Official Rules
The 2023 App Competition (the “Competition”) is organized and sponsored by:
the The Innovation Foundation at Oklahoma State University (“OSURF”) and
Oklahoma State University (“OSU”), through the App Center (“App Center”), Office of Technology Commercialization, and the Spears School of Business - Riata Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
There is no submission fee for entering the Competition.
OFFICIAL RULES
The Competition is governed in all respects by these rules as well as OSU’s policies and procedures and any requirements set out on the Competition website at https://cowboyinnovations.okstate.edu/appcenter/app-competition.html (collectively the “Official Rules”).
Themes
The three tracks/themes for the 2023 App Competition are;
Track 1: Applied Research
Apps that use scholarly and scientific knowledge to solve a significant problem for users.
Track 2: Health & Human Performance
Apps that improve the health and human performance of people in Oklahoma and beyond.
Track 3: Social
Apps that address social, cultural, and environmental issues.
Track 4: Energy
Apps that promote energy sustainability in personal life, business practice, regulations, and overall industry trends.
Eligibility
The Competition is open to anyone who has a valid OSU email address and is a current OSU student, employee or faculty member. Each team may have up to five members, but an individual may belong to only one team. Each team may submit more than one App Idea, but each App Idea submitted to the Competition must be the original work of the member(s) of the team submitting it. An App Idea is not eligible for the competition if: an app has already been developed from the App Idea, it has been submitted to any other competitions, or the Entrants have already received funding from any source related to the App Idea.
Entry Form
A completed official Entry Form (available on the Competition website) must be submitted no later than midnight on October 30, 2023.
A submission will be disqualified if it is incomplete, late, not consistent with one of the themes of the Competition, or otherwise does not comply with the Official Rules.
Finalists
Submissions will be evaluated by a panel of judges, and no more than twelve (12) App Ideas will be chosen as finalists.
Finalist teams will be notified of selection no later than November 07, 2023.
Finalists will be asked to submit a storyboard presentation of their App Idea by November 15, 2023.
Finalists will be invited to pitch their App Ideas to the judges at a live or virtual event to be held on November 16, 2023. The judges will select a winning team and three runner-up teams from the finalist teams who participate in the pitch event.
Prizes
The winning team in each track will receive $1000 and the opportunity to receive the App Center’s advice in designing the winning app idea. Upon acceptance of App Center support, the winning team will be connected to available funding opportunities and offered other design assistance resources.
The runners-ups teams in each track will each receive $500. All the top 12 idea team will receive $250 each. Best student idea will receive $1000.
The prize funds will be split evenly among the members of the winning team or runner-up team, as applicable. Student team members will be provided their portion of the prize funds in the form of a bursar scholarship. Non-student employee team members will receive their portion of the prize funds in the form of a salary supplement.
Additional Terms and Conditions:
General. OSU will be responsible for the interpretation of the Official Rules and for resolving any conflicts or other issues that may arise in connection with the Competition. OSU reserves the right, in its sole discretion and without notice, to change the Official Rules and to modify, suspend, cancel or terminate the Competition at any time, in which case OSU may select finalist(s), winner(s), and/or runner-up(s) or take any other action that it deems appropriate to carry out the letter or spirit of the Competition. Judge(s) will be appointed by OSU or by third party(ies) nominated by OSU and the decisions of the judge(s) are final. The Competition is subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations.
Definitions.
“App Idea” means (i) a mobile device or desktop or web application concept submitted to the Competition, whether or not such concept is ultimately disqualified from the Competition, and (ii) any related text, visual materials, or code used in the Competition or in the pitch event, (iii) and any intellectual property rights associated with any of the foregoing.
“Entrant” means any person who submits an Entry Form to the Competition or who is a member of any team that submits an Entry Form to the Competition, whether or not such person or team or such person’s or team’s App Idea or App Software is disqualified from the Competition.
