Warner Brothers movie studio once again needs the help of Channel One News.
There is a new movie coming out called “The Polar Express.” It is based on the best-selling children’s book. WB, a major advertiser on Channel One has a huge amount of money involved in the movie. It is imperative that children see this movie in record numbers.
This week Channel One rolled out a “Polar Express” contest. At first look, it appears like all the other web-based contests they have run before for movies. (Remember the Channel One contest for the movie “Loser”? Remember the contest for “Eight Crazy Nights” ?)
This contest is different in that it is targeting the youngest of Channel One’s captive audience – children between 11 and 14. Warner Brothers is evidently calling the shots and they want to zero in on this most impressionable segment of Channel One’s audience.
There are many problems when you deal with children under 13. You can’t treat them like you would high school students. You have to be careful when you take any information from a young person under 13. Ideally, you shouldn’t take any information. You have to explain rules much more clearly than you do with older students. You have to get parental permission early and have numerous safeguards so that children can’t give out information that would personally identify themselves and possibly open themselves up to further marketing efforts or even endanger themselves.
When you read the “Official Rules” below, you have to wonder if Channel One’s attorneys have real law degrees. Channel One News expects all pre-teens entering this contest to read the Rules below. We have highlighted a few in red and added our own comments in [ bold print ].
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” THE POLAR EXPRESS” SWEEPSTAKES (“SWEEPSTAKES”) OFFICIAL RULES 1. Introduction: ChannelOne.com (“Sponsor(s)”) is offering the Online Sweepstakes (“Sweepstakes”). NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCE OF WINNING. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. 2. Eligibility: Entrant must be between 11-14 years of age [ This
shows what Channel One thinks of middle school students.
They are nothing but a target market to Channel One News.
There is NO special consideration for these young students.] and a legal resident of the 48 contiguous United States or the District of Columbia as of October 20, 2004. Employees of Channel One Network (“Sponsor”) and Warner Bros. Pictures Inc. (“Prize Provider” or “Warner Bros.”) and their respective parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, distributors, divisions, advertising and promotion agencies and their family members and/or those living in the same household collectively (“Contest Entities”) are not eligible to enter. By entering, participants warrant and represent that they agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the final decision of the Sponsor. [ Do
the Channel One lawyers who wrote this nonsense think
a typical 11-year-old is going to read this fine print?
Do they think they have an air-tight case against fifth-grade students?]
3. Timing: Online sweepstakes begins at 6:00 p.m. PT (9:00 p.m. ET) on Wednesday, October 20, 2004 and ends at 6:00 p.m. PT (9:00 p.m. ET) on Sunday, November 14, 2004. Mail in entries must be postmarked no earlier than October 20, 2004 and no later than November 15, 2004 and received no later than November 19, 2004 to be eligible. 4. How to Enter: Visit http://www.ChannelOne.com and click on link to the “Polar Express Sweepstakes.” Fill in required entry information. All on-line entries must be received by 6:00 p.m. PT (9:00 pm ET) on Sunday, November 14, 2004. Mail-in entries must be postmarked no earlier than October 20, 2004 and no later than November 14, 2004 and received no later than November 19, 2004. All mail-in entries must include: first name, last name, home address including street, city, state and zip code, home phone number (for notifying winners) and date of birth. Mail entries to “The Polar Express” Sweepstakes, c/o Channel One Network, 1440 Broadway, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10018. You may only enter once, via one method, to be eligible. Multiple entries will be void. [ This is going
to get Channel One News into trouble. Notice they say the
phone number is only for notifying winners. The rest of
the personally information apparently can be used for other
purposes. Also notice that Channel One’s crack team of
lawyers never mentioned parents or guardians. They want
the information from the kids FIRST. Parents can come into the picture later. ]
5. Drawing: This Sweepstakes will have one (1) drawing. 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. [
Heaven help the 12-year-old that misreads one of the sentences in this boilerplate document. ] One (1) grand-prize winner will be selected in a random drawing from all entries received on or about the entry deadline. The drawing will be conducted on or about November 23, 2004 by Sponsor, whose decisions are final and binding in all matters relating to the Sweepstakes. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received. Potential winners will be notified on or about November 24, 2004 via e-mail/mail/phone. If a potential winner cannot be contacted within five (5) days after the first attempt to contact such potential winner, an alternate entrant will be selected in his or her place at random from all eligible entries received.
