VIBE Verses: Official Rules
INTERNET ACCESS REQUIRED
OVERVIEW:
VIBE VERSES is a talent competition that provides a FREE opportunity for unsigned and undiscovered artists to showcase their rapping talents. Each person who downloads tracks or enters the Contest agrees to be bound by these Official Rules and the Contest's Terms of Use.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE:
It's easy to enter. Simply:
- Download free tracks from the VIBE VERSES Contest
- Create a rap video over one of the tracks
- Upload your video
That's it. It's free, it's fun and it's that simple! With these three easy steps, you will be entered for your chance to win the VIBE Verses Grand Championship Prize of a personal promotional page in VIBE Magazine.
TIMING/HOW IT WORKS:
To be eligible to win the VIBE Verses contest, all rap videos must use one (or more) of the free tracks provided by the VIBE Verses contest. Once a rap video is entered into the VIBE VERSES Contest, site visitors will be able to rate it from one to five stars. A rap's average rating – as determined by online viewer voting – functions as its "score."
- Contest begins: 5 pm EST on Monday, December 10th
- Deadline for entries: Wednesday, January 30th, at 5 pm EST
- Finals begin: Thursday, January 31st, 5 pm EST
- Grand Champion Announced: Friday, February 1st, 5pm EST
On Wednesday, January 30th, 2008, at 5 PM EST, the top 10 rappers – as determined by average rating from online viewer voting - will advance to the VIBE VERSES Finals. To qualify for the VIBE Verses finals, videos MUST have at least 1000 votes and 3000 views as of Wednesday, January 30th 5pm EST– so promote, promote, promote!
On Friday, February 1st, at 5 PM EST, viewer voting will determine the VIBE Verses Champion! The highest rated video among the finalists will be named VIBE Verses Grand Champion. The Grand Champion will receive a promotional page in VIBE magazine.
NOTE TO VIBE VERSES CONTESTANTS To thank participants FROM the VIBE Verses competition, all videos that didn't win the first contest have been re-entered into VIBE Verses.
- If you submitted (a) video(s) and entered VIBE Verses 1, 2, or 3 competitions, and did not win, you and your video(s) are automatically eligible for and entered into the VIBE Verses contest. You've got another chance to win
- All ratings and votes on older videos will be reset to zero for VIBE Verses – so that the contest will be fair to everyone.
- Additionally, contestants from the original VIBE Verses may submit (a) new video(s) to VIBE Verses as well – the more, the merrier.
- Grand Prize winner will receive a full-page ad in VIBE magazine. (Value: $50,000)
- Is Hate speech – speech or acts that are sexually explicit, unnecessarily violent or derogatory of any ethnic, racial, gender, religious, professional or age group will be cause for disqualification.
- Is Obscene or offensive material;
- Defames character – speech or acts that invades the privacy of any person, or otherwise infringes upon any person's or company's intellectual property or contains disparaging remarks; and/or
- Communicates messages or images inconsistent with the positive images and/or good will to which Sponsor wishes to associate.
- Grant to VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC a non-exclusive, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free right for one year after the conclusion of the VIBE VERSES Final Round to use the names, likenesses, voices, biographical information, photographs and performances of the Winner, the stage name of the individual Winner, or, if applicable, performing group, and logo for advertising, promotional and any other purposes, in any and all media, now and hereafter known;
- Grant to VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, an exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free right during the Winning Period (and non-exclusive, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free right after the duration of the Winning Period) to reproduce, record, alter, amend, edit, publish, publicly perform, use and stream the Song (including the sound recording and musical composition related thereto) by itself and/or in compilation recordings produced by VIBE VERSES AND VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC for any purpose (including without limitation, in connection with, including in synchronization or in time relation with, commercials, advertisements and promotions related to VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, the Contest and subsequent talent search contests sponsored by Contest Sponsor), in any and all media, now or hereafter known, including but not limited to, television, theatrical advertisements, radio, Internet, newspapers, magazines and billboards.
- VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, has no obligation to use, publish or exploit any Materials, including the songs submitted by the Competition winners;
- OTHER THAN AS SET FORTH HEREIN, VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, OR ITS ASSIGNS MAY COMMERCIALLY EXPLOIT THE MATERIALS WITHOUT LIABILITY OR ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATION OF ANY KIND TO THE ENTRANTS.
PROMOTE YOURSELF:
VIBE VERSES makes it easy to promote yourself and your talent all over the web (See Fig. 1-a below).
Each time a video rap is uploaded, the video will have a unique URL and a unique embed code (see Fig 1-a below).
