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Confessions of a Carpet Stain Contest
Official Rules

Revised: 8/24/10

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR CLAIM PRIZE(S). THE CONTEST IS OPEN TO LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE 48 CONTIGUOUS UNITED STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AGE 18 AND OLDER AT TIME OF ENTRY. VOID IN ALASKA ("AK"), HAWAII ("HI"), PUERTO RICO ("PR") AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

1. ELIGIBILITY: The Confessions of a Carpet Stain Contest ("Contest" or "Promotion") is open only to legal residents of the 48 Contiguous United States and the District of Columbia who are 18 years of age and older at time of entry ("participants" or "contestants"). Employees, officers and directors of WD-40 Company ("WD-40" or "Sponsor"), Alcone Marketing Group ("Contest Administrator"), Soap Opera Digest/Source Interlink Companies, Inc., and each of their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, corporate affiliates, advertising and promotion agencies, entities engaged in the design and implementation of the Contest, as well as members of their immediate family or same household are not eligible. "Immediate family" means spouse and children of such individuals regardless of where they reside. Void in AK, HI, PR and where prohibited by law.

2. CONTEST PERIOD: The entry period for the Contest begins on August 24, 2010 at or around 3:00:00 p.m. Pacific Time ("PT") and ends on October 31, 2010 at 11:59:59 p.m. PT, subject to the Weekly Entry Periods as set forth in Rule 4 below ("Contest Period"). A week begins on Monday at 12:00:01 a.m. PT and ends the following Sunday at 11:59:59 p.m. PT except for Week 1 which starts on Tuesday, August 24, 2010 at or around 3:00:00 p.m. PT and ends on Sunday, August 29, 2010 at 11:59:59 p.m. PT. The Contest data base is the official time keeping device for the Contest.

3. ENTRY/HOW TO ENTER: Contestants are required to write and submit an original essay regarding their most horrifying carpet stain story. Essay may be a maximum of 200 words (included in the word counts are words such as "a", "the", "an," etc). Essays (also referred to as "submissions") that have won prizes/awards in other competitions or have been previously published in any form, including on-line, are not acceptable.

Entry Steps:

  1. Access http://spotshot.com/stain-contest and click on the link for the Registration Page and complete Official Entry Form.
  2. Follow instructions to upload Submission onto the site.
  3. Click on the link to submit as directed, during Contest Period.

Entry will not be valid without contestant checking boxes that he/she is not an employee/officer/director of WD-40 and agreeing to these Official Rules.

All entries must be received by 11:59:59 P.M. PT on October 31, 2010.

There is a limit of one (1) entry per person.

About Entries: No joint/group Entries; a single individual must be the contestant for each Entry. An Entry must be submitted in its entirety in the same on-line session. Piecemeal Entries are void and will not be accepted. Any attempt by an eligible participant to obtain more than one (1) Entry by using multiple/different e-mail addresses, identities or any other methods will void all entries by that participant and that participant will be disqualified. All Entries become the exclusive property of Sponsor. DO NOT INCLUDE PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION (E.G., E-MAIL ADDRESS OR PHONE NUMBER) IN ESSAY. Any Entry which Contest Administrator, in its sole opinion, deems to be inappropriate for publication or viewing will not be considered. An Entry can neither name, depict, nor describe, any person (other than entrant him/herself), living or dead, nor can an Entry contain the trademark or trade name (except only for the Spot Shot trademark, if contestant so chooses), or copyrighted material, including music lyrics, of any person or entity. All content (other than the Spot Shot trademark) must be original to contestant. If any Entry is determined in Contest Administrator's sole discretion to infringe on the rights of any third party, that Entry will be disqualified.

Use of Entries and Names: By submitting an Entry, contestant: (a) grants a license to Sponsor and its agents to use contestant's name (first name, last initial) on the Sponsor's web sites, including spotshot.com or any other web site related to the Contest, or to use and edit Essay at any time or times, in any media, and contestant shall have no right of notice, review or approval of any such use of the Essay and/or contestant's name; and (b) acknowledges and agrees that the Essay, and/or his/her name, image or likeness, may be used in whole or in part, alone or in combination with other works, and that the Essay may be changed, altered, edited or modified, used in distorted, illusory or composite form, or in any other manner, as solely determined by Sponsor.

