Santa Cruz Graphics Creator Contest - OFFICIAL RULES

Santa Cruz Custom Graphics Creator Contest

2009 Official Rules

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. VOID IN QUEBEC AND WHERE PROHIBITED.

1. To Enter.  You will need an EA online account (FREE) to participate in this contest.  If you do not already have an EA online account, you can visit profile.ea.com to create one for free. 

To enter the Santa Cruz Custom Graphics Contest (the "Contest"), beginning 12:00:01 a.m. PDT July 27, 2009 through 11:59 p.m. PDT on August 17, 2009, go to http://skate.ea.com/graphicscreator/gallery.action and then click "Launch Graphics Creator" button.    Create a custom graphic and submit a link of your graphic to skatecontest@ea.com with the Subject Line: Santa Cruz Custom Graphics Creator Contest.  Entries must include your EA username, title of graphic, name and age of entrant.  Entries will be accepted between 12:00:01 a.m. PDT July 27, 2009, and 11:59 p.m. PDT August 17, 2009, (the "Contest Period").  No other methods of entry will be accepted.

 Santa Cruz Custom Graphics Creator Guidelines

Entrants' submitted Entries must (i) incorporate only the Sponsor-provided game images available on the Site, if any, (the "Contest Assets") and/or the entrant's own originally created artwork ("Original Creations"). You can visit the Site to locate any Sponsor provided Contest Assets to create your graphic. Entries must pertain to the Skate 2 video game, and must be submitted through the EA Skate Graphics Creator Contest flash tool provided. No group, or team efforts, or multi-author(ed) designs will be accepted in this Contest. For purposes of this Contest, all Entries will be presumed authored by the person submitting the Entry. You may not incorporate your own facial likeness, or that of another person, within your custom graphic design. Entries submitted in this Contest must not contain any pornography, or other illicit content, and must be appropriate for audiences at least thirteen (13) years of age, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Submission of previously published art (other than the Sponsor-provided images) is prohibited. Any Entry that incorporates prohibited content, including but not limited to, third party creations (other than the Sponsor-provided images), trademarks, names, or other third party property(ies), or the work of creative consultants, or the entrant's likeness, or the likenesses of any other real-life individuals, or any content that is pornographic, illicit, or otherwise not appropriate for audiences aged at least thirteen (13) or that otherwise in Sponsor's sole and absolute discretion violates the above Guidelines and/or is not in compliance with these Official Rules, will not be accepted for entry and will not be eligible to win any prize in this Contest.

Limit: You may submit multiple entries, but are only eligible to win one prize. By entering, entrants warrant that their Entries contain only Sponsor-provided Contest Assets, if any, and/or their own, Original Creations. Entrants further warrant their Entries do not contain any third party copyrighted materials, and otherwise do not violate or infringe the rights, including, without limitation, copyrights, trademark rights or rights of publicity/privacy, of any third party. By providing any Contest Assets for entrant's use Sponsor is granting entrants a limited, non-exclusive, non-commercial license to use the Contest Assets solely in connection with, and as a part of, the Contest. Entrants shall otherwise have no right, title or interest in or to any Contest Assets, and any use of the Contest Assets (including use of the entrant's Entry that contains Contest Assets) other than as permitted by these Official Rules may constitute copyright and/or trademark infringement. Entries must be suitable for publication (i.e. not obscene, offensive or indecent) and must not have been submitted in other contests or been previously published. Sponsor, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to disqualify any Entry containing racial, religious, or ethnic slurs, explicit language, obscene, pornographic, violent, or sexual content, or libel, hate speech, references to alcohol, drugs or other illicit substances, or otherwise objectionable, offensive, illegal or prohibited material. Completed entries must be sent electronically during the Contest Period and received by 11:59:59 p.m. PST on August 17, 2009.  All entries become the property of Sponsor and will not be returned. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for lost, incomplete, incorrect, or misdirected entries. Proof of submission of Contest Entry is not considered proof of delivery or receipt of such Entry by Sponsor. Sponsor and its Agents (defined below) assume no responsibility for lost, late, intercepted, incomplete, incorrect, or misdirected entries, or Entries not otherwise received by Sponsor. Use of a false email account will disqualify an Entry.  Sponsor, Santa Cruz (NHS, Inc.) and their agents (as defined below) are not responsible for technical, hardware or software malfunctions, misdirected entries, lost or unavailable network connections, or failed, incorrect, inaccurate, incomplete, lost, late, illegible, misdirected, garbled, damaged or delayed electronic or other communications or other technical problems related to emailed Entries. Any communication or information transmitted to Sponsor and/or the Site by electronic mail or otherwise, is and will be treated as non-confidential and nonproprietary. Sponsor, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to disqualify any submission containing racial or ethnic slurs, explicit language or sexual content or otherwise offensive or illegal material. Sponsor, in its sole discretion, further reserves the right to disqualify any person who tampers with the entry process or the operation of the Site, or who otherwise violates these Official Rules. By entering, entrants accept and agree to abide by the terms of these Official Rules.

