A schoolchild that has Channel One in his or her school is told to go to ChannelOne.com
at least three times during the TV show. When the child arrives at Channel
One’s much-promoted site, the first thing they see is a pop-up ad for the Cybiko
company.
The Cybiko ad cannot be avoided. Channel One has programmed their site to
thrust this ad into children’s faces. Cybiko markets hand-held, Palm Pilot-like,
devices that allow young people to send emails without the Internet.
The Cybiko ad is enticing. "Win a Free MP3 Player" it says and once
a child clicks on this ad, they are taken off Channel One’s site, without
warning to the child, and sent to Cybiko’s site. There the Channel One
advertiser asks for a child’s "full name, complete home address, including
zip code, home phone number with area code, and date of birth."
In a more direct way, the current "NBA/Channel One NBA All-Star
Contest" shows how Channel One shakes kids down for personal information
on their own site.
When a child clicks on "Sports" the first Channel One sports news
story reads:
"Win an All-Star Weekend!
Want a once-in-a-lifetime chance to attend NBA All-Star Weekend — and report
on it for Channel One News and Inside Stuff magazine? Here’s your chance…
More »"
Clicking on "Win an All-Star Weekend" sends the child to a Channel
One page that reads:
"Want a once-in-a-lifetime chance to attend NBA All-Star Weekend — and
report on it for Channel One News and Inside Stuff magazine? Here’s your chance…
Answer the question below in 100 words or less. The person with the most creative
and best written response will receive two All-Star Passes to NBA All-Star
Weekend Feb. 8 to 10 in Philadelphia, plus travel and accommodations for you
and a chaperone. And… that’s not all… your written coverage of the event
will be featured in Inside Stuff magazine. Runners up will receive a one-year
subscription to "Inside Stuff" magazine.
Ready for your question? We want to hear something really creative!
What makes you best qualified to get the "inside stuff" from the
NBA All-Stars for Channel One News?
After you enter, be sure to vote for your favorite NBA All Stars at NBA.com!
Before submitting any personal information, please review our privacy policy.
Click Here for Official Rules"
After clicking in their birth date, the contest is officially open only to
children 13 and older, the child is asked for their first and last name, the
name of their school, their grade level at school, and their email address,
which they want the child to enter twice to make sure it has no errors. Then
they write their essay on why they should win the tickets to the NBA All-Star
game.
This request for personal information comes from Channel One on their site. Notice
in the "Official Rules" that the NBA is NOT the sponsor
of this contest, but Channel One IS. This is just one of several contests that
have run in the past few months.
Jim Metrock, Obligation president, said, "Channel One’s pursuit of personal
information is much more aggressive this school year. I have followed
this company for six years and what they are doing is very disturbing. Just
recently, they used a contest featuring the singer Jewel to get information
from children. Parents should be very uncomfortable with Channel One."
Here are the official rules:
"CHANNEL ONE NEWS AND NBA ALL-STAR WEEKEND ESSAY CONTEST
OFFICIAL RULES
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCE
OF WINNING. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. YOU MUST BE 13 YEARS OF AGE TO ENTER THE
CONTEST ONLINE.
Eligibility: 1. Eligibility: Entrant must be between 13-18
years of age and a legal resident of the 48 contiguous United States and
the District of Columbia as of November 19, 2001. Employees of National Basketball
Association and Channel One News ("Sponsor") and their respective
parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, advertising and promotion agencies and
their family members and/or those living in the same household are not eligible
to enter.
Timing: Contest begins at 6:00 p.m. PST on Monday, November
19, 2001 and ends at 11:59 p.m. PST on Tuesday, January 8, 2002.
How to Enter: Enter the ‘Channel One News and NBA All-Star
Weekend Contest’ by submitting an essay of 100 words or less about the stated
contest question What makes you best qualified to get the "inside stuff" from
the NBA All-Stars for Channel One News? Your entry must be your own original
creation. Submit your entry by going to www.ChannelOne.com and entering via
the Channel One News and NBA All-Star Weekend Contest link. Entries must be
received by January 8, 2002, 11:59 p.m. PST. Multiple entries are not permitted.
More than one entry from any person or e-mail address will void all entries
from that person or e-mail address.
Judging Criteria: Each entrant selected as a potential winner
must comply with all terms and conditions set forth in these Official Rules,
and winning is contingent upon fulfilling all such requirements. The prize
winners will be selected by creativity, originality and adherence to the
stated contest question in equal measure. The contest will take place under
the supervision of the Sponsor. Participants agree to be bound by these rules
and the decision of the judges, whose decisions are final and binding in
all matters related to this contest. Ten (10) entries will be chosen as semi-finalists
by the editor of ‘Inside Stuff’ Magazine on or about January 16, 2002. A
panel of judges comprised of Channel One Network, the NBA, and ‘Inside Stuff’
Magazine will select one (1) finalist from among the ten (10) semi-finalists
selected to be the grand-prize winner. The finalist will be notified on or
about January 18, 2002.
Prizes: The following prizes will be awarded:
Entry deadline: January 8, 2002
Prize: Ten (10) semi-finalists will each receive a one-year
subscription (total of 6 issues) to ‘Inside Stuff’ Magazine.
