Name: Al Jazeera Innovation Challenge
Start: 2014-08-18T16:00:00.000-04:00
End: 2014-10-15T10:00:00.000-04:00
Location: Al Jazeera Innovation Challenge

Al Jazeera Innovation Challenge Official Rules – (the “Official Rules”)

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

Challenge Name: Al Jazeera Innovation Challenge (the “Challenge”)
Challenge Website: http://aljazeera.challengepost.com (the “Challenge Website”)

1. POSTER [& ADMINISTRATOR]

Poster (the “Poster”): Al Jazeera Media Network (“Al Jazeera”), P.O. Box 23123, Doha, Qatar
Al Jazeera (Poster) is the only sponsor and entity responsible for the Challenge and is contributing all funding.

Administrator (the “Administrator”): Al Jazeera Media Network (“Al Jazeera”), P.O. Box 23123, Doha, Qatar.

2. DATES AND TIMING

Challenge Submission Period: August 18 (10:00pm Arabia Standard Time) – October 15, 2014 (5:00pm Arabia Standard Time) (the “Challenge Submission Period”)

Judging Period: October 16, 2014 (9:00am Arabia Standard Time) – October 30, 2014 (5:00pm Arabia Standard Time) (the “Judging Period”)

Public Voting Period: October 16, 2014 (9:00am Arabia Standard Time) – October 30, 2014 (5:00pm Arabia Standard Time) (the “Judging Period”)

Winners Announced: On or around November 6, 2014 (5:00pm Arabia Standard Time) at the Challenge Website.

Administrator and its server will be the official timekeeper for the Challenge.

3. ELIGIBILITY

A. The Challenge IS open to:

individuals who are at least 15 years of age
teams of eligible individuals
organizations (including corporations, not-for-profit corporations and other nonprofit organizations, limited liability companies, partnerships, and other legal entities) that exist and have been organized or incorporated at the time of entry, and employ no more than 10 people (“Organizations”)

(the above are collectively, “Makers”)

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

If a team or organization is entering the Challenge, they must appoint and authorize one individual (the “Representative”) to represent, act, and enter a Submission, on their behalf. The Representative must meet the eligibility requirements above. By entering a Submission on the Site on behalf of a team or organization, you represent and warrant that you are the Representative authorized to act on behalf of your team or organization.

B. The Challenge IS NOT open to:

individuals who are residents of, or Organizations domiciled in, a country, state, province or territory where the laws of the State of Qatar or local law prohibits participating or receiving a prize in the Challenge. If the challenge is prohibited by local laws in your jurisdiction, you should not enter.
organizations that employ more than 10 people (“Medium and Large Organizations”)
organizations involved with the design, production, paid promotion, execution, or distribution of the Challenge, including ChallengePost and Al Jazeera.
employees, representatives and agents of such organizations who are involved in the design, production, paid promotion, execution, or distribution of the Challenge, and all members of their immediate family or household*
any other individual involved with the design, production, paid promotion, execution, or distribution of the Challenge, and each member of their immediate family or household*
any Judge (defined below), or company or individual that employs a Judge
any parent company, subsidiary, or other affiliate of any organization described above

*The members of an individual’s immediate family include the individual’s spouse, children and stepchildren, parents and stepparents, and siblings and stepsiblings. The members of an individual’s household include any other person that shares the same residence as the individual for at least three (3) months out of the year.

4. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Makers must do the following to participate in the Challenge:

Register for the Challenge on the Challenge Website by clicking the “Register” button. Registration is free. This will enable you receive important updates and access the “Enter a Submission” page.
Complete and enter all of the required fields on the “Enter a Submission” page of the Challenge Website (each a “Submission”) during the Challenge Submission Period, and follow the requirements below.

A. Language Requirements

All Submission materials must be in English or, if not in English, the Maker must provide an English translation of the demonstration video, text description, and testing instructions as well as all other materials submitted. The judging will be based on the English version and Sponsor is not responsible if the text is not properly translated into English.

B. Application Requirements

(i) What to Create: Makers must create working software, a mature prototype, or hardware with a software component, that enables the creation and/or consumption of nonlinear narratives or media (each an “Application”).