2.  Eligibility.  This Contest is only open to individuals who are residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (except Quebec) who are thirteen (13) years of age or older at time Contest begins and who had Internet access as of July 21, 2009. This contest is void in Quebec. Employees of Electronic Arts Inc. ("Sponsor"), Santa Cruz (NHS, Inc.), and their respective affiliates, subsidiaries, parents, representatives, advertising, promotion and publicity agencies (collectively, the "Sponsor and its agents") and the immediate family members, and persons living in the same household of each, are not eligible. Contest is void where prohibited, restricted or taxed by law. All federal, state, provincial, and local laws and regulations apply.

3. Winner Selection and Notification.  Winners will be determined and notified on or about September 1, 2009, by an email sent to the email address specified on the Contest Entry as follows:

Sponsor or its designee, the Contest Judge, whose decisions are final and binding on all matters relating to the Contest, will independently evaluate and judge all eligible Entries received and select in its sole and absolute discretion one winner  from all eligible Entries based on the following criteria: 40% Creativity, 40% Talent, 20% Originality. In the unlikely event of tie(s), the winner(s) among the tying Entry(ies) will be that with the highest ranking in the creativity category. The Contest Judge's decisions are final and binding.

Winners may be required to complete and sign an Affidavit of Eligibility, and, except where prohibited, Liability/Publicity Release, in the form provided by Sponsor, within 14 days of attempted notification in order to claim prize. If a winner is 18 or older, as required, but a minor in his or her state, country or providence of residence, winner's parent or legal guardian will be required to sign all necessary documents. If the winner cannot be contacted at the email address provided at Entry, is contacted and does not respond as directed within 14 days of attempted notification, refuses the prize or is ineligible to accept the prize, the prize may be forfeited and awarded to an alternate winner. All prizes claimed in accordance with the Official Rules will be awarded. Winner may be required to provide a U.S. or Canadian shipping address to claim prize. Allow 4-6 weeks for delivery of prize.

4.  Prizes.  Three (3) prizes will be awarded.

One (1) Grand Prize Package:  One (1) winner will receive a Santa Cruz Cruzer complete skateboard, Santa Cruz t-shirt, hat, stickers, Strangenotes DVD, and two (2) EA video games (Sponsor's choice).  Approximate retail value of prize (ARV) is $315.

One (1) 1^st Runner-Up Prize Package: One (1) Runner-Up Winner will receive a Santa Cruz Skateboard Deck, wheels, t-shirt, stickers, Strangenotes DVD, and one (1) EA video game (Sponsor's choice).  ARV is $185.

One (1) 2^nd Runner-Up Prize Package: One (1) 2^nd Runner-up Winner will receive a Santa Cruz Skateboard Deck, stickers, Strangenotes DVD, and one (1) EA videogame (Sponsor's choice).  ARV is $150.