By entering, each contestant represents and warrants that:

(i) the Essay is the sole, exclusive, and original creation of contestant and has not been copied in whole or in part from any other work; and,

(ii) the Essay does not violate or infringe any copyright, trademark/trade name, or intellectual property right, other proprietary right of any person or entity and,

(iii) the Essay is the sole and exclusive property of contestant;

(iv) the Essay is truthful in all material respects and,

(v) the Essay has not been published, or submitted in any other competition.

Sponsor will not respond to any questions about an Entry or the Contest. Once an Entry is submitted, it cannot be changed, altered or modified by a contestant.

4. SELECTION OF THE WEEKLY FINALISTS: For each week of the Contest Period, Contest Administrator will select its (5) favorite essays from all eligible entries received prior to the close of that Weekly Entry Period; see Table 1 below. The contestants who submitted the selected essays will be Weekly Finalists. Entries not selected in a given Contest week will be retained for possible selection in subsequent Contest weeks. In selecting essays to be Weekly Finalists, Contest Administrator will pre-screen essays/entries (i.e., conduct a preliminary, non-binding assessment of eligibility of contestant and whether essay addresses the applicable requirements as per Rule 3, that the length of Essay is proper and Essay does not contain material which is unsuitable or does not meet the criteria as set forth in these Official Rules). If an essay is found not to satisfy the pre-screening requirements, such essay/entry will be disqualified and an alternate essay/entry selected for the appropriate Contest week. If for any given Contest Week fewer than (5) eligible entries are received, unawarded Finalist Prizes for that Contest Week will be made available in a subsequent Contest Week as posted on the Contest website.

Table 1: Weekly Entry Periods

Contest Week

Weekly Entry Period [except for Contest Week 1, which starts on 8/24 at or around 3:00:00 p.m. PT, each Contest Week starts at 12:00:01 a.m. PT and ends at 11:59:59 p.m. PT.]

Finalist Selection Date (on or about):

1

8/24/10-8/29/10

8/30/10

2

8/30/10-9/5/10

9/7/10

3

9/6/10-9/12/10

9/13/10

4

9/13/10-9/19/10

9/20/10

5

9/20/10-9/26/10

9/27/10

6

9/27/10-10/3/10

10/4/10

7

10/4/10-10/10/10

10/11/10

8

10/11/10-10/17/10

10/18/10

9

10/18/10-10/24/10

10/25/10

10

10/25/10-10/31/10

11/1/10

Odds of being selected as a Weekly Finalist depend on the number of eligible entries received prior to the end of the applicable Contest Week.

5. SELECTION OF GRAND PRIZE WINNER:

a. All Weekly Finalist Entries will be judged by Contest Administrator and Sponsor using the following criteria: (a) Creativity (up to 35 points), (b) Originality (up to 35 points) (c) Adherence to Theme (up to 20 points). Up to 10 bonus points are available based on how Spot Shot is incorporated in Essay.

b. The Weekly Finalist whose essay had the highest cumulative score will receive the Grand Prize ("Grand Prize Winner"), in addition to the Finalist Prize as indicated above. All 50 Weekly Finalists will receive a Finalist Prize. In the event of a tie, the Grand Prize winning Entry will be the Entry (among tied Entries) with the higher/highest score in "Creativity", and if there is still a tie, the tied Entries will be re-judged by Contest Administrator and Sponsor based on the criteria in subsection (a) above.

6. NOTIFICATION: Weekly Finalists will be notified by email and must respond by return email to accept prize. If no response is received within 24 hours or if notification is returned as undeliverable, Weekly Finalist will be disqualified and an alternate Weekly Finalist will be selected and notified for the applicable Contest Week. Only after receipt of return email will Weekly Finalist and their essay be featured on spotshot.com.

Grand Prize Winner will be notified on or about December 15, 2010 and will be required to sign and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, a Liability Release and, except where prohibited by law, a Publicity Release; and other documents as requested by or on behalf of Sponsor. If Affidavit/Release and/or any additional documents and releases required are not received within three (3) business days of date stated on notification, or if notification is returned as undeliverable, or if Grand Prize winner is found to be ineligible or not in compliance with these Official Rules, the Grand Prize winner will be disqualified and an alternate Grand Prize winner will be selected from all remaining Weekly Finalists.

