Rohm and Haas Company’s

$pruce Up Your Home Contest

Official Rules

 

1.NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN.  A purchase of any kind will not increase chances of winning.

 

2.WHAT IS THE CONTEST:  The Rohm and Haas Company (“Sponsor”) is holding a contest that focuses on the benefit of a colorful “facelift” for the exterior of a home.  An entrant will be required to submit a brief essay describing and a photograph showing why the entrant’s home is deserving of an exterior painting makeover.

 

3.ELIGIBILITY:

 

A.         Entrants must be at least 18 years of age or older. Open only to legal residents of any of the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia;

 

B.         Entrants must own their primary residence (mortgaged property is acceptable, but leasehold possession is not);

 

C.        The contest is void where prohibited or restricted by law.

 

D.        All employees of Sponsor and the Arbor Day Foundation, their parent companies, affiliates and subsidiaries, and the immediate families and household members of each, are not eligible to enter or win.

 

E.         The contest is subject to all federal, state and local laws and regulations. 

 

 

4.HOW TO ENTER:

 

A.         Entry forms are available at www.paintquality.com/spruceup (the “Web Site”).  LIMIT:  One entry per person or household.

 

B.         Each entry must contain the following information:

 

i.         Your name, e-mail address, complete home address and telephone number.

ii.       Your brief essay (max. 200 words) describing why your home is deserving of an exterior painting makeover.

iii.      A photograph of the exterior of your home.  Photographs must be in .gif, .jpg, .jpeg, .bmp, .pict, or .raw formats.  Photographs must be no larger than 5 MB.

 

C.        All entries must be submitted on-line on the form provided at the Web Site.  In the event of a dispute as to any on-line entry, the authorized account holder of the e-mail address used to enter will be deemed to be the entrant. The "authorized account holder" is the natural person assigned an e-mail address by an Internet access provider, on-line service provider or other organization responsible for assigning e-mail addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address.  Potential winners may be required to show proof of being the authorized account holder.

 

D.        All entries must constitute the original work of the entrant.  This means that entries may not:    

i.         Contain any copyrighted material owned by anyone other than the entrant;

ii.       Contain any trademarks of any third-party.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, reference to trademarks owned by Sponsor is permitted, although absolutely not required;

iii.      Contain the likeness of any third party (other than entrant and his/her immediate family/household members who have authorized entrant to include their likenesses);

iv.     Contain third party stock photography or artwork; or

v.       Use any nudity, lewd or vulgar behavior; offensive language and/or gestures.

 

Violations of any of these limitations will disqualify the entry.  If it is possible, in Sponsor’s sole discretion and judgment, to edit the entry to remove or obscure material that may violate the above-referenced restrictions on third-party rights, Sponsor may so edit the entry in order to avoid disqualification without notice or approval.

 

E.         General Entry Conditions:

 

i.         All required elements of an entry must be submitted at the same time.  Incomplete or illegible entries, or portions thereof, will not be eligible to compete for or win a prize.

ii.       Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, misdirected, damaged, illegible, incomplete, incorrect, or misrouted entries.

iii.      Entries become the property of the Sponsor and will not be returned.

 

5.ENTRY DEADLINE: The Contest will begin at 2:00p.m. Eastern Time on September 15, 2008, and ends at 11:59:59 p.m. Eastern Time on February 1, 2009.  All entries must be electronically stamped by the designated time on February 1, 2009.  No entries will be returned.

 

6.JUDGING:

 

A.         The Sponsor will engage a panel of qualified judges to review the entries based on the contest criteria set forth below.  All decisions by the judges are final and binding.

 

B.         As an entry is received, it will be reviewed to determine if it contains all of the required information, and then it will be allocated to one of four (4) geographical regions of the country based on the address of the home identified in the entry (Northeast, Southeast, Northwest (including Alaska), Southwest (including Hawaii).  Acceptance of an entry does not constitute Sponsor’s confirmation that the entry conforms to all entry guidelines established above.

