1.    DESCRIPTION: The Startup Challenge is designed to motivate and reward Participants who develop innovative, creative, and original applications. Prizes will be awarded to those Participants who submit the best Entries as determined in the sole discretion of the Judges. No payment is necessary to enter or win.

2.    The Challenge is sponsored by Zimbabwe Online ("ZOL"), a Zimbabwean Company with principal place of business at 3rd Floor, Greenbridge, Eastgate, Harare, Zimbabwe. The challenge is coordinated by the Start-up Challenge Team as led by Techzim in collaboration with the sponsor.

3.    BINDING AGREEMENT: By entering the challenge, a participant is agreeing to these Terms and Conditions ("Terms"). Therefore, please read these Terms prior to entry to ensure you understand and agree. If a Participant is part of a team, each member of the team must read and agree to these Terms.
Special Note to Participants who are entering as part of a team: If a Participant enters as part of a team, the Participant understands and agrees that, in order for his/her team to be eligible to participate, all of the members of the team must accept the Terms in the manner specified by ZOL and Start-up Challenge.

4.    ELIGIBILITY: The Challenge is open to individuals, teams of individuals, and business entities (each individual, each team, each individual member of a team, and each entity is referred to as a "Participant" in these Terms) in Zimbabwe.

5.    REGISTRATION: All Participants must provide certain registration information when submitting an Entry, including but not limited to full name, mobile phone number, working email address, and if possible, mailing address ("Registration Information").

6.    LANGUAGE: Entries must, at a minimum, support English or Shona or Ndebele language use but may also support other languages at the discretion of the participant.

7.    SEMI-FINAL ROUND JUDGING: Finalist from the semi fainals will be selected at the Start-up Challenge event to be held on 3 August 2011. Up to 5 highest-ranking applications will be selected at this event. Judges will review and assign each entry a score from one (1) to five (5) on each of the criteria set forth in Section 7(a). The highest ranking applications will advance to the Final Round 2. Ratings submitted by Judges are final and binding. If less than 5 start-ups make it to the finalists, an announcement will be made for more start-ups to enter another round 2 demo at an event 2 weeks from the BarCamp where the balance of remaining start-up slots to make 5 will be selected.

  a.    QUALIFICATION: For Semi Final Round Judging, Judges will consider each Entry under the following equally-weighted judging criteria:
    i.    Originality of Concept. - Does the application introduce a great new idea?
    ii.    Relevance to Market. - Is the application catering for the Zimbabwean and African Market?
    iii.    Polish and Appeal. - Is the application easy to use and aesthetically appealing?
    iv.    Indispensability. - Is the application compelling and essential, such a utility a user can't live without?
    v.    Skills and background of team members. - Is the skills mix and background of the team members sound?
  Using these criteria, Judges will evaluate each Entry and give it a score of one (1) to five (5) on each criterion.

8.    FINAL ROUND JUDGING
ENTRIES: Final Round Judging is only for the 5 entries selected as Qualifying Entries in the Semi-Final Round Judging. The 5 finalists from round 1 will make improvements or modify their application between the two Rounds of Judging. The ultimate winner will be selected from the 5 startups based on the same judging criteria from Round 1.

SELECTION: The final score for each Qualifying Entry will be based on the scores returned by the Judges. Qualifying Entry with the highest composite scores will be designated the Overall Winning Entry and the Participants responsible for that Entry will receive the top prize. In the case of a tie, the panel of Judges review the Qualifying Entries and determine which Entry or Entries from among those that are tied will be designated the Winning Entry.
* If any Participant selected as a potential prize recipient for a given Prize is disqualified for any reason, the next highest-scoring Participant will be designated as the recipient of that prize.
* All potential Prize recipients will be announced on, before or about August 31st, 2011

9.    PRIZES
  a.    SEMI-FINAL ROUND ONE CATEGORY PRIZES: The 5 finalists will each win US$500 in cash and US$500 value in ZOL Internet services. All Prizes are contingent on Participant's compliance with these Terms.

  b.    FINAL ROUND PRIZES: The Participant responsible for the Overall Winning Entry will receive an additional prize of US$5,000 in cash and US$5,000 in ZOL Internet services. All Prizes are contingent on Participant's compliance with these Terms.

  c.    DISTRIBUTION OF PRIZES: ZOL and Start-up Challenge are not responsible for decisions on the division or distribution of the prizes among or between team members or Business Entities. Instead, decisions on how to distribute or divide any prize among individual team members or within Business Entities is the sole responsibility of the participating team or Business Entity.