IP Ownership. OSU will not own App Ideas submitted to the Competition unless the App Ideas comprise intellectual property in which OSU has an interest pursuant to OSU Policy No. 1-0202 (Intellectual Property).
Contest Ownership. OSU and its affiliates are the sole owners and operators of the Competition. By participating, entrants release Facebook and Instagram of any liability. The promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook or Instagram.
Disqualification. OSU reserves the right to disqualify any team or individual for any reason at any time, whether before, during, or after the Competition. Reasons for disqualification include but are not limited to tampering with the entry process or operation of the Competition, plagiarism or any other form of academic dishonesty, misappropriation or infringement of the intellectual property rights of others, and any failure to comply with the Official Rules. Entries must not be obscene, profane, or unsuitable for publication. Disqualified teams will forfeit any prizes awarded to them.
Communications, cash prizes, and taxes. Communications and cash awards, if any, will be made to each team through the authorized account holder (Team Lead) of the email address used to submit an App Idea on behalf of the team. The “authorized account holder” is the person assigned an email address by an internet access provider, online service provider, or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address. Entrants are responsible for the payment of any and all taxes associated with any Competition prize.
By submitting an Entry Form to the Competition, each Entrant:
agrees to comply with and be bound by the Official Rules;
agrees to and does hereby assign Entrant’s intellectual property rights in the App Idea if the App Idea comprises intellectual property in which OSU has an interest pursuant to OSU Policy 1-0202. Further, each Entrant agrees to promptly execute any document(s) as requested by OSU to evidence and effectuate any provisions of the Official Rules;
represents and warrants that Entrant’s App Idea (i) does not violate any third party’s intellectual property rights (copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, etc.); (ii) does not defame or invade the publicity or privacy rights of any person, living or deceased; (iii) is not the subject of an issued patent or pending patent application; or (iv) does not infringe in any way upon any other party’s rights;
agrees not to bring, instigate, support, maintain, or authorize any action, claim or lawsuit against the judge(s), OSURF, OSU, their respective affiliates or subsidiaries, or any employees, officers, directors, regents, licensees, transferees, or agents of the foregoing, that arises out of the submission of Entrant’s App Idea in the Competition, participation by Entrant in the Competition, selection of Entrant’s App Idea as a finalist, a winner or a runner-up, failure of Entrant’s App Idea or App Software to be selected as a finalist, a winner or a runner-up,
grants OSU permission to use, in any form including print and video, Entrant’s full name, image, likeness, role, and country of origin, in OSU’s press releases, other publications, and on the Competition website for purposes related to the Competition and/or the OSU App Center.
Limitation of Liability:
THE COMPETITION AND ANY ACTIVITIES AND SERVICES THAT MAY BE PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE COMPETITION ARE PROVIDED “AS IS”. NEITHER OSU NOR OSURF MAKES ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, ORAL OR WRITTEN, WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPETITION, INCLUDING ANY WARRANTIES OF TITLE, NONINFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY, OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NEITHER OSURF NOR OSU WILL BE LIABLE TO ANY ENTRANT OR THIRD PARTY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES FOR BREACH OF CONFIDENTIALITY, LOST PROFITS, LOSS OF OR DAMAGE TO DATA, LOSS OF BUSINESS, LOSS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS, LOSS OF COPYRIGHT PROTECTION, OR OTHER ECONOMIC DAMAGE), WHETHER ARISING IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), OR OTHERWISE, AND REGARDLESS WHETHER OSU OR OSURF WAS ADVISED, HAD OTHER REASON TO KNOW, SHOULD HAVE ANTICIPATED, OR IN FACT KNEW OF THE POSSIBILITY THEREOF. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS PARAGRAPH ARE INDEPENDENT OF, SEVERABLE FROM, AND TO BE ENFORCED INDEPENDENTLY OF ANY OTHER ENFORCEABLE OR UNENFORCEABLE PROVISION HEREOF.