“BRIDES Operation Dream Dress Contest 2011: Artful Romance”

OFFICIAL CONTEST RULES

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THIS CONTEST.  

A purchase will not improve chances of winning.

CONSUMER DISCLOSURE

You have not yet won.

OPEN ONLY TO LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE 50 UNITED STATES AND DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA WHO ARE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OLD AS OF THE DATE OF ENTRY

By entering this Promotion, entrants accept and agree to be bound by these Official Rules.  Any violation of these rules may, at Sponsor’s discretion,  result in disqualification.  All decisions of the judges regarding this Promotion are final and binding in all respects

1.      PROMOTION PERIOD. Promotion begins at 12:01 A.M. ET on January 10, 2011 and ends at 11:59 P.M. ET on February 1, 2011, when all entries must be received (“Promotion Period”).

2.      ELIGIBILITY. This contest (the “Promotion”) is only open to legal residents of the 50 United States and District of Columbia who are at least 18 years old as of the date of entry, except officers, directors, members, and employees of the Sponsor, the judging organization (if applicable), or any other party associated with the development or administration of this Promotion, the immediate family (i.e., parents, children, siblings, spouse), and persons residing in the same household, and those who have had gross sales of more than $100,000 in any one year as a fashion designer.  This Promotion is void outside the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, and where prohibited.

3.      HOW TO ENTER. Visit operationdreamdress.com during the Promotion Period and follow the instructions to complete and submit the entry form. You must include two (2) JPEGs of sketches clearly showing the front and back of an original wedding dress design that expresses the theme “Artful Romance,” accompanied by a brief description of the gown, explanation of details, and notes on any special features.  You must also submit a completed application questionnaire, also available at operationdreamdress.com. (“Submission”).  Entrants represent and warrant that their Submission is the original work of such entrant, it has not been copied from others, and it does not violate the rights of any other person or entity.  Limit: One entry per person during the Promotion Period. All entrant information, including e-mail addresses, is subject to the respective Privacy Policy of the applicable Sponsor.

4.      WINNER SELECTION AND NOTIFICATION. All sketch entries will initially be judged on or about February 9, 2011 (the “Judging Date”) by a panel of judges comprised of BRIDES magazine editors based on the following criteria: visual appeal (60%) and originality (40%).  Once a selection of approximately 15 - 25 semifinalists is made (the number of semifinalists is at Sponsor’s sole discretion), the semifinalists will be notified on or about February 11, 2011 and will have until March 7, 2011 to create their gown. Semifinalists will upload seven (7) photos of their completed dress (front, back, and up to five details) to operationdreamdress.com by March 7, 2011. Voting will be open to the American public from March 14, 2011 to March 21, 2011 to vote on the ten (10) best dresses at operationdreamdress.com. BRIDES editors will then reduce the top ten (10) to five (5) finalists based on visual appeal (60%) and wearability (40%).  The top five (5) finalists will be flown to New York City on or about the week of June 6, 2011, for a final unveiling event and judging. Finalists must be able to travel to New York City for this stage.  If a finalist can not travel to New York, the finalist forfeits all rights to any prize, and an alternate may be selected.  All finalists’ completed dresses will be held by BRIDES magazine for up to six months for possible inclusion in the magazine.  The grand prize winner’s dress will become sole property of Sponsor.  During the final event in June 2011, one winner will be selected by a panel using the following criteria: visual appeal (45%), originality (35%), and wearability (20%).  The entry with the highest overall score will be declared the potential winner (in the event of a tie, the entry with the higher score in the visual appeal criteria will prevail). Any potential winner will have to sign documentation releasing all rights, including worldwide copyright rights, to the design to Sponsor and may not produce the dress for sale.  Sponsor may arrange with a manufacturer of its choice to produce the dress for possible sale to the public and reserves the right to alter the design for wearability,  ease of manufacture, or other reasons. Any potential winner will be notified by mail, email and/or telephone.  If a potential winner cannot be contacted, does not respond within five (5) days from the date the Sponsor first tries to notify him/her, and/or the prize or prize notification is returned as undeliverable, such potential winner forfeits all rights to win the Promotion or receive the prize, and an alternate potential winner may be selected.  Upon contacting a potential winner and determining that he/she has met all eligibility requirements of the Promotion, including without limitation the execution of required waivers, publicity and liability releases and disclaimers, such individual will be declared the “winner” of the Promotion. NOTE:  Voting will be restricted to one (1) vote per person, per email address, per day.

