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The GMO Innovation Contest

 

Official Rules

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.

Contest may only be entered in or from the 50 United States and the District of Columbia and entries originating from any other jurisdiction are not eligible for entry.  This Contest is governed exclusively by the laws of the United States.  You are not authorized to participate in the Contest if you are not located within the 50 United States or the District of Columbia. 

1.How to Enter.  To enter The GMO Innovation Contest (“Contest”):

  • Go to your YouTube, Vimeo or Instagram account, and post an original video (“Video”), which answers the question “If you could use biotechnology to solve any food problem around the world, what would it be and why?” (“Theme”);
  • Include the hashtag #GMOInnovationContest in the post/description accompanying your Video on YouTube, Vimeo or Instagram;
  • Go to the GMO Innovation submission form, located at https://www. innovationcontest.gmoanswers.com (“Sponsor’s Site”), and fully complete the entry form, including your first and last name, state of residence, email address, and age;  
  • Insert a link to your original Video that you previously posted  to your YouTube, Vimeo or Instagram account onto your submission form; and
  • Agree to these Official Rules.  

Your Video should be at least fifteen (15) seconds in length but no more than thirty (30) seconds in length.  The post or description accompanying your Video on YouTube, Vimeo or Instagram must include the hashtag #GMOInnovationContest. You must make sure your settings on your YouTube, Vimeo or Instagram account (as applicable) are public and not private/protected.  Each entrant may be required to email Sponsor an MP4 file of entrant’s Video if requested to do so by Sponsor in accordance with any terms provided by Sponsor.  All submission/entry information and Videos shall be collectively referred to herein as the “Submissions” or each as a “Submission.”  Submissions must comply with the Guidelines and Restrictions defined below. 

If you post your Video to YouTube, you are subject to its Terms of Service (https://www.youtube.com/static?gl=US&template=terms), including the YouTube Community Guidelines, located at http://www.youtube.com/yt/policyandsafety/communityguidelines.html.  If you post your Video to Vimeo, you are subject to its Terms of Services, located at https://vimeo.com/terms.  If you post your Video to Instagram, you are subject to its Terms of Use, located at https://help.instagram.com/478745558852511.  Failure to comply with any applicable terms will be subject to disqualification.  However, to the extent there is any conflict between these Official Rules and the above-referenced Terms of Service or Terms of Use, these Official Rules will apply.  

Limit one (1) Submission per person/per email address.  Sponsor reserves the right to cancel or modify this Contest in the event an insufficient number of entries are received that meet the minimum judging criteria. 

If a Submission is submitted by a school, club, organization and/or group (collectively, “Team”), the Team member who submitted the Submission and completed the entry form will be deemed to be the “entrant” and its “Team Leader” who must have the permission and consent of all Team members to act in this role (including the authority to grant rights to Sponsor so that Sponsor can use the Submission for purposes of this Contest in accordance with these Official Rules) and can confirm the Team’s agreement on behalf of the Team to these Official Rules.  If in the event a Team Submission wins a prize, the prize will be awarded to the Team Leader who is fully responsible for prize distribution to the Team.  The Team Leader assumes full responsibility for the prize and Sponsor will not in any way be responsible for the prize distribution to any Team members.  

By entering, each entrant warrants and represents the following with respect to his/her Submission: (a) entrant is the sole and exclusive owner of the Submission; (b) the Submission is entrant’s own creation; (c) the Submission will not infringe on any rights of any third parties; and (d) any third parties appearing in the Submission have given entrant appropriate consent to be filmed and used as permitted herein.  Sponsor reserves the right to request releases from any third parties appearing in any Submissions at any time.  Failure to produce third party releases upon Sponsor’s request may result in disqualification, as determined by Sponsor is its sole and absolute discretion.

Providing a Submission constitutes entrant’s consent to grant Sponsor and anyone designated by Sponsor a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, and display such entry in whole or in part, on a worldwide basis, in perpetuity, and to incorporate it into other works, in any form, media or technology now known or later developed, including, on any and all Internet media, including on Sponsor’s websites and social networking sites (i.e., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest etc.), for any purpose whatsoever, including for promotional, advertising or marketing purposes, unless prohibited by law.

