Official Rules

No purchase necessary. A purchase or payment of any kind will not increase your chances of winning.

  1. Eligibility: The Ghirardelli Bring Your Dark to Light Contest (the “Promotion”) is open only to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and the District of Columbia who are at least eighteen (18) years old at the time of entry and who did not purchase any equipment for purposes of entering the Promotion. Employees of Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, Smith Brothers LP, ePrize, LLC, and any of their respective related companies, parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, and agents and any agencies or other companies involved in the development or execution of the Promotion or production or distribution of Promotion materials, as well as the immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings, and children) and household members of each such employee are not eligible. The Promotion is subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Void where prohibited. The Promotion consists of an instant win game (the “Instant Win Game”) and a contest (the “Contest”).
  2. Sponsor: Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, 1111 139th Ave., San Leandro, CA 94578-2631. Administrator: ePrize, LLC, One ePrize Drive, Pleasant Ridge, MI 48069.
  3. Agreement to Official Rules: By participating in the Promotion, entrant fully and unconditionally agrees to and accepts these Official Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor and/or Administrator, which are final and binding in all matters related to the Promotion. Whether an entrant receives a prize is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth herein.
  4. Timing: The Promotion begins on May 5, 2010 at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time ("ET") and ends on September 20, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. ET (the "Promotion Period"). The Contest consists of three (3) phases as set forth in the chart below.
    Phase Starts at 12:00 a.m. ET Ends at 11:59 p.m. ET
    Submission May 5, 2010 June 30, 2010
    Judging July 1, 2010 August 1, 2010
    Voting August 2, 2010 September 20, 2010
    Administrator’s computer is the official time-keeping device for the Promotion.
  5. How To Enter:
    • The Contest: During the Submission Phase, visit www.newintensedark.com and follow the links and instructions to complete and submit the registration form, including a valid home address. P.O. Boxes are not permitted. Then, follow the directions to submit an eighteen (18) character flavor name for your idea for the next great dark chocolate flavor along with a description of what inspired your flavor idea (not to exceed two hundred and fifty (250) characters) (the "Submission") in order to receive one (1) Contest entry. By providing your Submission, you agree that it conforms to the Submission Guidelines and Content Restrictions as defined below (collectively, the “Guidelines and Restrictions”) and that Sponsor, may disqualify you from the Contest if it believes, in its sole discretion, that your Submission fails to conform to the Guidelines and Restrictions.
      • Submission Guidelines:
        • The Submission must be in text format;
        • The Submission must be in English;
        • The Submission must not exceed the character limits described above; and
        • The Submission cannot have been submitted previously in a promotion of any kind or exhibited or displayed publicly through any means.
      • Content Restrictions:
        • The Submission must not contain more than three (3) inclusions in the flavor idea and must be all natural;
        • The ingredients listed in the Submission must comply with Sponsor's current allergen statement available at http://www.ghirardelli.com/about/faq_products_allergy.aspx;
        • The Submission must not contain material that violates or infringes another’s rights, including but not limited to privacy, publicity or intellectual property rights, or that constitutes copyright infringement;
        • The Submission must not disparage Sponsor, Administrator or any other person or party affiliated with the promotion and administration of this Contest;
        • The Submission must not feature brand names or trademarks other than Ghirardelli marks, which entrant has a limited license to use to incorporate into his/her Submission for this Contest;
        • The Submission must not contain text not created by entrant;
        • The Submission must not contain text that is inappropriate, indecent, obscene hateful, tortious, defamatory, slanderous or libelous;
        • The Submission must not contain text that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any group or individual or promotes discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age; and
        • The Submission must not contain material that is unlawful, in violation of or contrary to the laws or regulations in any jurisdiction where Submission is created.
      • For all Submissions: Each entrant may enter the Contest one (1) time during the Contest Period. Submissions received from any person or email address in excess of the stated limit will be void. Submissions generated by script, macro or other automated means are void. Uploading a Submission constitutes entrant’s consent to give Sponsor a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, and display such Submission in whole or in part, on a worldwide basis, and to incorporate it into other works, in any form, media or technology now known or later developed, including for promotional or marketing purposes. If requested, entrant will sign any documentation required for Sponsor or its designees to make use of the non-exclusive rights entrant is granting to use the Submission. Released Parties (as defined in Section 9, below) are not responsible for lost, late, stolen, damaged, incomplete, invalid, un-intelligible, garbled, delayed or misdirected Submissions, all of which will be void.