Prizes are not transferable. No substitution of prizes for cash or other goods and services is permitted, except Sponsor reserves the right to provide a substitute prize of approximately equal or greater value if an advertised prize becomes unavailable. Software and video games, including platform and/or versions to be awarded as prizes are within the sole discretion of Sponsor and subject to availability.  All taxes, including, without limitation, all federal, state, provincial, and local taxes, and international tariffs, are the sole responsibility of the individual winner.

5.  General Conditions.  Sponsor, Santa Cruz (NHS Inc.) and their agents are not in any way responsible or liable for damages, loss or injury resulting from participation in this Contest or the acceptance, possession, shipping and handling, loss, use or misuse of any prizes awarded in this Contest. Entrants and winners assume sole liability for injuries, including personal injuries and/or damage to property, caused or claimed to be caused by participating in this Contest or the acceptance, possession, shipping and handling, loss, use or misuse of any prize awarded. Sponsor has the right to cancel, terminate or modify this Contest if it cannot be completed as planned due to infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, technical failures, or other conditions beyond Sponsor's control, including, without limitation, insufficient volume of eligible entries, and to select winners from eligible entries received on or before the termination date. Sponsor is not responsible for any failure to contact entrants whether due to technical or human error.

By entering this Contest, each entrant (i) grants to Sponsor, Santa Cruz (NHS, Inc.) and their agents a worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, right to use the Entry or a copy of the Entry for any purpose related to promotion of the Contest or of future contests or promotions of Sponsor, Santa Cruz entities or its Agents, the promotion, publicity, marketing and advertising for the Skate video game franchise, and existing and future Skate video games, specifically including, but not limited to the posting, performance and use of the Entry on Sponsor, Santa Cruz entities and/or its Agents' respective websites, making the Entry available for use/download into electronic games produced by Sponsor, reproducing Entry in skateboards to be produced by Contest Entities and agrees (ii) that Sponsor, Santa Cruz entities and its Agents have the right to use the Entries, and, except if Entrant is a resident of TN or otherwise where prohibited by law, has the right to use the entrant's first and/or last name, user or screen name and hometown on Sponsor's, Santa Cruz entities and/or its Agents respective websites and in any and all media in and in connection with promotion, publicity, marketing and advertising for the Skate videogame franchise, existing or future Skate video games, this Contest or other promotions by Sponsor, Santa Cruz entities and/or its Agents without any further attribution, notification or compensation to entrants; (iii) that Sponsor, in its sole discretion, and/or Santa Cruz entities,  and/or their Agents, may adapt, edit, composite, remix, morph, scan, duplicate, alter and/or otherwise modify any Entry, in whole or in part, without any restrictions as to changes, for publication or for any other purpose, as Sponsor deems necessary or desirable, or that is otherwise allowed under these Official Rules; (iv) to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the Contest Judges and (v) to be contacted by Sponsor, Santa Cruz entities or their agents by telephone, mail and/or email regarding this Contest.

By entering the Contest and by accepting a prize, the Contest winners irrevocably assign and transfer to Sponsor any and all rights, title, and interest in and to the Entry (with respect to their Original Creations included as part of the Entry), including without limitation, all copyrights and a waiver of all moral rights in the Entry. Sponsor shall have no obligation (express or implied) to use any of the Entries, including the winning Entries and Entrants shall not be entitled to any damages or other relief by reason of Sponsor's use or non-use of any entry. The Contest is governed by the laws of the United States and all claims must be resolved in the United States. If there is a dispute regarding the identity of an entrant, the Entry will be deemed submitted by the person in whose name the email account is registered.

6.  Winners list.  A winners list will be available at http://skate.ea.com/  after all winners are determined and verified, and posted for approximately two (2) weeks and is also available by sending a stamped, self addressed envelope marked, "Santa Cruz Graphics Creator Contest," to Electronic Arts Inc., 209 Redwood Shores Parkway, Redwood City, CA 94065 for receipt by Sept 10, 2009.

7.  Sponsor.  This Contest is sponsored by Electronic Arts Inc., 209 Redwood Shores Parkway, Redwood City, CA 94065.

© 2009 Electronic Arts Inc. All Rights Reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.