Contest Rules
OPEN ONLY TO LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE 50 UNITED STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND WHO ARE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OF AGE OR THE AGE OF MAJORITY IN THEIR STATE OF RESIDENCE, WHICHEVER IS GREATER, AS OF THE DATE OF ENTRY. VOID ELSEWHERE AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE OR PAYMENT DOES NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.
1. ELIGIBILITY:
Open only to individuals who are legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, 18 years of age or older or the age of majority in their state of residence, whichever is greater. The following individuals are not eligible: employees, contractors, directors and officers of H. J. Heinz Company, L. P. ("Sponsor"), Promotion Execution Partners, Ferrara & Company, Emanate, Kick Apps, Promotion Fulfillment Partners, LLC, and each of their respective parent, subsidiaries and affiliated companies, distributors, web design, advertising, and fulfillment agencies and other individuals and entities involved in the administration, development, fulfillment and execution of this Contest (collectively, "Sponsor & Others"), and the immediate family members (spouse, parent, child, sibling and spouse or "step" of each) and those living in the same households of each.
2. BRIEF OVERVIEW OF PROMOTION:
The Weight Watchers® Smart Ones® “Share Your Story Contest” (“Contest”) starts on 7/15/09 at 6:00 P.M. ET and ends on 4/30/10 at 11:59:59 P.M. ET (“Contest Entry Period”). All entries (“Submissions”) must be uploaded to www.eatyourbest.com/community (“Contest Website”) no later than 4/30/10 at 11:59:59 P.M. ET. Please be aware that your copy, photos and videos may be publicly displayed on the Contest Website. To participate in the Contest, a community member (“Member”) as defined below must submit a blog post on the Contest Website, which may include photos, videos and copy up to 300 words in length, in which the member shares their weight loss story according to the instructions and judging criteria stated in these Official Rules. (Be sure to carefully read these Official Rules as you will be bound by them.) The twelve (12) Submissions selected by the panel of Contest judges may be posted on the Contest Website for public view. Twelve (12) Winners will receive a Flip Video Camcorder. Additionally, each Winner’s weight loss story may be featured on eatyourbest.com as a “Featured Member”.
3. TO ENTER:
To enter, a Member must go to www.eatyourbest.com/community during the Contest Entry Period, and follow the instructions to register, post his/her Submission, and click on the “Share Your Story” link. Submissions must be received no later than 4/30/10 at 11:59:59 P.M. ET or the member’s submission will not be entered into the Contest. Before uploading a Submission, each member must indicate his/her agreement that s/he has read, understands and agrees to be bound by these Official Rules. Remember: Once a Submission has been posted, it may not be changed or edited. Be sure to save your Contest Submission in its original format after uploading it to the Contest Website. Submissions become the property of Sponsor and will not be returned. Limit of one (1) entry per person/e-mail address. Multiple entrants are not permitted to share the same e-mail address. Any attempt by any entrant to obtain more than the stated number of entries by using multiple/different e-mail addresses, identities, registrations and logins, or any other methods will void that entrant's entries and that entrant will be disqualified.