5.      DESCRIPTION. Each of the five (5) finalists will receive one (1) roundtrip coach airfare ticket from the major commercial airport nearest finalist's primary residence in the US to New York City, or one (1) roundtrip coach bus or rail ticket depending on finalist’s proximity to New York City and one (1) standard room (double occupancy) for two (2) nights in a hotel of Sponsor’s choice. Approximate retail value for each finalist prize is $2,500.  Actual value may vary based on fluctuations in price for airfare and/or accommodations, and distance between departure and destination. Meals, in-room or other personal charges at lodging (e.g., movies), telephone calls, incidentals, and all other expenses are not included. No itinerary changes. All specifics thereof will be at Sponsor's sole discretion. If a finalist can not travel to New York as specified by the Sponsor, the finalist forfeits all rights to any prize, and an alternate may be selected. One (1) grand prize winner will receive a cash prize of $10,000 and Sponsor may, at its sole discretion, feature the winning dress on the cover of Brides magazine.

6.      TAXES. All federal, state and/or local income and other taxes, if any, are the winner’s sole responsibility.

7.      OWNERSHIP AND LICENSE. All entry materials become the property of the Sponsor and will not be acknowledged or returned.  (i) The copyright in any Submission (except the winning Submission) shall remain the property of the entrant, but entry into this Promotion constitutes entrant’s irrevocable and perpetual permission and consent, without further compensation or attribution, to use, reproduce, print, publish, transmit, distribute, sell, perform, adapt, enhance, or display such Submission for any purpose, including but not limited to editorial, advertising, trade, commercial, and publicity purposes by the Sponsor and/or others authorized by the Sponsor, in any and all media now in existence or hereinafter created, throughout the world, for the duration of the copyright in the Submission.  Sponsor and/or others authorized by the Sponsor shall have the right to edit, adapt, and modify the Submission. (ii) The grand prize winner will be required to assign all rights, including copyright rights, in the Submission (including the dress and the designer) to Sponsor and Sponsor shall have the exclusive right without further compensation or attribution, to use, reproduce, print, publish, transmit, distribute, sell, perform, adapt, enhance, or display such Submission for any purpose, including but not limited to editorial, advertising, trade, commercial, and publicity purposes by the Sponsor and/or others authorized by the Sponsor, in any and all media now in existence or hereinafter created, throughout the world, for the duration of the copyright in the Submission.  Sponsor and/or others authorized by the Sponsor shall have the right to edit, adapt, and modify the Submission.

8.      NO PRIZE TRANSFER OR SUBSTITUTION. No prize or any portion thereof is transferable or redeemable for cash.  Any portion of the prize that is not used is forfeited.  No substitutions for prize except by Sponsor, in which case a prize of equal or greater value will be substituted.

9.      CONSENT AND RELEASE. By entering the Promotion, each entrant releases and discharges the Sponsor, judging organization (if applicable), and any other party associated with the development or administration of this Promotion, their parent, subsidiary, and affiliated entities, and each of their respective officers, directors, members, shareholders, employees, independent contractors, agents, representatives, successors and assigns (collectively, “Sponsor Entities”), from any and all liability whatsoever in connection with this Promotion, including without limitation legal claims, costs, injuries, losses or damages, demands or actions of any kind (including without limitation personal injuries, death, damage to, loss or destruction or property, rights of publicity or privacy, defamation, or portrayal in a false light) (collectively, “Claims”).  Except where prohibited: (i) acceptance of a prize constitutes the consent of any winner, without further compensation, to use the name and likeness of such winner and his/her Submission for editorial, advertising and publicity purposes by the Sponsor and/or others authorized by the Sponsor; (ii) acceptance of a prize constitutes a release by any winner of the Sponsor Entities of any and all Claims in connection with the administration of this Promotion and the use, misuse, or possession of his/her Submission or any prize; (iii) any potential winner may be required to sign an affidavit of eligibility (including social security number) and a liability/publicity/copyright release; and (iv) if prize involves travel or activities, any potential winner and travel companion (if applicable) may be required to execute releases of the Sponsor from any and all liability with respect to participation in such travel/activities and/or use of the prize. Affidavits and releases must be returned within ten (10) days from the date that Sponsor first tries to notify the potential winner. If winner is deemed to be a minor under the jurisdiction of his/her residence, the prize will be awarded in the name of his/her parent or legal guardian who must execute the necessary affidavit and release and, if applicable, must accompany winner on the trip (no additional travel expenses will be awarded should a parent or legal guardian be required to accompany the winner on the trip).