No automated entry devices and/or programs permitted.  All entries, including Submissions, become the sole and exclusive property of the Sponsor and receipt of entries will not be acknowledged or returned. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, illegible, stolen, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible, postage-due, misdirected, technically corrupted or garbled entries, which will be disqualified, or for problems of any kind whether mechanical, human or electronic.  Only fully completed entry forms are eligible.  All terms and conditions of YouTube, Vimeo, and Instagram apply (as applicable).  Multiple entrants are not permitted to share the same YouTube, Vimeo, or Instagram account.  Any attempt by any entrant to obtain more than the stated number of entries by using multiple/different accounts, identities, registrations and logins, or any other methods will void that entrant's entries and that entrant may be disqualified.  Proof of submission will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by Sponsor.  If you enter using your mobile device, standard data fees may apply.  You should consult your wireless service provider's pricing plan for details. You agree to incur any and all charges demanded by your wireless carrier. You should also check your device's features for capabilities and check the device manual for specific use instructions.

2. Start/End Dates. Contest begins at 12:00:00 am Eastern Time on September 18, 2017 and ends at 11:59:59 PM Eastern Time on October 23, 2017.   

3. Eligibility. Participation open only to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and the District of Columbia, who are 13 years of age or older as of date of entry.  Void outside of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, and where prohibited, taxed or restricted by law. Employees, officers and directors of The Council for Biotechnology Information (“Sponsor”), GMOAnswers.com, and their respective  parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, advertising and promotion agencies, manufacturers or distributors of Contest materials and their immediate families (parents, children, siblings, spouse) or members of the same household (whether related or not) of such employees/officers/directors are not eligible to enter.  You are not authorized to participate in the Contest if you are not located within the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia.  All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply.

4. Submission Guidelines and Content Restrictions: By entering, each entrant agrees that his or her Submission conforms to the Submission Guidelines and Content Restrictions as defined below (collectively, the “Guidelines and Restrictions”) and that Sponsor, in its sole discretion, may remove and/or refuse to post any Submission and disqualify an entrant or a Submission from the Contest if it believes, in its sole discretion, that the entrant’s Submission fails to conform to the Guidelines and Restrictions. 

            Submission Guidelines:

  • The Video must be at least fifteen (15) seconds in length but no more than thirty (30) seconds in length.
  • The Video must be posted on YouTube, Vimeo or Instagram and include the hashtag #GMOInnovationContest in the Video’s accompanying post/description and entrant’s submission form must include a link to the Video.
  • The Submission must be in English.

            Content Restrictions:

  • The Submission must not contain material that violates or infringes any rights of any other party, including but not limited to copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity or any other intellectual property rights;
  • The Submission must not in any disparage Sponsor, or any other person or party;
  • The Submission must not contain material that is inappropriate, indecent, obscene hateful, tortious, defamatory, slanderous or libelous;
  • The Submission must not contain material that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any group or individual or promotes discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age;
  • The Submission must not contain material that is unlawful, in violation of or contrary to the laws or regulations of the United States or of any jurisdiction where Submission is created; and
  • The Submission must be consistent with the image and values of Sponsor and be consistent with and satisfy the purpose of the Contest.

Submissions will be reviewed by Sponsor and must be approved by Sponsor prior to being posted to the Submission Gallery located on Sponsor’s Facebook Page tab, located at https://www.facebook.com/GmoAnswers/app/403834839671843?brandloc=DISABLE&app_data=chk-59bc4cfcd810b and at InnovationContest.GMOAnswers.com.  Each entrant understands and agrees that any Submissions not complying with these Guidelines and Restrictions will not be approved by Sponsor and may be removed at any time by Sponsor from the Submission Gallery. 

Each entrant acknowledges that other entrants may have used ideas and/or concepts in his or her Submission that may be similar in idea or concept to what is included in entrant’s Submission. Each entrant understands and agrees that he/she shall not have any claim against any other entrant or Sponsor arising out any such similarity or be entitled to any compensation because of any such similarity. 

Sponsor’s decisions are final and binding in all matters relating to this Contest, including, but not limited to, interpretation and application of these Official Rules.  By entering the Contest, entrants fully and unconditionally agree to be bound by these rules and the decisions of the judges, which will be final and binding in all matters relating to the Contest.

