Chicago Inventors Organization
Official Pitch Contest Rules
Is your business pitch on point?
Need a capital infusion?
Enter the Chicago Inventors Pitch Contest, Saturday, January 11, 2014! You’ve got nothing to lose—just record and upload your best business pitch (under two minutes, please) and send it to us. The top 5 finalists will be invited to the Chicago Inventors “Innovation,
Patents & Profits” Conference where they will pitch their idea to judges and a live audience for a chance to win $1,000! No business plan, no PowerPoint presentation. Just you and your idea! The contest entry deadline is Saturday, December 22, 2013! Don’t miss your chance to pitch your big idea!
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. The “Chicago Inventors Organization – Pitch Contest” (“Promotion”) begins at 9:00 AM CST November 1, 2013 and ends at 11:59 PM CST January 11, 2014. The Promotion Period consists of three distinct periods. The Entry Period, which runs from the start of the Promotion Period, December 1, 2013, until the deadline for entry submissions, December 22, 2013 (11:59 PM); the Selection Period, which runs from the end of the Entry Period until the presenting finalists have been selected, January 2, 2014; and, finally, the Presenting Period which runs from the time the finalists are selected until the presentations are completed and the final winner is selected, January 11, 2014. The Promotion is sponsored by Chicago Inventors Organization, 1647 S. Blue Island Ave., Chicago, IL 60608. All federal, state and local laws apply. Void where prohibited.
Eligibility: The Promotion is open to all current members of the Chicago Inventors Organization who are at least 18 years old, have reached the age of majority in their state of residence, and who have internet access as of the beginning of the Promotion Period.There is no charge to submit an entry but Membership in the Chicago Inventors Organization is $150 yearly.
To Enter: Enter the Promotion by submitting your name, email address, and brief description of your product pitch (500 words or less) via:
E-mail:
Mail:
Chicago Inventors Organization
1647 South Blue Island Ave
Floor 1
Chicago, IL 60608
(All entries must be posted marked no later than 11;59PM 12/22/13)
All entries must be less than 500 words
· * Entries cannot contain inappropriate material, lewdness, obscenity, or the like, in Sponsor’s sole discretion.
* Videos are encouraged.
Entries which violate any of these requirements, or are deemed not suitable for any other reason, may be deemed ineligible to receive the prize and their submission may be void at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to determine in its sole discretion which entries have satisfied the entry requirements. Entries must be submitted in accordance with these Official Rules and must be received by Sponsor by the end of the Entry Period. Limit one entry per person. No other method of submission will be accepted.
Selection: Each entry will be judged by a panel of judges selected by Sponsor. Each entry will be judged on a scale from 1-100 based on the following criteria (“Selection Criteria”):
* Is the idea unique? (25%)
* Is the idea realistic? (25%)
* Does the idea have a reachable target audience? (25%)
* Is the idea clearly defined? (25%)
The Panel will select the top five entries based on the Selection Criteria to be deemed “Presenting Finalists.” In the event of a tie, Presenting Finalists will be selected based on the uniqueness criterion.
Presenting Finalists will be notified approximately five days after the end of the Selection Period. The five Presenting Finalists will present their idea at the Chicago Inventors Organization Conference to be held on January 11, 2014. The Presenting Finalists will each be given a 3 minute slot during which to make their pitch. They may use their prototype to illustrate the pitch. Each Presenting Finalist will be judged by a “Final Panel” using the Selection Criteria (75%) and an “Audience Vote” (25%). The Presenting Finalist with the highest score will be deemed the “Winner”. In the event of a tie for the Winner, Winner will be selected based on the Audience Vote.] The Panel, Final Panel and Audience Vote decisions are final. As this is a contest of skill, the odds of winning are dependent upon the number and quality of entries received.
Prize: One (1) Final Winnerwil be selected and will receive$1,000. Prize will be awarded as described. No substitution or transfer of prizes, except at the sole discretion of Sponsor, if advertised prize becomes unavailable. All prizes will be awarded.
Notification of Presenting Finalists: Presenting Finalists will receive notification packages by e-mail within five days of the end of the Selection Period, which must be completed and returned to Sponsor as instructed. Winner will be selected on January 11, 2014.
General Terms and Conditions: Presenting Finalists may be required to complete an affidavit or declaration of eligibility, waiver of liability and, where lawful, publicity release, which must be returned to Sponsor within seven days of receipt of notification package. If the effort to send a notification package to a Presenting Finalist is unsuccessful or if a Presenting Finalist fails to execute and return any required document within the required time period an alternate Presenting Finalist may be selected from remaining eligible entrants. If the prize is not claimed or is returned as undeliverable, then Winner’s right to the prize shall be forfeited and the prize award will be void and an alternate Winner may be selected from eligible Presenting Finalists. Sponsor is not responsible for late, lost, misdirected, incomplete, incorrect, misdirected entries or prize claims. Sponsor is also not responsible for incomplete, interrupted, or scrambled transmissions, unavailable web sites, networks, servers, or systems, or other connection or transmission problems, technical malfunctions of the computer, software, web site, or any combination thereof, problems associated with any virus or other damage caused to any participant’s system or other problems of any kind, whether mechanical, electronic, or human. Sponsor reserves the right to suspend and/or cancel the Promotion or change any element hereof, with or without notice, at any time, due to printing, computer or network errors, or other mistakes in the production or operation of the Promotion. No correspondence regarding the Promotion will be entered into except with the Presenting Finalists and in response to requests for Winner’s Lists. All decisions of the judges and the Sponsor are final and binding on all matters relating to the Promotion. By entering, participants agree to be bound by the Official Rules, and release Sponsor and its agents and their respective affiliates, and each of their respective officers, directors, employees and agents from any and all liability, loss, or damage arising out of their participation in the Promotion or with respect to the awarding, receipt, possession, use and/or misuse of any prize. Winner is responsible for any applicable taxes on awarded prizes. Sponsor reserves the right to cancel or suspend the Promotion, or change any element thereof, with or without notice, at any time and for any reason. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify in its sole discretion any person tampering with the entry process or who violates these Official Rules in any way.
Confidential Information: You may not use Proprietary Content and/or protected Intellectual Property that is not your own as part of the entry. By submitting an entry, you are acknowledging that the entry does not infringe on the protected rights of any third person or entity. Additionally, by entering the Promotion, any statements, claims, and information made as part of your entry are no longer confidential.
Publicity Release: By participating in the Promotion, you irrevocably grant Sponsor the right to use your name, photograph, image, video, biographical information, and any other portion of your entry submission, in any and all media for any purpose, including, without limitation, advertising and promotional purposes and you hereby release Sponsor from any liability with respect thereto, except where prohibited. By entering this Promotion, you grant Sponsor the right to utilize your contact information provided by you in the entry to contact you for any reason. Completion of the entry form constitutes assent to these written terms.
Winners List: For a winners list, please send a self-addressed stamped envelope 30 days after the end of the Promotion Period to: 1647 S. Blue Island Ave., Chicago, IL 60608. Vermont residents may omit return postage.