10.    DISCLAIMERS. (i) Entries that are lost, late, misdirected, incorrect, garbled, or incompletely received, for any reason, including by reason of hardware, software, browser, or network failure, malfunction, congestion, or incompatibility at Sponsor’s servers or elsewhere, will not be eligible.  In the event of a dispute, entries will be deemed submitted by the authorized account holder of the e-mail address submitted at the time of entry.  “Authorized 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 institute) that is responsible for assigning e-mail addresses for the domain associated with the submitted e-mail address.  (ii) Sponsor, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to disqualify any person that it determines has tampered with the entry process, the integrity of the voting process, or the operation of the web site.  Use of bots or other automated process to enter is prohibited and may result in disqualification at the sole discretion of Sponsor.  (iii) Sponsor further reserves the right to cancel, terminate or modify the Promotion if it is not capable of completion as planned, including by reason of infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, force majeure or technical failures of any sort.  (iv) Sponsor Entities are not responsible for errors in the administration or fulfillment of this Promotion, including without limitation mechanical, human, printing, distribution or production errors, and may cancel, terminate or modify this Promotion based upon such error at its sole discretion without liability.  In no event will Sponsor be responsible for awarding more than the number of prizes specified in these rules.  (v) In the event this Promotion is cancelled or terminated, pursuant to subparagraph (iii) or (iv), Sponsor, in its sole discretion, may elect to select a winner from among all eligible entries received up to the date of discontinuance for any or all of the prizes offered herein.  (vi) SPONSOR ENTITIES MAKE NO WARRANTIES, REPRESENTATIONS OR GUARANTEES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN FACT OR IN LAW, AS REGARDS THIS PROMOTION OR THE MERCHANTABILITY, QUALITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE REGARDING ANY PRIZE OR ANY COMPONENT OF ANY PRIZE.  (vii) CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE THE WEBSITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THIS PROMOTION MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND/OR CIVIL LAWS, AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK REMEDIES AND DAMAGES (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ATTORNEYS’ FEES) FROM ANY SUCH ENTRANT TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW, INCLUDING CRIMINAL PROSECUTION. (viii) The value(s) of the prize(s) set forth above represent Sponsor’s good faith determination of the approximate retail value(s) thereof; the actual fair market value(s) as ultimately determined by Sponsor are final and binding and cannot be challenged or appealed.  In the event the stated approximate retail value(s) of a prize is more than the actual fair market value of that prize, the difference will not be awarded in cash or otherwise.  No substitution or compensation will be given for any portion of the prize that is not used.

11.    APPLICABLE LAWS AND JURISDICTION. This Promotion is subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations.  Issues concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules shall be governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to any principles of conflict of laws.  All disputes arising out of or connected with this Promotion will be resolved individually, and without resort to class action, exclusively by a state or federal court located in New York, New York.  Should there be a conflict between the laws of the State of New York and any other laws, the conflict will be resolved in favor of the laws of the State of New York.  To the extent permitted by applicable law, all judgments or awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket damages (excluding attorneys’ fees) associated with participation in this Promotion and shall not include any indirect, punitive, incidental and/or consequential damages.

12.    WINNER LIST. For a list containing the name of the winner, send a self-addressed stamped envelope, within six (6) months of the Judging Date, to: Winner List, “BRIDES Operation Dress Contest 2011,” 4 Times Square, New York, NY 10036.