    • The Instant Win Game: During the Voting Phase, follow the links and instructions to vote on the Submission you believe has the greatest public appeal and should win the Contest. You will receive one (1) Instant Win Game play for each vote you submit. After voting, click the Instant Win button to see if you're an Instant Winner. The Instant Win Game results will be instantly displayed. All potential winners are subject to verification before any prize will be awarded. Potential winners of the Instant Win Game will be provided directions for validation. Administrator is responsible for the functionality of the Instant Win Game. Limit: Each entrant may receive one (1) Instant Win Game entry per day during the Voting Phase. Any attempt by any entrant to obtain more than the stated number of plays by using multiple/different email addresses, identities, registrations and logins, or any other methods will void that entrant's plays and that entrant may be disqualified. Use of any automated system to participate is prohibited and will result in disqualification. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible or misdirected registrations, which will be disqualified.
      • In the event of a dispute regarding any play or Submission, the authorized account holder of the email address used to register or play will be deemed to be the registrant or player. The "authorized account holder" is the natural 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. Each potential winner may be required to show proof of being an authorized account holder.
  6. Winner Determination: Winners will be determined via the processes set forth below.
    • Contest:
      • Judging Phase: During the Judging Phase, Sponsor in its sole discretion will select the top fifty (50) Submissions ("Semi-Finalists") from among all eligible Submissions received based on the following criteria (“Judging Criteria”):
        • Creativity/Originality (30%):
          • Originality of flavor name submitted
          • Name is usable by Ghirardelli Chocolate Company
          • Creativity of supporting story behind flavor submission
        • Flavor Appeal (30%):
          • Has a broad appeal to consumers of dark chocolate
        • Manufacturability (20%):
          • Uses ingredients commonly available for use in the chocolate industry
          • Can be claimed as “All Natural”
          • Complies with Ghirardelli manufacturing standards
        • Fit with Intense Dark™ Brand Fit (20%)
        In the event of a tie, the entrant whose Submission received the higher score in the creativity/originality criteria, as determined by the celebrity judges in their sole discretion, will be deemed the potential Semi-Finalist. Sponsor reserves the right to select fewer than the stated number of Semi-Finalists, if, in its sole discretion, it does not receive a sufficient number of eligible and qualified Submissions. Then, a panel of celebrity judges consisting of the head Ghirardelli Chocolatier, Johnathan Lindenauer of Bon Appétit magazine, and chocolate connoisseur and author Alice Medrich will select the top five (5) Submissions (each a “Finalist”) based on the Judging Criteria. In the event of a tie, the entrant whose Submission received the higher score in the creativity/originality criteria, as determined by the celebrity judges in their sole discretion, will be deemed the potential Finalist.
      • Voting Phase: During the Voting Phase, the Finalists' Submissions will be posted in an online gallery for public voting at [www.newintensedark.com]. Individuals who meet the eligibility criteria set forth in Section 1 will be invited to vote for Finalist Submission with the greatest public appeal. Limit: Each entrant may vote one (1) time per day during the Voting Phase. Multiple votes received from any person or email address in excess of the stated number will be void. Finalists are prohibited from obtaining votes by any fraudulent or inappropriate means, including, without limitation, offering prizes or other inducements to members of the public, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Subject to the Finalists' compliance with these Official Rules, the Finalist whose Submission receives the highest number of valid votes during the Voting Phase will be deemed the potential Grand Prize winner. The remaining Finalists will be deemed First Prize winners. In the event of a tie, the entrant whose Submission received the highest score for creativity/originality, as determined by the qualified judges in their sole discretion, will be deemed the potential winner from amongst the tied Finalists. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to select an alternate Grand Prize winner should the voting appear to have been tampered with or manipulated in any way.
    • Instant Win Game: Two thousand two (2,002) random, computer-generated winning times, one (1) for each prize listed below, will be generated during the Promotion Period. If you are the first player to play the Instant Win Game at or after one of the randomly generated times, you will be a potential instant winner of the prize indicated.