7. PRIZES/APPROXIMATE RETAIL VALUES ("ARV"): Fifty (50) Finalist Prizes (Five (5) Finalist Prizes for each Contest Week): A Prize Pack consisting of a Spot Shot Free Product Coupon and a 1 year subscription to Soap Opera Digest magazine. ARV: $213.47 each. One (1) Grand Prize: A trip for Grand Prize Winner and one (1) guest to attend the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards. While date of the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards is currently unknown, it is projected to be in June or July 2011. Grand Prize Winner must be able to travel on dates specified by Sponsor so as to attend the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards or Grand Prize will be forfeited without compensation of any kind (however, in such case, contestant will be able to retain Finalist Prize). Trip consists of round-trip coach air travel from major airport near Grand Prize Winner's residence to location hosting the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards (believed to be in the 48 contiguous U.S.), standard hotel accommodations for two (2) nights (1 room - double occupancy), and round-trip transfers between ground or air transportation and hotel and between hotel and 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards, tickets to the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards and $500 spending money. Exact travel dates and event location will be identified in Weekly Finalist notification materials. ARV of Trip: $4,975.00

8. PRIZE RESTRICTIONS: No substitution, cash redemption or transfer of prize, but, for Grand Prize, Sponsor reserves the right to substitute trip prize in whole or in part with prize of comparable or greater value if trip prize becomes unavailable for any reason. An IRS Form 1099 for the fair market value of the Grand Prize and Finalist Prize will be filed as per applicable law and a copy provided to the Grand Prize Winner. Product coupon component of Weekly Finalist Prize is subject to terms/conditions of use as stated thereon, which may include expiration date. All applicable federal, state, local and other taxes and expenses not stated related to acceptance and use of a prize are solely the responsibility of the winners. If a prize cannot be accepted as stated prize will be forfeited in its entirety and, with the respect to the Grand Prize, to the extent feasible will be awarded to an alternate winner (i.e., the Weekly Finalist with the next highest cumulative score); however, winner will retain Finalist Prize if Grand Prize is forfeited. Grand Prize travel is subject to airline and hotel availability, and other restrictions apply. Trip must be completed on dates and at times determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion so as to attend the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards. Once a reservation has been confirmed, no changes are permitted. If Grand Prize winner lives within approximately 150 miles of event location, once known (as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion), ground transportation will be provided in lieu of air transportation and winner will not receive any substitute prize or compensation in conjunction therewith. Reservations and airline tickets are non-refundable for cash or credit, non-transferable and non-changeable once issued. If lost, they will not be replaced. Grand Prize Winner and travel guest must travel on same itinerary on dates and at times approved by Sponsor. Travel guest of Grand Prize Winner (if guest is under the age of 18, his/her parent or legal guardian; i.e., the Grand Prize Winner) must execute a Liability Release and, where legal, Publicity Release within a specified time prior to issuance of travel documents. Actual value of Grand Prize will vary depending upon trip destination/event location, winner's residence and time of travel. If the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards are cancelled or postponed, the Sponsor may substitute another "red carpet event" in its sole discretion and such substitution along with fulfillment of the other elements of the Grand Prize and award of the Finalist Prize shall represent Sponsor's entire obligation to Grand Prize winner.