4. REPRESENTATIONS & WARRANTIES AS CONDITIONS OF ENTRY:
Submitter by registering and uploading a Submission, represents and warrants that: (A) s/he has the legal capacity to enter this Contest; (B) the Submission has not been entered in or won previous contests or awards; and (C) the Submission has not been published or distributed previously in any media. Additionally, each Submitter represents and warrants that the member owns all rights and title to the Submission and all the Submission Elements. Submitter further represents and warrants that the member has obtained permission from each person whose name, image, likeness or voice ("Likeness") is included in the Submission, and that such person(s) have granted Submitter all necessary rights to use the person's Likeness as described in these rules, and that Submitter can and will make written copies of such permissions available to the Sponsor upon request. By uploading a Submission, a Submitter, irrevocably grants Sponsor and its affiliates, legal representatives, assigns, agents and licensees, the unconditional, unlimited and perpetual right and permission to reproduce, encode, store, copy, transmit, publish, post, broadcast, display, publicly perform, adapt, exhibit and/or otherwise use or reuse the Submitter's Submission and Submission Elements, including, but not limited to, the recording and the performances contained therein (in each case, as submitted or as edited/modified in any way by the Sponsor, in its sole discretion), as well as to use (or not use) Submitter's and the Family Members’ names, likenesses, photographs, and/or statements ("Bio Information") in this Contest in any and all media without limitation, worldwide and throughout perpetuity, without additional compensation, notice to, or approval from Submitter, or any other party. Each Submitter understands and agrees that although it has granted Sponsor to use its Submission as stated hereinabove, Sponsor, in its sole discretion, may elect not to so use any said Submission. EACH SUBMITTER REPRESENTS, UNDERSTANDS AND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT A SUBMITTER WILL NOT BE PAID FOR OR RECEIVE ANY FORM OF COMPENSATION OR ROYALTY OTHER THAN POTENTIALLY THE PRIZES STATED HEREIN IN EXCHANGE FOR GRANTING SPONSOR THESE RIGHTS OR FOR ANY SUBSEQUENT USE OF SUCH SUBMISSION BY SPONSOR. Each Submitter waives all intellectual property rights, privacy/publicity rights or other legal or moral rights that might limit or preclude Sponsor’s use of the respective Submission and agrees not to sue or assert any claim against Sponsor & Others arising out of or connected to the use of the Submission or Bio Information. Each Submitter further agrees to indemnify and hold Sponsor & Others harmless from any and all claims, damages, expenses, costs (including reasonable attorneys' fees) and liabilities (including settlements), brought or asserted by any third party against any of them due to or arising out of the respective Submission, or the Submitter's conduct in creating a Submission or other actions in connection with this Contest, including but not limited to claims for trademark infringement, copyright infringement; violation of an individual's right of publicity or right of privacy; or defamation. Each Submitter further agrees to release and hold harmless Sponsor & Others from any and all claims that any advertising subsequently produced, presented, and/or prepared by or on behalf of Sponsor infringes Submitter's rights with regard to any Submission Elements, contained in the Submission. Although all Submissions will be reviewed by Sponsor before being judged, posted or published; the posting or publication of a Submission does not mean the Submission has been deemed to be in compliance with these Official Rules. Submissions that do not comply with these Official Rules or that otherwise contain prohibited or inappropriate content as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion will be disqualified and, if posted on any websites related to this Contest, removed there from.
5. CONTENT REQUIREMENTS AND SUBMISSION FORMAT:
(A) Creative Objective: The creative objective of the Submission is to create a Submission that will deliver the weight loss story of our community members, and motive other members to share their stories. (B) Content Requirements: The Submission must be a minimum of fifty (50) words and a maximum of one hundred fifty (300) words in length, including any tags, and must be primarily in English. Submission may not contain or refer to any food or beverage brands other than Weight Watchers® Smart Ones®. All Submission Elements used must be either (i) entirely original, or (ii) be in the public domain. Use of any elements, including without limitation music, audio, speech/voiceovers, video, stills, visuals, or other materials that are not original, in the public domain, or downloaded from the Web Site may result in disqualification of Submission, in Sponsor's sole discretion. A Submission must not contain, mention, refer or otherwise allude to the name or logo of any retailer, manufacturer, brand, product, person, company or character nor may it contain, mention, refer or otherwise allude to any obscene, lewd, violent, illegal, offensive, disparaging or inappropriate words, abbreviations, language, signs, products, symbols, political, personal and/or religious references or statements, (including but not limited to words or symbols that are widely considered offensive to individuals of a certain race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or socioeconomic group; must not promote alcohol, illegal drugs or tobacco (or the use of any of the foregoing); or in any way reflect negatively upon the Sponsor as determined by the Sponsor in its sole discretion. All Submissions will be reviewed before being posted or judged; however, despite a Submitter’s receipt of an email from Sponsor confirming acceptance of his/her Submission, posting of a Submission does not mean the Submission has been deemed to be in compliance with these Rules. Submissions that do not comply with these Official Rules or that otherwise contain prohibited or inappropriate content as determined by the Sponsor in its sole discretion at anytime during the Promotion Period, will be disqualified and will not be considered for a Prize. (C) Technical Requirements: The maximum file size for any Submission to be uploaded to the Contest Website is 100 MB, and must be provided in one of the following file formats: .flv, .avi, .mov, .mpg, wmv, .asf, .mpeg, .mp4, or .3gp.