The URL and embed code easily can be copied and pasted onto any other web pages/web sites of your choosing (example: MySpace, etc.) This makes it easy to syndicate your own rap (or a friend's rap, or a rap you like) on other sites, and easy to encourage others to come vote for the rap in the VIBE Verses contest.
Note: URL and Embed Code are easy to copy and paste, wherever you choose to paste them…. Making it easy to promote any rap in the contest!
GRAND PRIZE AND APPROXIMATE RETAIL VALUE:
ELIGIBILITY:
Open to residents of the United States and the District of Columbia who are 16 years of age or older at the time of entry. Void in and to residents of Arizona, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Vermont, Puerto Rico and where prohibited by law. Employees of Sponsor, its affiliates and subsidiaries, participating advertising and promotion agencies and prize suppliers (and members of their immediate family and/or those living in the same of household of each such employee) are not eligible.
You may not participate in this Contest if you or any member of your performing group is under contract with (i) any record company, (ii) any major publishing company, or (iii) any company which might interfere with your ability, or the ability of any member of the performing group, to perform for or to enter into agreements with the Sponsor (VIBE Media Group) as described herein, as determined by the Sponsor in its sole and absolute discretion.
NOTE: Groups of rappers may enter the contest – but groups may contain a maximum of three contestants. “Mic pass” video entries are welcome, but groups containing more than three contestants are ineligible to win prizes, including the Grand Prize.
HOW VIBE VERSES VOTING WORKS:
PRELIMINARY ROUNDBeginning Monday, December 10th at 5:00 pm (noon EST), entrant pages will be posted at http://www.vibe.com/verses for public voting.
People may enter the contest at any time until the conclusion of the preliminary round on Wednesday, January 30th, 2008 at 17:00 EST (5 pm). Until that time, entrants may update their profile page (and rap) as often as they wish. Entrants may also enter as many raps as they wish.
FINAL ROUNDOn Thursday, January 31th, 2008 at 5 pm EST, the 10 finalists will be announced. To advance to the VIBE Verses finals, rappers must rank in the top 25 average scores, have at least 1000 votes and at least 3000 video views. All Finalists will be posted at http://www.vibe.com/verses and will be notified via email.
On Friday, February 1st, 2008 at 5 pm EST… the Grand Champion will be names and will win the VIBE Verses Grand Prize of a personal promotional page in VIBE Magazine.
NOTE: ALL FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL TAXES ARE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE WINNER.
VOTING RULES & REQUIREMENTS:
All voters must register with the Vibe.com/Verses website prior to submitting a vote. Limit one vote, per registered voter, per day, per rap during the Preliminary Round. Limit one vote, per registered voter, per day, per rap during the Final Round. Any individual who, at the sole discretion of the sponsors, abuses the voting process in anyway, including mass voting or votes generated by a script, macro or use of automated devices will be disqualified immediately from further voting in the competition. Any attempt by a registered voter to vote on a video more than once through any means, including but not limited to the use of multiple voter or email accounts will result in disqualification of all votes by that voter.
NOTICE TO ENTRANTS: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN INDIVIDUAL TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE THE VIBE OR VIBE VERSES WEB SITES OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THIS CONTEST 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.
DISQUALIFICATIONS:
VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, ("Sponsor") reserves the right – at any time - to disqualify (any) entrant(s) in VIBE VERSES whose rap and/or profile page and/or comments, in the sole opinion of the Sponsor, contains content that:
Please do not hate on contest entrants and community members. VIBE Verses is a stage on which undiscovered artists should showcase their talent and skill – not their venom. Please respect the fellow members of the VIBE Verses community.
VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP reserve the right to change the rules to the VIBE VERSES contest at any time, for any reason. Changes to rules – if any are made – will be posted on the Official Rules page on the VIBE Verses web site.
GROUP SUBMISSIONS:
In the event of a group submission, one member of the group must be the primary contact person on behalf of the group; that person will become the Entrant. Groups may not contain more than three members/rappers/contestants, or the entry will be ineligible for the Grand Prize and VIBE Verses finals.
VIBE VERSES assumes no responsibility for any internal disputes among performing group members with respect to their ownership of any publishing interest in any song uploaded into the Competition.
By submitting a Song, the Entrant and all performing group members, if any, agree that VIBE VERSES may rely upon the statements of the Entrant as the representative of the Entrant and all members of the performing group.
Limit one entry per person/group. If more than one entry is received per person/group only the first such entry received will be eligible.
WINNER REQUIREMENTS/OBLIGATIONS:
Before a Prize is awarded, the Winner will be required to enter into an agreement with Sponsor which is subject to good faith negotiations under which such person (and, if any are eligible minors in their jurisdictions of residence, the parents or legal guardians of such minors) must, among other things, without payment of any compensation or consideration other than as specified herein and without the need to obtain permission from any third party:
The above-described agreements must be signed, notarized and returned within fourteen (14) days of VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP’s issuance. Noncompliance within this time period, with these rules, or the return of any notification as undeliverable may result in disqualification and the selection of a runner-up (or cancellation of the Contest and no awarding of a Prize), if VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, so elects at its sole and absolute discretion.