 

C.        Between February 2 and February 9, 2009, all entries will be judged based on the following criteria:

 

i.         Originality                                      25%

ii.       Imagery (visual or written)            25%

iii.      Quality of written entry                  25%

iv.     Perceived need                             25%

 

D.        The judges will select five (5) finalists from each of the 4 geographical regions, for a total of 20 finalists.  The judges also will select one alternate finalist from each region, who will only be eligible to win a consolation prize in the sole event that any of the 5 finalists from that region is disqualified from receiving a prize.  The 20 finalists will be eligible to be awarded prizes provided they fulfill all requirements set forth in paragraph G below.

 

E.         The 20 finalists will be publicly announced and their entries posted on the web site www.paintquality.com/spruceup on or about February 10, 2009.  From February 10, 2009 through March 10, 2009, the general public will be invited to go to the Web Site and vote for the entry they believe is the most deserving of the exterior home makeover. The alternate finalists will not have their entries posted to the Web Site, and will not be eligible to receive public votes. 

 

F.         The finalist receiving the highest number of popular votes will be eligible to be awarded the Grand Prize.  The finalists receiving the next 8 highest numbers of votes will be eligible to be awarded the First Prizes.  The remaining 11 finalists will be eligible to be awarded the consolation prizes.  In the event of a tie, the potential winner shall be the finalist who submitted his or her entry earliest.             

 

G.        Being awarded a prize is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth herein, including but not limited to executing an affidavit of eligibility, publicity release (where legal) and a waiver of liability and returning them to Sponsor by the date specified below.  If a finalist is disqualified from the contest, then the alternate finalist from the same region will become eligible to be awarded a consolation prize.  If the alternate finalist is unable to fulfill the requirements set forth in this paragraph, then no prize will be awarded.

 

H.         In the event that a finalist is disqualified for any reason, the alternate finalist from that geographic region will be eligible to receive the consolation prize only.  Alternate finalists are not eligible to win any other prize.  Only 1 alternate finalist will be selected for each geographic region.  Regardless of how many finalists may be disqualified from a particular region, only the 1 alternate finalist will be eligible to win the consolation prize.  However, in the event that no finalist is disqualified, then the alternate winner will not be eligible to win any prize.

           

7.PRIZES:

 

A.         ONE (1) GRAND PRIZE:   Up to $12,000 in cash and/or services for an exterior house paint job; an $8,000 gift card to be used for additional home improvement; a 5’ - 6’ Colorado blue spruce tree that will be planted on the winner’s property by the Arbor Day Foundation; and a six-month membership to the Arbor Day Foundation.  Total Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”): $20,410.00 in cash and/or services.  Sponsor may award prize in a form that will ensure that it is used for the intended purposes.  Winner’s receipt of the Grand Prize is contingent on his or her continued compliance with all terms and conditions of this Contest, including, without limitation, the conditions set forth in Subsection 7(D) and Section 8, below.  Gift card may be subject to its own terms and conditions, including, without limitation, expiration date and dormancy fees.  Sponsor is not responsible for contracting with painters.  Actual value of prize will depend on the size of the winner’s house and its condition.

 

B.         EIGHT (8) FIRST PRIZES:  Up to $5,000 in cash and/or services for an exterior house paint job; and a six-month membership to the Arbor Day Foundation.  Total ARV: $5,010.00.  Actual value of prize will depend on the size of the winner’s house and its condition.  Sponsor is not responsible for contracting with painters.

 

C.        ELEVEN (11) CONSOLATION PRIZES:  A consolation gift from the Rohm and Haas Paint Quality Institute; and a 18” - 24” Colorado blue spruce seedling spruce tree from the Arbor Day Foundation. Total ARV: $15.00.

 

D.     General:   The potential Grand Prize and First Prize winners must have their houses painted between March 11, 2009 and April 17, 2009.  All of the winners and the prizes they have been awarded will be announced publicly on Arbor Day 2009 (April 24, 2009).  Sponsor’s sole obligation with regard to the house painting prizes is delivery of the cash and/or services and expressly excludes any responsibility for obtaining or contracting for the services of consultants, architects, or skilled painters.  Any upgrades or changes that are made to the winners’ homes and are subject only to the warranties of the paint manufacturer and of the contractor hired by the winners.  Sponsor does not make any representation nor extend any warranty for such upgrades or changes and the same are to be accepted by the winner “as-is” and without warranty.  Sponsor makes no representations or warranties of any kind concerning the appearance or performance of any enhancements added thereto.