Approximate Retail Value: $210.00
Grand Prize: One (1) grand-prize winner will receive two (2)
passes to attend certain events chosen at the sole discretion of sponsor
at the NBA All-Star Weekend in Philadelphia, PA. (Winners under 18 years
of age must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian). Prize package
includes round-trip coach airfare for two (2) from airport nearest winner’s
city determined by Channel One Network, to Philadelphia, PA (within the 48
contiguous states), one (1) hotel room for two (2) nights (and related hotel
and airport taxes), and round-trip transportation from winner’s home to airport,
and round-trip transportation from Philadelphia airport to hotel. (Transportation
within Philadelphia, meals, telephone charges and other incidentals are responsibility
of the winner). The grand prize winner will have the opportunity to write
an article based on their experience at the All-Star Weekend to be featured
in ‘Inside Stuff’ Magazine (issue date TBD).
PASSES MAY ONLY ALLOW ACCESS TO CERTAIN EVENTS. RESTRICTIONS
MAY APPLY.
Approximate Retail Value: $3,640.00
Total Number of prizes: 11
Total Approximate Retail Value of All Prizes: $3,850.00. Sponsor
is not responsible for lost or mutilated prizes and none will be replaced.
Prize is nontransferable and must be accepted as awarded. No cash or other
substitution may be made, except by the Sponsor in the event that the prize
cannot be awarded for any reason, in which case, Sponsor will award a prize
of equal or greater value. All taxes, fees and surcharges on prizes are the
sole responsibility of winner.
Other Terms and Conditions: Potential winners will be required
to sign and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Liability Release, and where
lawful a Publicity Release, within seven (7) days of notification, failing
which the potential winner will be disqualified and another winner selected
in the place of the disqualified person from the semi-finalist entries. If
any prize or prize notification is returned as non-deliverable, the potential
winner will be disqualified and another potential winner will be selected
in the original winner’s place. By accepting prize, the winner agrees that
the Sponsor will have the right to photograph the selected entrant. Entry
constitutes permission to use the entrant’s name, picture, likeness, school
and city and state of residence for purposes of trade, publicity or promotion
for no additional compensation. All entries must be original, must not have
won previous awards and must not infringe on any third party rights. Submission
of entry constitutes consent of entrants and their parents/legal guardians
to irrevocably assign to the Sponsor all rights in the entry, including but
not limited to, intellectual property rights. Submission of an entry grants
Sponsor and its agents the right to publish, produce, use, adapt, edit and/or
modify the entry in any way and in any and all media, without limitation
and without compensation to the entrant, or their parents/legal guardians.
By submitting entries to the contest, the sender grants permission for the
Sponsor to use his/her first name, age and state of residence on ChannelOne.com.
No personally identifiable information from children under 13 will be posted
online. Entries with the following inappropriate content will not be considered:
lewd, foul or obscene language or depictions; the promotion or solicitation
of illegal activity; or speech that demeans or defames a person or group
on the basis of gender, race, ethnicity, religious affiliation or national
origin. The selected entrant and their parent/legal guardian will be required
to execute an affidavit of eligibility, compliance with contest rules and
release of liability/publicity, where legal.
All entrants release the Sponsor, its affiliates, parents,
subsidiaries, directors, officers, employees and agents, and all others associated
with the development and execution of this contest from any and all liability
for injury, loss or damage of any kind resulting from participation in this
contest. Sponsor’s decisions relating to all aspects of this contest are
final.
Miscellaneous: All entries become the sole property of Sponsor
and none will be returned. In the event of a dispute, entries made by Internet
will be deemed made by the authorized account holder of the e-mail address
submitted at the time of entry. The "authorized account holder" is
deemed the natural person who is assigned to an e-mail address by an Internet
access provider, service provider or other online organization that is responsible
for assigning e-mail addresses for the domain associated with the submitted
e-mail address. A potential winner may be requested to provide Sponsor with
proof that the potential winner is the authorized account holder of the e-mail
address associated with the winning entry. If for any reason the Contest
is not capable of running as planned, including due to infection by computer
virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failure,
human error or any other cases beyond the control of Sponsor that corrupt
or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, or proper conduct
of the Contest, Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion, to disqualify
any individual who tampers with the entry process, and to cancel, terminate,
modify or suspend the Contest. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for any
error, omission, failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to,
or alteration of, entries. The telephone network or lines, computer online
systems, servers, or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of
any e-mail or entry to be received by Sponsor on account of technical problems
or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any web site, any combination
thereof, or otherwise, including any injury or damage to entrant’s or any
other person’s computer related to or resulting from participation or downloading
any materials in the Contest. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for any computer,
online or technical malfunctions that may occur or for any lost, late, misdirected,
illegible, postage-due or mutilated mail. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT
TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGIMATE OPERATION OF
THE CONTEST MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH
AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES FROM ANY SUCH
PERSON TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
Winners’ List: A complete list of winners will be available
after January 18, 2001 by sending a stamped self-addressed envelope to ChannelOne.com/NBA
All-Star Weekend Contest, 1440 Broadway, 17th Floor, New York, New York 10018.
Sponsor: The Sponsor of this Contest is Channel One Network
whose address is 1440 Broadway, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10018."