(ii) Categories: Applications may include features that enable nonlinear storytelling, or the consumption of nonlinear narratives, or both. The scope of these features is at the discretion of the Maker and what Maker decides will achieve the best result. There will be no division of submissions into separate categories for consideration for prizes.

(iii) License: In the spirit of Open Innovation, we require that any Applications written for the Challenge are licensed by Makers under one of the approved open source licenses from the Open Source Initiative. We recommend the licenses listed under "Popular Licenses."

(iv) Code Repository: Software and code supporting an Application should be made available to the public via code repositories on GitHub or Google Code, or an equivalent service.

(v) Functionality: The Application must be capable of being successfully installed and running consistently on the platform for which it is intended, and must function as depicted in the video and/or expressed in the text description.

(vi) Platforms: A submitted Application must run on at least one of the following:

a smartphone or tablet (Android, iOS, or Windows Phone only)
a mobile or desktop web browser
other third party hardware including, but not limited to, wearable technology or open source hardware
proprietary hardware created by the Maker

(vii) New & Existing: Applications must be either newly created by the Maker or, if the Application existed prior to the Challenge Submission Period, must include new features and functionality, added after the start of Challenge Submission Period, which include features specifically targeted to the topic of the Challenge.

(viii) Testing: The Maker must make the Application available free of charge and without any restriction, for testing, evaluation and use by the Poster, Administrator and judges during the Challenge and until the Judging Period ends. If the Application includes software that runs on proprietary or third party hardware that is not widely available to the public, including software running on devices or wearable technology other than smartphones, tablets, or desktop computers, the Maker should prepare thorough and complete demonstration materials such as a video of the Application in use. In such a case, the Administrator or Poster has the right to request access to the Application in person or via any reasonable manner to verify any criteria about the Application.

For Applications running on smartphones, tablets, or desktop computers, you can make your Application available using one of the following methods:

a. Android Applications: Upload an .apk file on the Enter a Submission form or provide a link for downloading the Application in the “Testing Instructions” field on the Enter a Submission form.

b. iOS Applications:

If your Application is available on the iTunes App Store provide a link in the “Testing Instructions” field on the Enter a Submission form. If you charge a fee for downloading your Application, you must provide a promo code.
If your Application is not yet publicly available on the iTunes App Store, you must send it to the Poster and Administrator for evaluation such that it can be installed on the Poster and/or Administrator’s devices. Details can be provided for this submission method if required.

c. Windows Phone applications: Upload an .xap file in the Enter a Submission form or provide a link for downloading your Application in the “Testing Instructions” field on the Enter a Submission form.

d. Web/Mobile Web: Provide a link for accessing your Application on the “Testing Instructions” field on the Enter a Submission form.

(vi) Public Distribution: The Maker may make the Application available to the public via a website or online store, but is not required to do so.

(vii) Multiple Submissions: A Maker may submit more than one Submission, however, each Submission must be unique, as determined by the Poster and/or the Administrator.

(viii) SDKs, APIs, & Data: Applications may integrate SDKs, APIs and data, provided the Maker is authorized to use them.

(ix) Intellectual Property: Your Submission must: (a) be your (or your team or Organization’s) original work product; (b) be solely owned by you, your team, or your Organization 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 Maker may contract with a third party for technical assistance to create the Submission provided the Submission components are solely the Maker’s work product and the result of the Maker’s ideas and creativity, and the Maker owns all rights to them. A Maker may submit a Submission that includes the use of open source software or hardware, provided the Maker complies with applicable open source licenses and, as part of the Submission, creates software that enhances and builds upon the features and functionality included in the underlying open source product. By entering the Challenge you represent, warrant, and agree that your Submission meets these requirements.

C. Text Description, Image, and Video Requirements

(i) Text Description: The text description should explain the features and functionality of your Application and how it could be used to create or consume nonlinear narratives in media. The text description should also explain how the Application meets the Judging Criteria listed below. Submissions may be disqualified if they do not function as expressed in the Text Description provided at registration. Failure to do so could result in disqualification from the Challenge.

