Award depends on the number and quality of eligible Submissions made by Large Organizations.

15. Verification of Potential Winners

A. ALL POTENTIAL COMPETITION WINNERS ARE SUBJECT TO VERIFICATION OF IDENTITY, QUALIFICATIONS AND ROLE IN THE CREATION OF THE APPLICATION BY THE SPONSOR, WHOSE DECISIONS ARE FINAL AND BINDING IN ALL MATTERS RELATED TO THE COMPETITION. Potential winners must continue to comply with all terms and conditions of these Official Rules throughout the Submission Period and Judging Period. Potential winners will be notified using the email address associated with the ChallengePost account used to enter the Submission on or about July 29, 2013. For sake of clarity, if a potential winner is a team, Organization, or Large Organization, the notification will only be sent to the Representative. In order to receive a Prize, the potential winner will be required to sign and return to the Sponsor, affidavit(s) of eligibility or a similar verification document and liability/publicity release(s) within seven (10) business days (if a potential winner is a team, Organization, or Large Organization, the Representative and all participating members must sign and return to the Sponsor said affidavit(s) of eligibility or a similar verification document and liability/publicity release(s) within ten (10) business days). If a winner is considered to be a minor is his or her jurisdiction of residence, at Sponsor’s sole option, the prize will either be awarded to the minor winner’s parent or legal guardian on behalf of the winner, or the minor’s parent or guardian will be required to ratify and sign the affidavit of eligibility, and liability/publicity release. 

B. At the sole discretion of the Sponsor, a potential winner will be deemed ineligible to win if: 

(i) the potential winner (or in the case of a team, Organization, or Large Organization, their Representative) cannot be contacted within seven (7) business days, or is contacted and refuses the Prize;  

(ii) the potential winner (or in the case of a team, Organization, or Large Organization, their Representative or any participating member) fail(s) to sign and return the affidavit(s) of eligibility or a similar verification document and liability/publicity release(s) within seven (10) business days from receipt of such documents;  

(iii) the Prize or Prize notification is returned as undeliverable; or  

(iv) the Submission or the potential winner, or any member of a potential winner’s team, Organization, or Large Organization, is disqualified for any other reason.  In the event of such disqualification, Sponsor at their sole discretion may award the applicable Prize to an alternate potential winner. The disqualification of one (or more) team members (or, in the case of Organizations or Large Organizations, any participating members) from further consideration in this Competition for any reason may result in the disqualification of the entire team, Organization, or Large Organization and of each participating member at the sole discretion of the Sponsor.

16. Prizes

A. No Prize substitutions will be made except for the right of the Sponsor to make a Prize substitution of equivalent or greater value. The Sponsor will not award a Prize if there are no eligible Submissions entered in the Competition, or if there are no eligible Contestants or Submissions for a specific Prize. Prizes must be accepted as awarded. No transfer or substitution of a Prize is permitted except at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. The Prize will be mailed to the winning Contestant’s or, if a team or Organization is selected as a prize winner, the Representative’s address within 45 days of receipt of the signed affidavit(s) of eligibility or a similar verification document and liability/publicity release(s) form(s). If a team or an Organization is selected as a Prize-winner, the associated Prize will be shipped to said team or Organization’s Representative. It will be the responsibility of the winning team or Organization’s Representative to allocate the Prize amongst its team or Organization members, as the Representative deems appropriate. 

B. Winners (and in the case of team or Organization, all participating members) are responsible for reporting and paying all applicable federal, state, and local taxes. It is the sole responsibility of Prize winners of US$600 or more to provide certain information to facilitate receipt of the award, including completing and submitting any tax forms when necessary and any applicable withholding and reporting requirements. The Sponsor reserves the right to withhold a portion of the prize amount to comply with tax laws. 

C. In the event a winner/potential winner’s employer has a policy that prohibits the awarding of a Prize to an employee, the Prize will be forfeited and an alternate potential winner will be selected. 

17. Entry Conditions and Release 

A. Each Contestant hereby acknowledges and agrees that the relationship between the Contestant, the Sponsor, is not a confidential, fiduciary, or other special relationship, and that the Contestant’s decision to provide the Contestant’s Submission to Sponsor for the purposes of this Competition does not place the Sponsor and their respective agents in a position that is any different from the position held by the members of the general public with regard to elements of the Contestant’s Submission, except as specifically provided in these Official Rules. 

B. By entering, each Contestant (including, in the case of team, Organization, or Large Organization, all participating members) agree(s) to: 

(i) comply with and be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor and/or the Competition judges which are binding and final in all matters relating to this Competition; and  

(ii) release, indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Sponsor, and their respective parent, subsidiary, and affiliated companies, the Prize suppliers and any other organizations responsible for sponsoring, fulfilling, administering, advertising or promoting the Competition, and all of their respective past and present officers, directors, employees, agents and representatives (hereafter the “Released Parties”) from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liabilities (including reasonable attorneys’ fees), including but not limited to negligence and damages of any kind to persons and property, defamation, slander, libel, violation of right of publicity, infringement of trademark, copyright or other intellectual property rights, property damage, or death or personal injury arising out of or relating to a Contestant’s entry, creation of Submission or entry of a Submission, participation in the Competition, acceptance or use or misuse of the Prize (including any travel or activity related thereto) and/or the broadcast, transmission, performance, exploitation or use of Submission as authorized or licensed by these Official Rules. 