  7. Winner Requirements: All potential winners must comply with all terms and conditions of these Official Rules; and winning is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements. Each potential Grand, First and Second Prize winner (parent/legal guardian if winner is a minor in his/her state of residence) will be required to execute and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Liability & Publicity Release (“Affidavit”), which must be received by Administrator within ten (10) days of the date notice or attempted notice is sent, in order to claim his/her prize. If a potential winner cannot be contacted, fails to execute and return the Affidavit within the required time period (if applicable), or prize is returned as undeliverable, potential winner forfeits the prize. Contest: In the event that the potential Grand Prize winner is disqualified for any reason, an alternate winner will be determined by the Submission with the next highest number of votes. If after three (3) attempts the Grand Prize winner is not confirmed, the applicable prize will remain un-awarded. Unclaimed First Prizes will remain un-awarded. Instant Win Game: In the event that a potential Second, Third or Fourth Prize winner is disqualified for any reason, Sponsor will award the applicable prize to an alternate winner by random drawing from among all remaining eligible entries. There will be three (3) alternate drawings after which the applicable Second, Third or Fourth Prize will remain un-awarded. Unclaimed Fifth prizes will remain un-awarded. For all Prize Winners: Acceptance of any prize shall constitute and signify winner’s agreement and consent that Sponsor may use the winner’s name, city, state, likeness, Submission and/or prize information in connection with the Promotion, worldwide, including the Internet, without limitation and without further payment or consideration, except where prohibited by law. Without limiting the generality of these Official Rules, each Contest prize winner shall irrevocably grant, transfer, convey and assign to Sponsor the entirety of the rights in and to the Submission and all renewals and extensions of copyright, and the right to secure copyright registrations thereto in perpetuity including, without limitation, the rights to use the Submission for any and all purposes in any and all media whether now known or hereafter developed, on a worldwide basis, in perpetuity. Winner accepts and acknowledges that Sponsor shall not be obligated to use the Submission and that Sponsor in its sole discretion shall have the right to refrain from using the Submission. Sponsor shall not incur any liability whatsoever to the extent Sponsor chooses to refrain from any exploitation of its rights hereunder. Winner will indemnify Sponsor, Released Parties (as defined in Section 9, below) and any licensee of Sponsor against all claims, damages, liabilities, and expenses (including reasonable counsel fees and legal expenses) arising out of any breach of these terms. All prizes (with the exception of the Grand Prize) will be fulfilled 8 — 10 weeks after the conclusion of Promotion.

    Should Sponsor, in its sole discretion, request an assignment of rights to the Submission from any entrant who is not a winner, entrant agrees to provide an irrevocable assignment, conveyance, and transference to Sponsor of all right, title, and interest in the Submission, including, without limitation, all copyrights, in exchange for a onetime payment to entrant of $250.
  8. Prizes
    • Contest: ONE (1) GRAND PRIZE: A trip for two (2) to San Francisco, CA. Trip package includes roundtrip, coach-class air transportation for two (2) from a major airport near winner’s home (determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion) to San Francisco, CA; roundtrip airport transfers via private sedan/limo; four (4) nights accommodations at the Westin St. Francis or a comparable hotel determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion (single room, double occupancy); a behind-the-scenes private tour at Ghirardelli including car service to and from the hotel and Ghirardelli; three (3) nights accommodations at the Villagio inn and Spa or comparable hotel determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion (single room, double occupancy) including a daily champagne breakfast; a wine country limousine tour; a tour or tasting at three (3) wineries determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion; an allowance for SUV or full-size rental car for length of stay; and $1,000 spending money. If rental car is part of prize: If winner does not meet requirements for rental car, that portion of the prize will be forfeited in its entirety. Winner must complete the trip on the dates determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion or prize will be forfeited. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Sponsor will make reasonable efforts to select travel dates acceptable to winner. Trip must be booked at least twenty-one (21) days prior to departure. Trip subject to availability and blackout dates. Travel must be roundtrip. Sponsor will determine airline and flight itinerary in its sole discretion. No refund or compensation will be made in the event of the cancellation or delay of any flight. Travel and accommodations are subject to availability. Travel is subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Promotion, and those set forth by the Sponsor’s airline carrier of choice as detailed in the passenger ticket contract. All expenses and incidental travel costs not expressly stated in the package description above, including but not limited to, ground transportation, meals, incidentals, passenger tariffs or duties, airline fees, surcharges, airport fees, service charges or facility charges, personal charges at lodging, security fees, taxes or other expenses are the responsibility solely of winner. Unless child of winner, travel companion must be eighteen (18) years of age or older as of the date of departure and must travel on same itinerary and at the same time as the winner. If winner is a minor in his/her state of residence, travel companion must be winner’s parent/legal guardian. Travel companion must execute liability/publicity releases prior to issuance of travel documents. If winner or his/her travel companion is under twenty-one (21) years of age, he/she will not be permitted to participate in any wine tasting or other activity involving the consumption of alcohol. Travel restrictions, conditions and limitations may apply. If in the judgment of Sponsor air travel is not required due to winner’s proximity to prize location, ground transportation will be substituted for roundtrip air travel at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Sponsor will not replace any lost, mutilated, or stolen tickets, travel vouchers or certificates. Sponsor is not responsible if any portion of the trip is delayed, postponed or cancelled for any reason, in which event that portion of prize is forfeited in its entirety and no substitution will be provided except as in Sponsor’s sole discretion. Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”): $10,000. Actual value may vary based on airfare fluctuations and distance between departure and destination. Winner will not receive difference between actual and approximate retail value. FIVE (5) FIRST PRIZES (ONE (1) PER FINALIST): Intense Dark Chocolate for a year awarded as four quarterly shipments of 14 pounds of chocolate. ARV: $1,000.