(ii) Images: The image(s) should be photographs or screenshots of your working Application.

(iii) Video: The video portion of the Submission, if included:

a. should be less than five (5) minutes;

b. must include footage that clearly explains the Application’s features and functionality through a comprehensive demonstration; and

c. must be uploaded to YouTube or Vimeo and a link to the video must be provided on the submission form on the Challenge Website.

5. SUBMISSION RIGHTS

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

B. Poster Rights: By entering the Challenge, you grant to the Poster, Administrator, and any other third parties acting on the Poster’s behalf, a royalty-free, non-exclusive, worldwide perpetual license to display publicly and use for promotional purposes the Submission, in perpetuity. This license includes, but is not limited to, posting or linking to the Submission on Poster’s, Administrator’s, and partners’ websites and applications, including the Challenge Website, and display and promotion of the Submission in any other media, worldwide.

C. Submission Display: The following Submission components may be displayed to the public: name, description, images, video URL, website, URL, team members (username only), the Submission category and platform, and submitter type. Other Submission materials may be viewed by the Poster, Administrator, and Judges for screening and evaluation.

D. Makers represent and warrant that the Poster, Administrator, and Challenge partners are free to use Makers’ Submission in the manner described above, as provided or as modified by the Administrator, without obtaining permission or license from any third party and without any compensation to Makers.

6. JUDGING CRITERIA

A. Criteria: Eligible Submissions will be evaluated by a panel of judges selected by the Poster (the “Judges”), and scored using the following equally weighted criteria (the “Judging Criteria”):

(i) Innovation (Evaluates the degree of innovation present in the solution, with a focus on both completely new ideas and also new implementations or combinations of technology);

(ii) Functionality (Measures the level of functionality found in the solution, including completed or simulated feature sets, back-end behaviors, and integrations with other systems);

(iii) Design (Includes visual and interaction assessments, judged according to the impact and appeal of the solution's final design); and

(iv) Potential (Considers the eventual impact made possible by the solution, including social, economic, academic, and environmental potential).

The Maker(s) that are eligible for a Prize, and whose Submissions earn the highest overall scores based on the applicable Judging Criteria, will become potential winners of that Prize.

B. Submission Review: JUDGES are not required to test the Application and may choose to judge based solely on the text description, IMAGES and video provided in the Submission.

C. Tie Breaker: For each Prize listed in Section 7 below, if two or more Submissions are tied, the tied Submission with the highest score in the first applicable criterion listed above will be considered the higher scoring Submission. In the event any ties remain, this process will be repeated, as needed, by comparing the tied Submissions’ scores on the next applicable criterion. If two or more Submissions are tied on all applicable criteria, the panel of Judges will vote on the tied Submissions.

7. PRIZES

A. First Place: The winner of the First Place prize will receive a cash award of $10,000 and will be invited to a large innovation event held by Al Jazeera in Doha, Qatar, with travel and expenses paid. The winning solution will also be considered for incubation with Al Jazeera, including the possibility of further funding.

B. Second Place: The winner of the Second Place prize will receive a cash award of $7,000 and will be invited to a large innovation event held by Al Jazeera in Doha, Qatar, with travel and expenses paid.

C. Third Place: The winner of the Third Place prize will receive a cash award of $5,000.

D. People's Choice: The winner of the People's Choice prize, as determined by Public Voting**, will receive a cash award of $3,000.

**Please review the ChallengePost Terms of Service at http://ChallengePost.com/terms for voting rules.

8. VERIFICATION OF POTENTIAL WINNERS

A. Verification Requirement: THE AWARD OF A PRIZE TO A POTENTIAL WINNER IS SUBJECT TO VERIFICATION OF THE IDENTITY, QUALIFICATIONS AND ROLE OF THE POTENTIAL WINNER IN THE CREATION OF THE SUBMISSION. The final decision to designate a winner shall be made by the Poster and/or Administrator.