In the case of teams of individuals, ZOL and Start-up Challenge will offer two options on how the applicable Prize may be awarded: (1) ZOL and Start-up Challenge will award the entire Prize to one member of the team who is identified by each member of the team to receive the prize by being listed as the first member to register and who is then responsible for making any division or distribution of the prize to all members of the team, or (2) ZOL and Start-up Challenge will distribute an equal share of the Prize to each member of the team. All members of a team chosen to potentially receive a Prize must agree on either Option #1 or Option #2 as the method of distribution.

In the event the Participant is a member of a Business Entity, ZOL and Start-up Challenge will award the applicable Prize to the individual identified by a person with authority to bind the Business Entity. The Business Entity is then responsible for any division of the Prize. In addition, a corporate officer or a person entitled to bind the Business Entity must also approve the receipt of the Prize.

Failure to comply with these requirements will mean that the team or Business Entity has forfeited the applicable Prize and ZOL and Start-up Challenge may, in its sole discretion, select an alternative Participant to receive the Prize.

  d. TAXES: PAYMENTS TO POTENTIAL PRIZE RECIPIENTS ARE SUBJECT TO THE EXPRESS REQUIREMENT THAT THEY SUBMIT TO ZOL ALL DOCUMENTATION REQUESTED BY ZOL TO PERMIT IT TO COMPLY WITH ALL APPLICABLE LOCAL TAX REPORTING AND WITHHOLDING REQUIREMENTS. ALL GRANTS WILL BE NET OF ANY TAXES ZOL IS REQUIRED TO WITHHOLD. ALL TAXES IMPOSED ON THE PRIZE, OTHER THAN THOSE ZOL IS REQUIRED TO WITHHOLD, ARE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PRIZE RECIPIENT.

In order to receive a prize, potential prize recipients must submit the tax documentation requested by ZOL or otherwise required by applicable law, to ZOL or ZIMRA, all as determined by applicable law. The potential prize recipient is responsible for ensuring that (s)he complies with all the applicable tax laws and filing requirements. If a potential prize recipient fails to provide such documentation or comply with such laws, the prize may be forfeited and ZOL and Start-up Challenge may, in its sole discretion, select an alternative potential prize recipient.

  e. NOTIFICATION: Participants who are chosen as potential Prize recipients will be notified by email on, before or about August 31, 2011

10.    GENERAL CONDITIONS: Prizes are awarded without warranty of any kind from ZOL and Start-up Challenge, express or implied, without limitation, except where this would be contrary to Zimbabwe’s laws or regulations.

11.    INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS: As between ZOL, Start-up Challenge and the Participant, the Participant retains ownership of all intellectual and industrial property rights in and to the Entry that Participant had before submission.

12.    PRIVACY AND PUBLICITY: Participants agree that personal data entered during the registration, including name, phone number, and email address may be processed, stored, and otherwise used for the purposes and within the context of the Challenge.

13.    WARRANTY AND INDEMNITY: All Participants warrant that their Entries are original and that they are the sole and exclusive owner and rights holder of the submitted Entries and all included content, that no third parties will make any challenges or claims as to ownership or fraud, and that they have the right to submit the Entries in the Challenge and grant all required licenses.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, each Participant indemnifies and agrees to keep indemnified ZOL and Start-up Challenge at all times from and against any liability, claims, demands, losses, damages, costs and expenses resulting from any act, default or omission of the Participant and/or a breach of any warranty set forth herein.

14.    ELIMINATION: Any false information provided within the context of the Challenge by any Participant including information concerning identity, mailing address, telephone number, email address, or ownership of right, or non-compliance with these Terms, or the like may result in the immediate elimination of the Participant from the Challenge. ZOL and Start-up Challenge further reserve the right to disqualify any Entry that it believes in its sole and unfettered discretion infringes upon or violates the rights of any third party, otherwise does not comply with these Terms, or violates Zimbabwe law.

15.    FORUM AND RECOURSE TO JUDICIAL PROCEDURES: These Terms shall be governed by, subject to, and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Zimbabwe. If any provision(s) of these Terms are held to be invalid or unenforceable, all remaining provisions hereof will remain in full force and effect. To the extent permitted by law, the rights to litigate, seek injunctive relief or make any other recourse to judicial or any other procedure in case of disputes or claims resulting from or in connection with this Challenge are hereby excluded, and all Participants expressly waive any and all such rights.

16.    WINNER'S LIST: You may request a list of winners after August 31, 2011 by writing to us.

ZOL is a pround sponsor of this event.