5. Judging Panel/Judging Criteria. On or around October 24, 2017, all eligible Submissions will be judged by Sponsor or its representative based on the following equally-weighted judging criteria (“Judging Criteria”): (a) Quality of the Submission; (b) Creativity; and (c) Ability to present biotech as a crucial part of our planet’s health, safety and future.  The three (3) Submissions with the highest score based on the Judging Criteria will be deemed the Contest finalists (each “Finalist”) (subject to confirmation) and the Submission with the highest score based on the Judging Criteria will be deemed the Grand Prize winner (subject to confirmation).  In the event of a tie, the highest score in the Quality of Submission category will determine the Finalist or Grand Prize Winner (as applicable).  As a condition of entering this Sweepstakes, all entrants (including Finalists) must agree to allow their Submission to be included in Sponsor’s compilation video and/or any other materials promoting the Contest (as determined by Sponsor) and hereby agree to sign any documentation acknowledging such rights as determined by Sponsor in its sole and absolute discretion.

6. Prizes. The following prizes will be awarded:

  • One (1) Grand Prize: One (1) Grand Prize winner will receive $500.00 in Amazon gift cards.  Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”) of Grand Prize: $500.00.
  • One (1) First Prize: One (1) First Prize winner will receive $250.00 in Amazon gift cards.  Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”) of First Prize: $250.00.
  • One (1) Second Prize: One (1) Second Prize winner will receive $100.00 in Amazon gift cards.  Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”) of Second Prize: $100.00

Total ARV of all prizes combined: $850.00.  Gift card terms and conditions apply.  Prizes are non-transferable.  No substitutions or cash redemptions.  In the case of unavailability of any prize, Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value.  All taxes and unspecified expenses are the responsibility of winners. 

NOTE THAT AS A CONDITION OF WINNING THE PRIZE, POTENTIAL WINNERS WILL BE ASKED TO SUBMIT BOTH A “SELFIE” AND A BLOG POST IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 7 BELOW. 

7. Notification. Potential winners will be notified by email from [email protected] on or about October 24, 2017 and potential winners will be required to respond to Sponsor’s notification email within three (3) calendar days in order to claim his or her prize.   Potential winners may be required to sign and return, where legal, an Affidavit or Declaration of Eligibility, Liability/Publicity Release and/or rights transfer document within five (5) calendar days of prize notification.  Additionally, potential winners may be required to obtain releases from any and all third parties appearing in their respective Submissions.  If a potential winner is considered a minor in his/her jurisdiction of residence, Affidavit or Declaration of Eligibility, Liability/Publicity and rights transfer document must be signed by his/her parent or legal guardian.  As a condition of awarding the prize, potential winners will be asked to send Sponsor a “selfie” of himself or herself for use in any Sponsor materials promoting the Contest (except where prohibited) and will be asked to write and submit a blog post to https://medium.com/@gmoanswers/ about their video.   If a potential winner does not submit a “selfie” or is not willing to submit a blog post as requested by Sponsor, the opportunity to write a blog post may be forfeited in Sponsor’s sole and absolute discretion and offered to an alternate, which will be the Submission with the next highest score. 

If a potential winner cannot be contacted within three (3) calendar days of first notification attempt, if any prize or prize notification is returned as undeliverable, if a potential winner rejects his/her prize or in the event of noncompliance with these Contest rules and requirements, such prize will be forfeited and may be awarded to the Submission with the next highest score.  Upon prize forfeiture, no compensation will be given. 

8. Conditions. Submissions may be cut, edited, reformatted, rearranged, combined with other materials and/or otherwise modified, in Sponsor’s sole and absolute discretion.  Any and all federal, state and local taxes are the sole responsibility of the winners.  Participation in Contest and/or acceptance of prize constitutes each winner’s permission for Sponsor to use his/her name, address (city and state), likeness, photograph, picture, portrait, voice, biographical information, Submission and/or any statements made by each winner regarding the Contest or Sponsor for advertising and promotional purposes without notice or additional compensation, except where prohibited by law.  By participating, entrants and winners agree to release and hold harmless Sponsor, The Council for Biotechnology Information, GMO Answers.com, Woobox, Facebook Inc., Instagram, Vimeo, and YouTube and their advertising and promotion agencies and their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, representatives, agents, successors, assigns, employees, officers and directors, from any and all liability, for loss, harm, damage, injury, cost or expense whatsoever including without limitation, property damage, personal injury and/or death which may occur in connection with, preparation for, travel to, or participation in Contest, or possession, acceptance and/or use or misuse of prize or participation in any Contest-related activity and for any claims based on publicity rights, defamation, invasion of privacy, copyright infringement, trademark infringement or any other intellectual property-related cause of action.  Entrants who do not comply with these Official Rules, or attempt to interfere with this Contest in any way shall be disqualified. Sponsor is not responsible if Contest cannot take place or if any prize cannot be awarded due to travel cancellations, delays or interruptions due to acts of God, acts of war, natural disasters, weather or acts of terrorism.