6. Grand Prize: A private screening of the Warner Bros. Movie “The Polar Express” for winner and their school classmates in their grade level up to a maximum of 300 kids and chaperones combined. Each guest will receive one (1) small popcorn and one (1) small beverage. Screening will take place between November 25, 2004 and December 30, 2004, before 6pm local time, at a location chosen by the Sponsor near the winner’s home. (Sponsor and Prize Provider reserves the right to select movie-screening location, date and time based on availability). Transportation is not provided. Winner will also receive a copy of the book ‘The Art of the Polar Express– The Movie’ Maximum Approximate Retail Value: $4,530.00 Total Number of Prizes: 1 7. Total Approximate Retail Value of All Prizes: $4,530.00. Sponsors are not responsible for lost or mutilated prizes and none will be replaced. Prizes are nontransferable and must be accepted as awarded. No cash or other substitution may be made, except by Sponsors in the event that the prize cannot be awarded for any reason, in which case, Sponsors will award a prize of equal or greater value. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute items in package based on availability. All taxes, fees and surcharges on prizes are the sole responsibility of winner. 8. 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 five (5) days of notification, failing which the potential winner will be disqualified and another winner selected in the place of the disqualified person at random from all eligible entries received. ONE OF WINNER’S GUESTS MUST BE A SUPERVISING PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN. Winner’s guests must have a parental release form signed in order to participate in the screening.[ Now parents are mentioned but it’s way too late ] 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 potential winner’s place. Except where prohibited by law, the winner’s entry and acceptance of prize constitutes permission for the Contest Entities to use winner’s name, photograph, picture/portrait likeness, voice, and/or voice likeness, biographical information, and city, state of address, for advertising and promotional purposes in all media, in perpetuity without further consideration, unless prohibited by law. [
Does a 13-year-old fully understand that his or her name
and picture and address may be put on the Internet by Channel
One News? Isn’t “perpetuity” a little far reaching?] BY PARTICIPATING OR ACCEPTING THE PRIZE, PARTICIPANTS AND THE WINNER AGREE THAT THE CONTEST ENTITIES, THEIR RESPECTIVE PARENT COMPANIES, SUBSIDIARIES, DIVISIONS, AFFILIATES, ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION AGENCIES, AND ALL OF THE SPONSOR’S AND PRIZE PROVIDER’S OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES AND AGENTS, WILL HAVE NO LIABILITY WHATSOEVER FOR, AND WILL BE HELD HARMLESS BY PARTICIPANTS AND WINNER FOR ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY INJURY, LOSS OR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND TO PERSONS, INCLUDING DEATH, AND PROPERTY, DUE IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, FROM THE ACCEPTANCE, POSSESSION, USE OR MISUSE OF THE PRIZE OR PARTICIPATION IN THIS SWEEPSTAKES OR PARTICIPATION IN ANY SWEEPSTAKES OR PRIZE RELATED ACTIVITY. Subject to all federal, state and local laws. Void where prohibited. [
It is apparent that nobody at Channel One News has children
between 11-14. If they did, they would be ashamed of themselves
for directing this legal mumbo jumbo their way. Channel
One is making money from this contest. Warner Brothers
is lining the pockets of the fat cats at C1N. Channel One
is being a bully. They knowingly are using language that the children will find difficult to comprehend. ]
9. Miscellaneous: All entries become the sole property of Sponsor(s) 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(s) 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 Sweepstakes 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 causes beyond the control of Sponsor that corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, or proper conduct of the Sweepstakes, Sponsor(s) reserve(s) the right in [its/their] sole discretion, to disqualify any individual who tampers with the entry process, and to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the Sweepstakes. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, communications line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to, or alteration of, entries. The Sponsor(s) [is/are] not responsible for any problems [
This language shows the lawyers for Channel One are not
only insensitive but also lazy. Although this contest benefits
Warner Brothers, for legal purposes Channel One says they
are the sole sponsor. Why did they keep the “Sponsor(s)
(is/are) language? They just cut and pasted this language
from another document obviously aimed at adults. This type of
laziness or recklessness shows little to no concern
for the children that give up their school time to pay the salaries of Channel One employees.] or technical malfunction of any 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(s) 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 Sweepstakes. Sponsor(s) [is/are] not responsible for late, lost, illegible, incomplete, stolen, or misdirected entries. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE SWEEPSTAKES MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR(S) RESERVE(S) THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
10. Winners List: The winners’ list will be available after January 25, 2005 by sending a stamped self-addressed envelope to “The Polar Express” Sweepstakes, c/o Channel One Network, 1440 Broadway, 17th Floor, New York, New York 10018.
11. Sponsor: The Sponsor of this Sweepstakes is Channel One Network whose address is 1440 Broadway, 17th Fl, New York, NY 10018. 12. Prize Provider: The Prize Provider of this Sweepstakes is Warner Bros Pictures Inc., whose address is 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, CA 91522. 13. Copyright: THE POLAR EXPRESS and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. Ent. Inc. (s04) |