    • Instant Win Game: ONE (1) SECOND PRIZE: Intense Dark Chocolate for a year awarded as four quarterly shipments of 14 pounds of chocolate. ARV: $1,000. FIFTY (50) THIRD PRIZES: An Intense Dark Chocolate gift basket. ARV: $50. ONE (1) FOURTH PRIZE: A Bon Appetit fondu pot. ARV: $250. ONE THOUSAND NINE HUNDRED FIFTY (1,950) FIFTH PRIZES: An Intense Dark Chocolate Bar or Bag. ARV: $4. Odds of winning an Instant Win Game prize depend on the number of eligible Instant Win Game plays divided by the number of prizes available. Limit: One (1) Instant Win Game prize per person.
    For all prizes: Prizes are non-transferable and no substitution will be made unless Sponsor, in its sole discretion, determines otherwise. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize for one of equal or greater value should it become unavailable for any reason. Winners are responsible for all taxes and fees associated with prize receipt and/or use. TOTAL ARV FOR ALL PRIZES: $26,550.
  9. Release: By receipt of any prize, the applicable winner agrees to release and hold harmless Sponsor, Smith Brothers LP, Administrator, and their respective subsidiaries, affiliates, suppliers, distributors, advertising/promotion agencies, and prize suppliers, and each of their respective parent companies and each such company’s officers, directors, employees and agents (collectively, the “Released Parties”) from and against any claim or cause of action, including, but not limited to, personal injury, death, or damage to or loss of property, arising out of participation in the Promotion or receipt or use or misuse of any prize.
  10. General Conditions: Sponsor reserves the right to cancel, suspend and/or modify the Promotion, or any part of it, if any fraud, technical failures or any other factor beyond Sponsor’s reasonable control impairs the integrity or proper functioning of the Promotion, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Sponsor, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to disqualify any individual it finds to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Promotion or to be acting in violation of these Official Rules or any other promotion or in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner. Any attempt by any person to deliberately undermine the legitimate operation of the Promotion 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.
  11. Limitations of Liability: The Released Parties are not responsible for: (1) any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by entrant, printing errors or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Promotion; (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 Promotion; (4) technical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Promotion or the processing of entries; or (5) any injury or damage to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from entrant’s participation in the Promotion or receipt or use or misuse of any prize. Sponsor is not responsible for misdirected or undeliverable Submissions or for any technical problems, malfunctions of computer systems, servers, providers, hardware/software, lost or unavailable network connections or failed, incomplete, garbled or delayed computer transmission or any combination thereof. Sponsor and Administrator are not responsible for any typographical/other error in entries, selection announcement or for any liability for damage to any computer system resulting from participation in, accessing or downloading information in connection with this Promotion. 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 Instant Win Game, provided that, if it is not possible to award another entry due to discontinuance of the Instant Win Game for any reason, Sponsor, in its sole discretion, may elect to hold a random drawing from among all eligible entries received up to the date of discontinuance for any or all of the prizes offered herein. 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 prizes as set forth in these Official Rules to be available and/or claimed, Sponsor reserves the right to award only the stated number of prizes by a random drawing among all legitimate, un-awarded, eligible prize claims.
  12. Disputes: Except where prohibited, entrant agrees that: (1) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Promotion or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and exclusively by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan (Southern Division) or the appropriate Michigan State Court located in Oakland County, Michigan; (2) any and all claims, judgments and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering this Promotion, 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 entrant and Sponsor in connection with the Promotion, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of Michigan without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the State of Michigan or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of Michigan.
  13. Entrant's Personal Information: Information collected from entrant is subject to ePrize, LLC’s Privacy Policy http://www.eprize.com/privacy-policy and Sponsor’s Privacy Policy http://www.ghirardelli.com/privacy.aspx.
  14. Winner List: Winner List requests will only be accepted after the Promotion end date (listed above) and no later than December 21, 2010. For the Winner List, visit the Promotion website, complete the form at the bottom of the FAQ, and select "Request a list of winners" in the drop down.

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