   

 

8.GENERAL CONDITIONS:

 

A.         Agreements Regarding Acceptance of Prizes:  If you are a finalist and are awarded a prize, your acceptance of the prize constitutes your agreement to use all elements of the prize (including the gift card, if applicable) towards the painting of the exterior of your home.  Sponsor or its agent may offer color and design suggestions, but the finalist has the final decision as to which colors and designs will be used to paint the exterior of his/her home.  As a further condition of acceptance of any prize, you agree to provide Sponsor with photographs of your home before the painting makeover and photographs of your home after the paint makeover to be used for promotional purposes by Sponsor.  All photographs must be sent to and received by Sponsor by December 31, 2009.

 

B.         Agreement to Abide by Contest Rules: Your participation in the Contest constitutes the full and unconditional agreement by you to abide by these Official Rules. 

 

C.        Use of winner's name, image, and likeness: Except where prohibited, by accepting a prize, winners grants to Sponsor a royalty-free, perpetual, worldwide license to use the entrant's name, voice, photograph, likeness, entry materials, opinions and biographical material (including but not limited to hometown and state) for broadcast, print and promotional purposes in connection with the contest in any media now known or later discovered.  This license shall be assignable by Sponsor to any agent, heir, related company, or designee, without any obligation to notify or seek permission of the entrant.  Winners also agree to be available for media interviews and agree to submit to Sponsor a digital photo of the winner that Sponsor will publish on its web site using the first name of the winner as the only identifying information.

 

D.        Execution of Affidavit and Release:  By entering, each entrant agrees that if selected as a finalist, he/she will sign an affidavit of eligibility and publicity release (where legal) and a waiver of liability.  The awarding of a prize is contingent upon fulfilling all terms and conditions of these Contest Rules.  Finalists will be notified by telephone on or about March 10, 2009.  A finalist must execute and return to Sponsor the eligibility affidavit, release and waiver by March 31, 2009.  The finalist will be disqualified from the contest if he/she does not execute and return the affidavit, release and waiver by that deadline. 

E.         Release Sponsor of Liability: By entering, entrants agree to release Sponsor and its officers, directors, employees and agencies (“Released Parties”) from any claim, loss, liability, damage or injury of any kind arising from their participation in the contest or their receipt or use of the contest prize.

F.         Taxes: Federal, state and local taxes, if any, are the sole responsibility of the winner.

9.MISCELLANEOUS:

 

A.         Sponsor reserves the right to cancel, suspend and/or modify the Contest, or any part of it, if any fraud, technical failures or any other factor beyond Sponsor’s reasonable control compromises the integrity or proper functioning of the Contests, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion.  In such event, Sponsor reserves the right to award the prizes at random from among the eligible entries received up to the time of this event.  Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual it finds to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of this Contest or to be acting in violation of these Official Rules.  Any attempt by any person to deliberately undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest may be a violation of criminal and civil law, 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.  Sponsor’s failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision.

 

