My Prediction Vindicated: FluFlix Contest Entrants Will Sign Over Rights to Their Videos to Novartis for Use in Product Commercials

Novartis is sponsoring a contest -- FluFlix Video Contest -- that entices young people (over 18 years of age) to submit videos to YouTube that show how they "feel about influenza, commonly known as the flu, and how it can affect [their] everyday [lives]."

I reported on this last week and noted how this was an attempt to perform a perfect execution of the YouTube "User-Generated" Video Trick (see "Novartis Attempts Perfect Execution of Web 2.0 Trick!").

At that time, the "Official Contest Rules" were not available and I speculated that that contestants would be required to sign over their rights to their videos to Novartis who would then incorporate some of them (or clips from the videos) into branded TV commercials for Fluvirin, Novratis' flu vaccine.

Part of the Official Rules are shown at the left (click to enlarge and read). They are simply too long to reproduce in their entirety here. You can see all the rules on the FluSource web site.

It turns out that I was absolutely correct about who will own the rights to these videos. In fact, not only will Novartis own the rights to the winning videos, it will own the rights to ALL videos submitted for consideration! Here's the relevant language in the "Rules":

RULE 12: Effect of Uploading an Entry: By uploading an Entry, each Entrant irrevocably: (a) grants Sponsor and its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, legal representatives, assigns, agents, contractors and licensees (collectively, the "Promotion Parties") the unconditional, perpetual and irrevocable right and license to reproduce, encode, edit, store, record, distribute, make derivative works of, merchandise, license, sublicense, adapt and/or modify, copy, transmit, publish, post, broadcast, display, publicly perform, exhibit, and/or otherwise use or reuse (without limitation as to when or to the number of times used), the Entry and any part thereof, including, without limitation, the recording and the performances contained therein (in each case, as submitted or as edited/modified in any way by Sponsor, in its sole discretion), as well as to use the Entrant's name, Likeness, and/or statements regarding his or her participation in the Contest (with or without using the Entrant's name) in any and all media without limitation as to time or territory, and without compensation or approval from the Entrant or any other party, and (b) agrees not to grant any license to use any of his or her Entries (in whole or in part) or any component thereof for the benefit of any of Sponsor's competitors, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Each Entrant waives and renounces all intellectual property rights, privacy/publicity rights or other legal or moral rights that might preclude Sponsor's use of the Entry, and agrees not to sue or assert any claim against Sponsor for the use of the Entrant's Entry or Likeness or statements.

In addition to that, according to RULE #15, each entrant must "participate in interviews with Sponsor; permit Sponsor to use the Entrant's winning Entry, name, Likeness, hometown, voice, biographical information and excerpts from the interviews conducted with the Entrant...for purposes of advertising, promotion and publicity of Sponsor and its products."

This confirms the second part of my prediction that these videos may be used in product advertising, which, if done, would close the circle on the first-ever perfect execution of the YouTube "User-Generated" Video Trick!

For more Web 2.0 pharma marketing tricks that you too can master, see "Web 2.0 Tricks for Pharma Marketers to Be Revealed September 19 in Philadelphia."