9. Additional Terms. Any attempted form of entry other than as set forth in Section 1 above is prohibited; no automatic, programmed; robotic or similar means of entry are permitted. Released Entities are not responsible for technical, hardware, software, telephone or other communications malfunctions, errors or failures of any kind, lost or unavailable network connections, web site, Internet, or ISP availability, unauthorized human intervention, traffic congestion, incomplete or inaccurate capture of entry information (regardless of cause) or failed, incomplete, garbled, jumbled or delayed computer transmissions which may limit one’s ability to enter the Contest, including any injury or damage to participant’s or any other person’s computer relating to or resulting from participating in this Contest or downloading any materials in this Contest.  Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate, modify, extend or suspend this Contest should (in its sole discretion) virus, bugs, non-authorized human intervention, fraud or other causes beyond its control corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness or proper conduct of the Contest. In such case, Sponsor will select the winners from all eligible entries received prior to and/or after (if appropriate) the action taken by Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual it finds, in its sole discretion, to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Contest or web site.  Sponsor may prohibit an entrant from participating in the Contest or winning a prize if, in its sole discretion, it determines that said entrant is attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest by cheating, hacking, deception, or other unfair playing practices (including the use of automated quick entry programs) or intending to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other entrants or Sponsor representatives.

CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, THE SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

In the event of a dispute as to any Facebook account, the authorized account holder of the email address used to register on the platform will be deemed to be the entrant. The “authorized account holder” is the natural person 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.  The potential winner may be required to show proof of being the authorized account holder.

10.  Limitation of Liability; Disclaimer of Warranties.  IN NO EVENT WILL THE RELEASED ENTITIES BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE ANY WEBSITES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS CONTEST AND/OR FROM DOWNLOADING AND/OR PRINTING MATERIAL DOWNLOADED FROM ANY WEBSITES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONTEST. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THIS CONTEST AND ALL PRIZES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS"  WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES SO SOME OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. CHECK YOUR LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY RESTRICTIONS OR LIMITATIONS REGARDING THESE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS.

11. Disputes; Governing Law.  The parties waive all rights to trial in any action or proceeding instituted in connection with these Official Rules, including, without limitation, the Contest. Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to these Official Rules and/or the Contest shall be settled by binding arbitration in accordance with the commercial arbitration rules of the American Arbitration Association. Any such controversy or claim shall be arbitrated on an individual basis, and shall not be consolidated in any arbitration with any claim or controversy of any other party. The arbitration shall be conducted in the State of New York, City of New York.

THESE OFFICIAL RULES AND THE INTERPRETATION OF ITS TERMS SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT REGARD TO ITS CONFLICTS OF LAWS RULES. For any matters which are not subject to arbitration as set forth in these Official Rules and/or in connection with the entering of any judgment on an arbitration award in connection with these Official Rules and/or the Contest, the parties irrevocably submit and consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the state and federal courts located in or closest to the County of New York in the State of New York.  The parties agree not to raise the defense of forum non conveniens.

12.  Use of Data.  Sponsor will be collecting personal data about entrants online, in accordance with its privacy policy.  Please review the Sponsor’s privacy policy at https://gmoanswers.com/privacy-policy.  By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby agree to Sponsor’s collection and usage of their personal information and acknowledge that they have read and accepted Sponsor’s privacy policy. 

13. List of Winners. To obtain a list of winners, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope by November 15, 2017 to: The GMO Innovation Contest Winner’s List, The Council for Biotechnology Information, 1201 Maryland Ave SW, Washington, DC 20024

14. Sponsor. The Council for Biotechnology Information, 1201 Maryland Ave SW, Washington, DC 20024.

THIS PROMOTION IS IN NO WAY SPONSORED, ENDORSED OR ADMINISTERED BY, OR ASSOCIATED WITH, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, VIMEO OR YOUTUBE. YOU ARE PROVIDING YOUR INFORMATION TO SPONSOR AND NOT TO FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, VIMEO OR YOUTUBE.