B.         Sponsor and their promotional and advertising agencies shall have no liability and shall be released and held harmless by entrants for any damage, loss or liability to person or property, due in whole or part, directly or indirectly, by reason of the acceptance, possession, use or misuse of a prize or participation in this contest.  Released Parties are not responsible for:  (1) any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by entrants, printing errors or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Contest; (2) technical failures of any kind, including, but not limited to, malfunctions, interruptions, or disconnections in phone lines or network hardware or software; (3) unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry process or the Contest; (4) technical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Contest or the processing of entries; or (5) any injury or damage to persons or property that may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from the entrant’s participation in the Contest or receipt or use or misuse of any prize, including without limitation, any injury or damage that occurs in connection with the painting of the winners’ houses.  Sponsor recommends that Grand Prize and First Prize winners consider obtaining insurance before using the prizes.  If for any reason an entrant's entry is confirmed to have been erroneously deleted, lost, or otherwise destroyed or corrupted, entrant’s sole remedy is another entry in the Contest.  No more than the stated number of prizes will be awarded.  In the event that production, technical, seeding, programming or any other reasons cause more than the stated number of winners to be selected as set forth in these Official Rules, Sponsor reserves the right to award only the stated number of prizes by a random drawing among all legitimate, unawarded, eligible prize claims.  Sponsor does not make any representations or warranties, either express or implied, about the prizes as to any quality, usage, treatment, or character, unless explicitly stated in these Official Rules.

 

C.        Except where prohibited, entrant agrees that: (1) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Contest or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and exclusively by the United States District Court in and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania or the appropriate Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Court located in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania; (2) any and all claims, judgments and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering this Contest, but in no event attorneys’ fees; and (3) under no circumstances will entrant be permitted to obtain awards for, and entrant hereby waives all rights to claim, indirect, punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any other damages, other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses, and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased.  All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of the participant and Sponsor in connection with the Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

 

F.         Personal information collected from participants is subject to the Sponsor’s Privacy Policy, which can be accessed at the web site http://www.rohmhaas.com/wcm/privacy.page?.

 

10.DMCA COPYRIGHT INFORMATION: Sponsor expressly disclaims any and all liability in connection with the entries.  Sponsor does not permit copyright infringing activities and infringement of intellectual property rights on the Web Site, and Sponsor will remove all entries if properly notified that such entries infringes on another's intellectual property rights.  Sponsor reserves the right to remove entries from the Web Site without prior notice.  Sponsor will also terminate any entrant’s access to the Web Site if the entrant is determined to be, in the sole discretion of Sponsor, a repeat infringer.

Infringement Notification Procedure.  If you are a copyright owner or an agent thereof and believe that any portion of an entry or other content infringes upon your copyrights, you may submit a notification pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") by providing Sponsor’s Copyright Agent with the following information in writing (see 17 U.S.C 512(c)(3) for further detail):

§         A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;

§         Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;

§         Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;

§         Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact you, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail;

§         A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and

§         A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

§         Sponsor's designated Copyright Agent to receive notifications of claimed infringement is: Stephen Falk, 100 Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, PA, 19106, 215-592-3000, info@paintquality.com. For clarity, only DMCA notices should go to the Copyright Agent; any other feedback, comments, requests for technical support, and other communications should be directed to www.rohmhaas.com. You acknowledge that if you fail to comply with all of the requirements of this Section 5(D), your DMCA notice may not be valid.

Counter-Notice. If an Entrant has his/her entry removed under the above take-down procedure, and believes that the entry is not infringing, the Entrant may send a counter-notice containing the following information to the Copyright Agent:

§         Your physical or electronic signature;

§         Identification of the content that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the content appeared before it was removed or disabled;

§         A statement that you have a good faith belief that the content was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or a misidentification of the content; and

§         Your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address, a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the federal court in San Francisco, California, and a statement that you will accept service of process from the person who provided notification of the alleged infringement.

If a counter-notice is received by the Copyright Agent, Sponsor may send a copy of the counter-notice to the original complaining party informing that person that it may replace the removed content or cease disabling it in 10 business days. Unless the copyright owner files an action seeking a court order against the content provider, member or user, the removed content may be replaced, or access to it restored, in 10 to 14 business days or more after receipt of the counter-notice, at Sponsor's sole discretion.

 

11.FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION about the contest, visit the web site www.paintquality.com/spruceup..

 

12.CONTEST RESULTS:  For Contest results and/or a copy of these Official Rules, send a hand-printed, self-addressed, stamped envelope to “$pruce Up Your Home” Contest, c/o Rohm and Haas Company, attn: North American Communications, 100 Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, PA 19106-2399.

 

13.SPONSOR:  Rohm and Haas Company, 100 Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106-2399.