6. SELECTION OF WINNERS:
Judging will commence as Submissions are received and will be completed on or around the fifteenth of each month beginning August 15, 2009 and ending May 15, 2010, at which time the highest scoring entry received as of that time will be declared the winning entry for that judging period. Two winning entries will be selected in the months of (June & July 2010). Non-winning entries from one month will be eligible to win in subsequent months, but will not be re-judged each month. Submissions will be judged by a panel of qualified judges (“Contest Judges”) comprised of Sponsor’s employees. The Contest Judges will employ the following criteria in evaluating and rating the Submissions: (i) Originality – 25%; (ii) Overall appeal – 25%; (iii) Likelihood to motivate people to use lose weight/start a healthier lifestyle -25%; and Use of key messaging – 25%. The twelve (12) Submissions that are selected based on the above criteria will be designated as the Twelve Winning Submissions. In the event of a tie in any month, the tie will be broken based on the highest score received for Criterion (i) Originality, and continuing thereafter to each other Criterion above in order, as needed to break the tie. If a tie still remains, the tied Submissions will be evaluated and ranked by a Contest Judge not previously involved in the judging. Potential Grand Prize Winners will be notified by email, phone, and/or courier within approximately five (5) business days of each drawing. The Submitters of the potential Top Twelve winners will be required to irrevocably assign and transfer to Sponsor any and all rights, title and interest in their respective Submission, including, without limitation, all copyrights, and agree to waive all moral rights in that Submission. The Submitters of the Top Twelve Winning Submissions will be required to complete, sign and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Liability Release, Copyright Assignment and, where lawful, a Publicity Release and return these properly signed documents to Sponsor in the pre-paid, pre-addressed mailer provided to Submitter within 5 days of date notice was sent or their potential winning status will be forfeited and an alternate winner may be selected. Notification of Winners status must be kept confidential until their Submissions are publicly revealed by Sponsor. All Top twelve winners are subject to verification, including without limitation, verification of eligibility, compliance with these Official Rules and completion of all required documents (described below). Additionally, the potential Winners agree that Sponsor may conduct a confidential background check as described in Rule 7 below. Entrants agree that the Sponsor has the sole right to decide all matters and disputes arising from this Contest and that all decisions of Sponsor are final and binding.
7. PRIZES: GRAND PRIZE (12):
Twelve (12) Winners will receive a flip video camera (Approximate Retail Value: $250.00). TOTAL ARV OF ALL PRIZES: $3,000. Prizes may not be redeemed for cash and they are neither transferable nor substitutable, except at the sole discretion of the Sponsor. The potential Winners may also be required to sign additional documents, as deemed necessary by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to require a potential Winner to submit to a confidential background check to confirm eligibility as a condition of awarding the Prize to help ensure that the use of any such person in advertising or publicity for the Contest will not bring Sponsor & Others into public disrepute, contempt, scandal or ridicule or reflect unfavorably on the Contest as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. All Prizes will be awarded provided that, in Sponsor’s good faith judgment and sole determination, there are a sufficient number of eligible and suitable Submissions. LIMIT: Only one (1) Prize per Family will be awarded.
8. LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY/RELEASE/ INTERNET:
No liability or responsibility is assumed by Sponsor or Contest Parties resulting from any user's participation in or attempt to participate in the Contest or ability or inability to upload or download any information in connection with participating in the Contest. No responsibility or liability is assumed by the Sponsor or Contest Parties for technical problems or technical malfunction arising in connection with any of the following occurrences which may affect the operation of the Contest: hardware or software errors; faulty computer, telephone, cable, satellite, network, electronic, wireless or Internet connectivity or other online communication problems; errors or limitations of any Internet service providers, servers, hosts or providers; garbled, jumbled or faulty data transmissions; failure of any e-mail transmissions to be sent or received; lost, late, delayed or intercepted e-mail transmissions; inaccessibility of the Contest Website in whole or in part for any reason; traffic congestion on the Internet or the Contest Website; unauthorized human or non-human intervention of the operation of the Contest, including without limitation, unauthorized tampering, hacking, theft, virus, bugs, worms; or destruction of any aspect of the Contest, or loss, miscount, misdirection, inaccessibility or unavailability of an email account used in connection with the Contest. Sponsor & Others are not responsible for any typographical errors in the announcement of Prizes or these Official Rules, or any inaccurate or incorrect data contained in the Contest Website. The use of any robotic, automatic, macro, programmed, third party or like methods in this Contest are prohibited and the use or attempted use of such will void any attempted participation effected by such methods, may result in the cancellation, termination, or modification of the Contest and the disqualification of the individual utilizing the same. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEBSITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE PROMOTION IS A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS. SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, THE SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES OR OTHER REMEDIES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON (S) RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ATTEMPT TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. Use of the Contest Website is at user's own risk. Sponsor & Others are not responsible for any personal injury or property damage or losses of any kind which may be sustained to user's or any other person's computer equipment resulting from participation in the Contest, use of the Contest Website or the download of any information from the Contest Website. By participating in the Contest, the Submitter releases Sponsor & Others from any and all claims, damages or liabilities arising from or relating to participation in the Contest. By accepting a prize in the Contest, Winners agree that Sponsor & Others shall not be liable for any loss or injury resulting from participation in the Contest, or acceptance or use of any prize. Sponsor & Others are not liable in the event that any portion of the Contest is cancelled due to weather, fire, strike, acts of war or terrorism, or any other condition beyond their control (a "Force Majeure Event"). As stated above, a Submitter shall be regarded as the official representative acting on behalf of his/her Family and Family Members, is authorized to accept the Prize on behalf of the Family and Family Members, and will be the arbiter of any disputes between and/or among Family Members relating to a Submission or participation in this Contest. Sponsor & Others are not liable for any disputes between a Submitter and his/her respective Family or among Family Members as relates to a Submission or participation in this Contest. If for any reason the Contest is not capable of running as planned, including without limitation, infection by computer viruses, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or any other causes which corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper conduct of the Contest, Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion to cancel, modify or terminate the Contest and proceed in a manner it deems fair and reasonable, including the selection of winners from among eligible Submissions received prior to such cancellation, modification or termination. Further, Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual deemed to be (a) tampering or attempting to tamper with the entry, judging or voting process or the operation of the Contest; (b) violating the Official Rules; or (c) acting in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner, or with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other person.
9. PRIVACY POLICY:
Any personally identifiable information collected during an entrant's participation in this Promotion will be collected by Sponsor and used by Sponsor, its affiliates, agents and marketers for purposes of the proper administration and fulfillment of the Promotion as described in these Official Rules and in accordance with Sponsor's Privacy Policy as such is stated at www.heinz.com/privacy.aspx.
10. PUBLICITY RIGHTS:
By accepting a Prize, Prize Winners agree to allow Sponsor and/or Sponsor's designee the perpetual right to use their name, biographical information, photos and/or likeness, and statements for promotion, trade, commercial, advertising and publicity purposes, at any time or times, in all media now known or hereafter discovered, worldwide, including but not limited to on the World Wide Web and Internet, without notice, review or approval and without additional compensation except where prohibited by law.
11. GENERAL:
By entering this Contest, participants agree to abide by and accept these Official Rules. Participants waive any right to claim ambiguity in these Official Rules. In no event will more Prizes be awarded than are stated in these Official Rules. In the event that due to technical, mechanical or other errors, there are more potential Prize Winners than are stated in these Official Rules, a random drawing among the claimants will be held to determine the Game Prize Winners. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply. In the event of a dispute as to the identity of a winner based on an email address, the winning entry will be declared made by the authorized account holder of the email address submitted at time of entry. "Authorized account holder" is defined as the natural person who is assigned to an email address by an Internet access provider, on-line service provider or other organization (e.g., business, educational institution, etc.) that is responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted email address. The interpretation of these Official Rules shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Any and all disputes will be resolved individually, without resort to class action, in the appropriate courts in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania exclusively, and subject to the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Should there be a conflict between the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and any other laws, the conflict will be resolved in favor of the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. All federal, state, and local laws apply. Void in PR and where prohibited by law.
12. WINNERS LIST:
For a list of the Grand Prize Winners, visit www.eatyourbest.com/community, by 5/30/10.
These Weight Watchers Smart Ones “Share Your Story Contest” Rules may not be re-printed or republished in whole or in part without the prior written consent of H.J. Heinz Company, L.P.
Sponsor: H. J. Heinz Company, L.P. 357 6th Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 ©2010
Hello! My name is Bridgette Wilson. I am committed to a new way of life and a new way of eating. I love my new life and would love to share my passion with others. I started my journey January 3, 2007, which resulted in a 92 pound weight loss. I have maintained my current weight loss for two years (since March 2008). Currently, I am pursuing my Nutrition Science degree. You can read all about me and my journey in my blog post - "Bridgette Wilson - The Journey".