9. General Conditions: By participating, contestants agree (a) to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of Sponsor and Contest Administrator which decisions shall be final and binding in all matters relating to the Contest; (b) that Sponsor, Contest Administrator, Soap Opera Digest/Source Interlink Companies, Inc., their respective affiliates, parent companies, subsidiaries, distributors, advertising and promotion agencies, and their respective officers, directors, employees, representatives and agents (individually and collectively "Releasees") are released, will have no liability whatsoever for, and shall be held harmless by contestants against any and all liability for any injuries, losses or damages, rights, claims and actions of any kind to person(s), including personal injury, death, or damage to or loss of property, or intellectual property, resulting in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, in connection with the acceptance, possession, misuse or use of prize(s) or participation in any Contest related activity; (c) that they have read and understand the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use of spotshot.com; (d) to indemnify Sponsor and Contest Administrator for any unauthorized use or misuse of or modification to any prize; (e) that contestants who do not comply with these Official Rules, or who attempt to interfere with this Contest in any way shall be disqualified and (f) that winner, by acceptance of prize(s), except where legally prohibited, grants permission for Sponsor (and agrees to confirm such permission in writing) and those acting pursuant to Sponsor's authority to use, in perpetuity, winner's name, picture, voice and/or likeness, biographical information and statements and prize information, and Essay (and notwithstanding anything to the contrary in these Official Rules licenses the use of the Essay to Sponsor, which may be altered, changed, modified, edited, used alone, together or with other works, and/or used in distorted, illusory or composite form, as solely determined by Sponsor) for advertising, trade and promotional purposes without further compensation, at any times or time, in all media now known or hereafter discovered worldwide, and on the Internet and/or World Wide Web, without notice or review or approval. Winning Essays will be deemed a Work Made For Hire under the Copyright laws of the United States, but if it cannot be so deemed, then winner irrevocably sells, assigns and transfers to Sponsor all right, title and interest in and to his/her Essay, including but not limited to all copyright and trademark rights, in the United States and worldwide, therein, for valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged. Winner hereby waives in favor of Sponsor, all rights of "Droit Moral" or "Moral Rights" or any similar rights or principles of law that winner may now or later have in the Essay. Upon request of Sponsor, winner shall execute and deliver such additional instrument of sale, transfer and assignment, as may be solely deemed by Sponsor, reasonably necessary to establish the ownership of record of the right, title and interest in and to the Entry and of the copyrights transferred hereunder, and the waiver of all rights of "Droit Moral" or "Moral Rights" or any similar rights or principles of law and to record and perfect same. Should Sponsor fail to request the said assignment as stated, that shall not be deemed a waiver of Sponsor's rights and Sponsor may at a later time request the transfer and/or assignment.

10. LIABILITY LIMITATIONS: Participation in Contest is subject to the Web site's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use at spotshot.com. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THE WEB SITE'S PRIVACY POLICY AND TERMS OF USE, DO NOT ENTER THE CONTEST, PROVIDE ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION ON THE WEB SITE OR OTHERWISE USE THE WEB SITE. The Releasees are not responsible for and shall not be liable for: (a) printing or typographical errors in any Contest-related materials and in the event of any inconsistency between Contest-related materials and these Official Rules, these Official Rules shall govern and control, (b) technical failures of any kind including but not limited to electronic, hardware or software program, network, telephone (including wireless devices and/or handsets), Internet, website, ISP availability or computer malfunctions, failures, or difficulties of any kind, including without limitation, computer malfunction or by any human error which may occur in the administration, collection and processing of Entries/Essays; (c) failed, incomplete, garbled or delayed computer transmissions; (d) lost, late, undeliverable, misdirected or incomplete or inaccurate Entries, Essays; (e) unauthorized human or other intervention in any part of the entry process or the Contest; (f) any error or condition that may cause the Contest to be disrupted or corrupted, regardless of cause; or (g) any injury or damage to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, by participation in the Contest or receipt or use or misuse of any prize. If, for any reason, a contestant's Entry is confirmed to have been erroneously deleted, lost, or otherwise destroyed or corrupted, contestant's sole remedy is to submit another Entry in the Contest, provided that, it is possible to submit another Entry in accordance with these Official Rules prior to the end of the Contest.

Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, modify, terminate or suspend the Contest or any portion thereof should the Contest be incapable of running as planned for any reason, including viruses, bugs, technical difficulties, unauthorized intervention, suspected or actual electronic tampering, fraud, or other causes corrupt the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper play of the Contest. In the event of cancellation, termination or suspension, notice thereof will be posted at spotshot.com and winners will be selected by Contest Administrator in a manner determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion to be fair, appropriate and consistent with these Official Rules. Contest Administrator (on behalf of Sponsor) reserves the right to void any Entries determined by Contest Administrator in its sole discretion to have been submitted fraudulently or in contravention of the Official Rules. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY A PARTICIPANT OR ANY OTHER INDIVIDUAL TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE 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. Sponsor's failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. Contest, including construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules shall be (1) governed by the laws of the State of California without regard to choice of law or conflict of law principles (whether of the State of California or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of California; (2) any dispute, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected in any way with the Contest or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and brought exclusively in a federal or state court in San Diego County, California; (3) 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 (4) under no circumstances will contestant be permitted to obtain awards for, and contestant hereby waives all rights to claim, indirect, punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any other damages, other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses (if any), and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased.

11. Winners List: For the first name, last initial, city/state of address of the Grand Prize winner, access spotshot.com before January 31, 2011. The first name, last initial, city/state of address of the Weekly Finalists may be posted to the web site after each Contest week when feasible and practical.

SPONSOR: WD-40 COMPANY, San Diego, CA 92110.


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