B. Required Forms: Potential winners will be notified using the email address associated with the ChallengePost account used to enter the Submission (the submitter is the “Representative” in the case of a team or Organization). In order to receive a Prize, the potential winner (including all participating team members in the case of a team or Organization) will be required to sign and return to the Poster or Administrator, affidavit(s) of eligibility (or a similar verification document) and liability/publicity release(s), and any applicable tax forms (“Required Forms”).

Deadline for Returning Required Forms: ten (10) business days after the Required Forms are sent.

C. Disqualification: The Poster and/or Administrator may deem a potential winner (or participating team members) ineligible to win if:

(i) the potential winner’s Representative or any participating member does not respond to multiple emails or fails to sign and return the Required Forms by the deadline listed above, or responds and rejects the Prize;

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

(iii) the Submission or the potential winner, or any member of a potential winner’s team or Organization, is disqualified for any other reason.

In the event of a disqualification, the Poster and/or Administrator may award the applicable Prize to an alternate potential winner.

9. PRIZE DISTRIBUTION

A. Substitutions & Changes: The Poster has the right to make a Prize substitution of equivalent or greater value. The Poster will not award a Prize if there are no eligible Submissions entered in the applicable Category or the Challenge, or if there are no eligible Makers or Submissions for a specific Prize.

B. Prize Delivery: A monetary Prize will be transferred to the winning Maker’s bank account after receipt of the Required Forms and any necessary information is received and processed by Poster. It will be the responsibility of the winning Maker’s Representative to allocate the Prize among their team or Organization’s participating members, as the Representative deems appropriate.

C. Prize Delivery Timeframe: Within 45 days of the Poster or Administrator’s receipt of the Required Forms and all necessary information.

D. Taxes: Winners (and in the case of team or Organization, all participating members) are responsible for reporting and paying all applicable taxes in their jurisdiction of residence (federal, state/provincial/territorial and local). Winners may be required to provide certain information to facilitate receipt of the award, including completing and submitting any tax or other forms necessary for compliance with applicable withholding and reporting requirements. Winners are also responsible for complying with foreign exchange and banking regulations in their respective jurisdictions and reporting the receipt of the Prize to relevant government departments/agencies, if necessary. The Poster, Administrator, and/or Prize provider reserve the right to withhold a portion of the prize amount to comply with the tax laws of the State of Qatar, or those of a winner’s jurisdiction.

10. ENTRY CONDITIONS AND RELEASE

A. By entering the Challenge, you (and, if you are entering on behalf of a team or Organization, each participating members) agree(s) to the following:

(i) The relationship between you, the Maker, and the Poster and Administrator, is not a confidential, fiduciary, or other special relationship.

(ii) You will be bound by and comply with these Official Rules and the decisions of the Poster, Administrator, and/or the Challenge Judges which are binding and final in all matters relating to the Challenge.

(iii) You release, indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Poster, Administrator, Promotion Entities, and their respective parent, subsidiary, and affiliated companies, the Prize suppliers and any other organizations responsible for sponsoring, fulfilling, administering, advertising or promoting the Challenge, 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 Maker’s entry, creation of Submission or entry of a Submission, participation in the Challenge, 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 the Submission as authorized or licensed by these Official Rules.

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

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

(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 Challenge Website;

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

(iv) technical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Challenge 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 Maker’s participation in the Challenge or receipt or use or misuse of any Prize.

The Released Parties are not responsible for incomplete, late, misdirected, damaged, lost, illegible, or incomprehensible Submissions or for address or email address changes of the Makers. Proof of sending or submitting will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by the Poster or Administrator.

If for any reason any Maker’s Submission is determined to have not been received or been erroneously deleted, lost, or otherwise destroyed or corrupted, the Maker’s sole remedy is to request the opportunity to resubmit its Submission. Such request must be made promptly after the Maker knows or should have known there was a problem, and will be determined at the sole discretion of the Poster.

11. PUBLICITY

By participating in the Challenge you consent to the use of personal information about you, if you are a winner, by the Poster, Administrator, and third parties acting on their behalf. Such personal information includes, but is not limited to, your name, likeness, photograph, voice, opinions, comments and hometown and country of residence. It may be used in any existing or newly created media, worldwide without further payment or consideration or right of review, unless prohibited by law. Authorized use includes advertising and promotional purposes.

