Official Contest Rules & Terms
VERTICAL MEASURES “Ode to SEO” SCHOLARSHIP CONTEST
WIN A $1,000 SCHOLARSHIP WITH POEM ENTRY OFFICIAL RULES
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY
1. How It Works: Beginning 12:01am Eastern Time ("ET") on 02/01/2010, interested parties can submit an online form and include a poem using at minimum three keywords provided. (Any poems with less than three specified keywords will be disqualified.) Contest submissions will be judged first by the Vertical Measures team to choose the favorite 5 and then be judged by participating site visitors between 2/22/2010 to 2/24/2010 to determine the Grand Prize and Second Place winner.
2. Eligibility: This promotion is open only to students currently enrolled in high school (grade 9 or above), college, or graduate school (subject to verification by school transcripts). Employees of Vertical Measures, its affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising, and their immediate family members are not eligible. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply. Void where prohibited by law.
3. How to Enter the Poetry Scholarship Contest: During the promotion period, visit http://www.verticalmeasures.com/ode-to-seo/ and follow the instructions to enter your poem. Your submission should contain a poem of ANY length, containing three of the keywords indicated. If Vertical Measures deems that the poetry submission does not comply with the Official Rules of the Poetry Scholarship Contest, entrant’s video will not appear on www.verticalmeasures.com or be eligible to participate in the Poetry Scholarship Contest. The poem can be of any length, and must be in written form only.The submission cannot contain any unacceptable language, or display any commercial/corporate advertising (including but not limited to corporate logos, brand names, slogans, political, personal and religious statements) and they must not contain defamatory statements (including words or symbols that are widely considered offensive to individuals of a certain race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic group); they must not include threats to any person, place, business, or group; they must not invade privacy or other rights of any person, firm, entity, and they must not in any other way violate applicable federal, state, or local laws and regulations as determined by Sponsor, in its sole discretion. Submissions may not contain indecent behavior, profanities or obscenities, including but not limited to nudity or pornography, and may not in any way disparage persons or organizations associated with Sponsor; sponsor/judges reserve the right in their sole discretion to disqualify any entry that, in their sole opinion, refers, depicts or in any way reflects negatively upon the Sponsor, the Contest or any other person or entity, or does not comply with these requirements or these Official Rules. Submissions must be suitable for presentation in a public forum, in sole determination of judges and/or Sponsor. If the submission mentions any person(s) other than the entrant, by entering this Poetry Scholarship Contest, entrant agrees to receive permission from other person(s) featured or quoted in the submission (or from parent/legal guardian if other person(s) featured are considered minors in their state of residence) for Sponsor to use their likenesses for publicity including posting on website(s) and can make written copies of such permissions available to the Sponsor upon request. Additionally, if entrant is considered a minor in his/her state of residence, entry will be disqualified. Poems must be in English, meet the technical specifications to be uploaded and received by 11:59pm ET on 2/19/2010 to be eligible. Limit one entry per email address throughout the duration of the Poetry Scholarship Contest. If more than one poetry entry is received per person, only the first such entry will be eligible for the Poetry Scholarship Contest.
4. Poetry Scholarship Contest Judging: All eligible entries will be judged first by Vertical Measures Team and then by the site’s participating visitors, whose decisions are final to determine the Grand Prize and Second Place winner.
5. Prize & Approximate Retail Value: (1) Grand Prize – $1,000 scholarship OR Apple iPad Tablet 64GB Wifi Model (Retail Value $699 plus applicable state taxes and shipping, available in March 2010).(2) Runner-Up Prize – $250.00 Scholarship. Prizes consists of only the items as described above.
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General Rules: Potential Grand Prize and Second Place winner may be required to complete an Affidavit of Eligibility certifying that the entry submitted is winner’s own original work and he/she holds all rights to the entry, that the entry has not been previously published, has not won a previous prize or award and that winner followed the Official Rules of the Contest. Additionally, potential winner will be required to complete a Release of Liability, Prize Acceptance Form and, if legally permissible, a Publicity Release. If contest winner is legally a minor (under the age of 18) a parent or legal guardian will be required to sign on behalf of the minor child. All forms must be received within 10 days of attempted notification. Noncompliance within this time period or return of any prize/prize notification as undeliverable will result in disqualification and an alternate winner will be selected. Winner will be notified by email. No substitution or transfer of prize by winner permitted. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute prize of equal or greater value. All federal, state, and local taxes are the sole responsibility of winner. By accepting prize, winner (or parent/legal guardian if winner is a minor) agree to release and hold Sponsor, its respective directors, officers, employees and assigns, harmless from and against any and all claims and liability arising out of use of prize, including The Scholarship Fraud Prevention Act of 2000 and applicable I.R.S. tax code provisions. Winner assume all liability for any injury or damage caused, or claimed to be caused, by participation in this promotion or use or redemption of any prize. Acceptance of prize constitutes permission for the Sponsor and its agencies to use winner’s name and/or likeness for purposes of advertising and trade without further compensation, unless prohibited by law. Entrants agree to release, discharge and hold harmless Sponsor, its respective directors, officers, employees and assigns, harmless from and against any and all liability and damages. By participating in this promotion, entrants agree to be bound by the Official Rules and the judges’ decisions, which are final. In addition, entrant and/or their legal guardian agree to comply with all federal and state tax guidelines, pursuant to section 4946 of the I.R.S. tax code, chapter 26. In the event there is a discrepancy or inconsistency between disclosures or other statements contained in any promotional materials and the terms and conditions of the Official Rules, the Official Rules shall prevail, govern and control. All material submitted becomes the sole property of Sponsor and will not be returned. Sponsor is not responsible for any typographical or other error in the printing of the offer, administration of the promotion or in the announcement of the prize. In no event will more than the stated number of prizes be awarded.
Sponsor: Vertical Measures, LLC
Notice To Online Entrants: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN INDIVIDUAL TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THIS PROMOTION IS A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS, AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES FROM ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. Not responsible for faulty, incorrect announcements of any kind, technical hardware or software failures of any kind including any injury or damage to any person’s computer related to or resulting from participating in or experiencing any materials in connection with the promotion, lost or unavailable network connections, or failed, incomplete, garbled or delayed computer transmission that may limit a user’s ability to participate in the promotion. Sponsor reserves the right to cancel or modify the promotion if fraud, misconduct or technical failures destroy the integrity of the program; or if a computer virus, bug, or other technical problem corrupts the administration or security of the program as determined by Sponsor/judging agency/administrator, in their sole discretion. In the event of termination, a notice will be posted online and contest entries will be judged from among all eligible entries received prior to termination. Any damage made to the Web Site will be the responsibility of the authorized e-mail account holder of the e-mail address submitted at the time of entry. Proof of submitting entries will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by Sponsor. Any use of robotic, automatic, programmed or the like methods of participation will void all such submissions by such methods. Sponsor reserves the right to prohibit the participation of an individual if fraud or tampering is suspected or if the account holder fails to comply with any requirement of participation as stated herein or with any provision in these Official Rules.