C. Without limiting the foregoing, the Released Parties shall have no liability in connection with: 

(i) any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by the Sponsor’s electronic or printing error, or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Competition; 

(ii) technical failures of any kind, including, but not limited to malfunctions, interruptions, or disconnections in phone lines, internet connectivity or electronic transmission errors, or network hardware or software or failure of the Competition Website;

(iii) unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry process or the Competition; 

(iv) technical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Competition or the processing of Submissions; or 

(v) any injury or damage to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from the Contestant’s participation in the Competition or receipt or use or misuse of any Prize. If for any reason any Contestant’s Submission is confirmed to have been erroneously deleted, lost, or otherwise destroyed or corrupted, the Contestant’s sole remedy is to request the opportunity to resubmit its Submission, which request will be determined at the sole discretion of the Sponsor if the Competition Submission Period is still open.

18. Publicity 

Participation in the Competition constitutes a winner’s consent to Sponsor’s, and their agents’ use of the winner’s name, likeness, photograph, voice, opinions, comments and/or hometown and state of residence (and, as applicable, those of all other members of the team or Organization which participated in the Submission) for promotional purposes in any media, worldwide, without further payment or consideration, for a period of two years following the conclusion of the Competition.

19. General Conditions 

A. Sponsor reserves the right to cancel, suspend and/or modify the Competition, or any part of it, if any fraud, technical failure or any other unanticipated factor or factor beyond Sponsor’s control impairs the integrity or proper functioning of the Competition, as determined by Sponsor at their sole discretion. The Sponsor reserves the right at their sole discretion to disqualify any individual or Contestant it finds to be tampering with the entry process (for example by using the aid of computer software programs to auto-fill entries) or the operation of the Competition or to be acting in violation of these Official Rules or in a manner that is inappropriate, unsportsmanlike, not in the best interests of this Competition, or a violation of any applicable law or regulation. 

B. Any attempt by any person to undermine the proper conduct of the Competition may be a violation of criminal and civil law, and, should such an attempt be made, the Sponsor reserves the right to take proper legal action, including, without limiting, referral to law enforcement, for any illegal or unlawful activities. 

C. The Sponsor’s failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. The Sponsor is not responsible for incomplete, late, misdirected, damaged, lost, illegible, or incomprehensible Submissions or for address or email address changes of the Contestants. Proof of sending or submitting will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by Sponsor. The Sponsor is not responsible for, nor are they required to count any vote which, in their sole judgment, is incomplete, late, misdirected, damaged, unlawful or illicit, including those secured through payment, votes achieved through automated means, as well as those lost for technical reasons, defective or otherwise in violation of these rules. 

D. In the event of any discrepancy or inconsistency between the terms and conditions of the Official Rules and disclosures or other statements contained in any Competition materials, including but not limited to the Competition Submission form, Competition Website, advertising (including but not limited to television, print, radio or online ads), the terms and conditions of the Official Rules shall prevail. 

E. The Sponsor reserves the right, without liability, to amend the terms and conditions of the Official Rules at any time, including the rights or obligations of the Contestant and the Sponsor. The Sponsor will post the terms and conditions of the amended Official Rules on the Competition Website. As permitted by law, any amendment will become effective at the time the Sponsor posts the amended Official Rules. 

F. Excluding Submissions, all intellectual property related to this Competition, including but not limited to trademarks, trade-names, logos, designs, promotional materials, web pages, source codes, drawings, illustrations, slogans and representations are owned or used under license by the Sponsor. All rights are reserved. Unauthorized copying or use of any copyrighted material or intellectual property without the express written consent of its owners is strictly prohibited. 

G. Should any provision of these Official Rules be or become illegal or unenforceable in the jurisdiction of a permitted entrant, such illegality or unenforceability shall leave the remainder of these Official Rules unaffected and valid. The illegal or unenforceable provision shall be replaced by a valid and enforceable provision that comes closest and best reflects the Sponsor’s intention in a legal and enforceable manner with respect to the invalid or unenforceable provision.

20. Limitations of Liability 

By entering, all Contestants (including, in the case of a team, Organization, or Large Organization, all participating members) agree to be bound by the Official Rules and hereby release the Released Parties from any and all liability in connection with the Prizes or Contestant’s participation in the Competition. Provided, however, that any liability limitation regarding gross negligence or intentional acts, or events of death or body injury shall not be applicable in jurisdictions where such limitation is not legal. 

21. Disputes

A. Contestants agree that: 

(i) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Competition, or any Prizes awarded, other than those concerning the administration of the Competition or the determination of winners, shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action; 

(ii) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Competition, or any Prizes awarded, shall be resolved exclusively by the United States District Court of New York or the appropriate New York State Court; and  

(iii) under no circumstances will Contestants be entitled to, and Contestants hereby waives all rights to claim, any punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased.

SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. 

B. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of the Contestants, the Sponsor in connection with the Competition, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the State of New York or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of New York. 

22. Privacy

The Sponsor collects personal information from you when you enter the Competition. The information collected is subject to the privacy policy located here: http://ChallengePost.com/privacy. 

23. Competition Results 

For Competition results, visit Competition Website on or about July 27, 2013.

24. Contact Us 

If you have any questions or wish to send us any notice regarding this Competition, please email us at Support@ChallengePost.com.