END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT:
Each entrant agrees and acknowledges that all right, title and interest in and to the entry and any materials or information supplied by entrant to VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, in relation to the Competition (collectively the "Materials"), including without limitation any and all intellectual property rights therein, are irrevocably assigned to VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, and entrant retains no rights whatsoever specifically including the rights to the underlying musical composition.
VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, shall own all rights to in and to the master recording therein.
VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, has the right to edit, adapt, modify, publish, promote, and otherwise use or not use the entry and the information contained therein in any way, in any media throughout the world, without any compensation to the entrant. Entrant agrees to do all things and execute all documentation necessary to effect the assignment and/or waiver herein described.
All uploaded works from users shall immediately become the property of VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, and those works shall be "work-for-hire" as defined in the US Copyright Code. As such any VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, user, who is currently signed to an exclusive recording agreement, should not post songs on this site without the prior written consent of the label to which you are signed.
At no time may an entrant use any content, specifically including but not limited to the imported beats, for their own use, whether in a promotional or commercial capacity.
All information on the site belongs exclusively to VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, and may not be used in any way outside of the confines of the game. Any entrant found to be using such content inconsistent with these rules will be immediately removed from the game and subject themselves to liability at law or in equity. VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, will file claims, prosecute and vigorously pursue any and all users that are not in conformity with the rules and regulations of the game.
Please be aware, in the event that any entrant is using the game to solicit any act which is unlawful including but not limited to child pornography, drug sales or online scams, VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, will fully cooperate with any and all local, state and federal law enforcement agencies investigating such activity.
GENERAL RULES:
Void where prohibited by law. All federal, state and local laws apply. All prize winners must submit an Affidavit of Eligibility certifying that he/she holds all rights to the submission, that the submission has not been previously published, has not won a previous prize or award and that he/she has followed the Official Rules of the Contest.
All winners must also provide a Liability/Publicity release form within 14 days of first attempted notification. Noncompliance within this time period or return of any prize notification as undeliverable will result in disqualification and an alternate will be selected.
In the event a winner is less than the age of majority in his/her state of residence, all required documents must be signed by the winner's parent/legal guardian on his/her behalf. 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 THE WINNER.
Acceptance of prize constitutes permission to the Sponsor (VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC) and its agencies to use winner's name and/or likeness for purposes of advertising and trade without further compensation, unless prohibited by law.
By participating in this VIBE VERSES Contest, entrants agree to be bound by the Official Rules.
In the event there is a discrepancy or inconsistency between disclosures or other statements contained in any contest materials and the terms and conditions of the Official Rules, the Official Rules shall prevail, govern and control. In no event will more than the stated number of prizes be awarded. Sponsor VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC,) is not responsible for any typographical or other error in the printing of the offer, administration of the contest or in the announcement of the prize.
VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, is expressly not responsible for faulty, incorrect or mis-transcribed phone transmissions, 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 contest, lost or unavailable network connections, or failed, incomplete, garbled or delayed computer transmission that may limit a user's ability to participate in the contest.
VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, reserves the right to cancel or modify the online contest 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, security, or proper administration 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 the contest will be conducted from among all eligible online contest entries received prior to termination. Any damage made to the Web Site will also be the responsibility of the authorized e-mail account holder of the e-mail address submitted at the time of entry.
"Authorized e-mail account holder" is defined as the natural person who is assigned to an e-mail address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization (e.g., business, educational institution etc.) that is responsible for assigning e-mail addresses for the domain associated with the submitted e-mail address. Proof of submitting entries will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC. Any use of robotic, automatic, programmed or the like methods of participation will void all such submissions by such methods. VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, reserves the right to freeze or close an account or to prohibit the participation of an individual/account holder 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.
WINNER:
A winners list will be available at [http://www.vibe.com/verses] commencing approximately 2 weeks after the close of the contest, for approximately 16 weeks. In addition, the "Winner's list" and these Official Rules and Regulations are also available by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope marked "VIBE VERSES" to VIBE MEDIA GROUP, Attn: GM, VIBE Digital, 215 Lexington Avenue -6th Floor, New York, NY 10016 RE: Request for Winners List or Request for Competition Rules.
SPONSOR:
The Sponsor of this contest is VIBE VERSES and VIBE MEDIA GROUP, LLC, 215 Lexington Avenue, 6th Floor, New York City, NY 10016