The duration of your consent is for a period of three years following the conclusion of the Challenge. This consent applies, as applicable, to all members a Maker’s team or Organization that participated in the winning Submission.

12. GENERAL CONDITIONS

A. Poster and Administrator reserve the right, in their sole discretion, to cancel, suspend and/or modify the Challenge, or any part of it, in the event of a technical failure, fraud, or any other factor or event that was not anticipated or is not within their control.

B. Poster and Administrator reserve the right in their sole discretion to disqualify any individual or Maker it finds to be actually or presenting the appearance of tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Challenge 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 Challenge, or a violation of any applicable law or regulation.

C. Any attempt by any person to undermine the proper conduct of the Challenge may be a violation of criminal and civil law. Should Poster or Administrator suspect that such an attempt has been made or is threatened, they reserve the right to take appropriate action including but not limited to requiring a Maker to cooperate with an investigation and referral to criminal and civil law enforcement authorities.

D. If there is any discrepancy or inconsistency between the terms and conditions of the Official Rules and disclosures or other statements contained in any Challenge materials, including but not limited to the Challenge Submission form, Challenge 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 terms and conditions of the Official Rules are subject to change at any time, including the rights or obligations of the Maker, the Poster and the Administrator. The Poster and Administrator will post the terms and conditions of the amended Official Rules on the Challenge Website. To the fullest extent permitted by law, any amendment will become effective at the time specified in the posting of the amended Official Rules or, if no time is specified, the time of posting.

F. If at any time prior to the deadline, a Maker or prospective Maker believes that any Official Rule is or may be unclear or ambiguous, they must submit a written request for clarification.

G. The Poster or Administrator’s failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. Should any provision of these Official Rules be or become illegal or unenforceable in any jurisdiction whose laws or regulations may apply to a Maker, such illegality or unenforceability shall leave the remainder of these Official Rules, including the Rule affected, to the fullest extent permitted by law, unaffected and valid. The illegal or unenforceable provision shall be replaced by a valid and enforceable provision that comes closest and best reflects the Poster’s intention in a legal and enforceable manner with respect to the invalid or unenforceable provision.

H. Excluding Submissions, all intellectual property related to this Challenge, including but not limited to copyrighted material, trademarks, trade-names, logos, designs, promotional materials, web pages, source codes, drawings, illustrations, slogans and representations are owned or used under license by the Poster and/or Administrator. 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. Any use in a Submission of Poster or Administrator intellectual property shall be solely to the extent provided for in these Official Rules.

13. LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY

By entering, all Makers (including, in the case of a team or 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 Maker’s participation in the Challenge. 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.

14. DISPUTES

A. Makers agree that, to the fullest extent permitted by law:

(i) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Challenge, or any Prizes awarded, other than those concerning the administration of the Challenge 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 Challenge or any Prizes awarded, shall be resolved exclusively by the courts of the State of Qatar and Makers consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of such courts; and

(iii) under no circumstances will Makers be entitled to, and Makers 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 Makers and the Poster in connection with the Challenge, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of Qatar, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules, which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State Qatar.

15. ADDITIONAL TERMS THAT ARE PART OF THE OFFICIAL RULES

Please review the ChallengePost Terms of Service at http://challengepost.com/terms for additional rules that apply to your participation in the Challenge and more generally your use of the Challenge Website. Such Terms of Service are incorporated by reference into these Official Rules. If there is a conflict between the Terms of Service and these Official Rules, the latter terms shall control with respect to this Challenge only.

Participation in the Challenge constitutes Maker’s full and unconditional agreement to these Official Rules. By entering, a Maker agrees that all decisions related to the Challenge that are made pursuant to these Official Rules are final and binding, and that all such decisions are at the sole discretion of the Poster and/or Administrator.

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

16. CONTACT

If you have any questions or comment, or wish to send us any notice regarding this Challenge, please email us at innovation@aljazeera.net.