THE SERIES
Digicel Rising Stars Trinidad & Tobago Series 2009 (“the Series”) is being recorded over a period from September 2009 to November 2009 and it is envisaged that the winner of the series will win the prizes as set out in these Rules and Regulations. The party responsible for the production of the series is New Reality TV T&T Ltd. (“the Production Company”)

ELIGIBILITY AND QUALIFICATION
1. Each individual performer who auditions for the Series must be not less than 16 years of age, on or before the September 5th 2009. Any person who has not achieved eighteen years of age must be accompanied to the audition by their parent or legal guardian who must consent to the participant taking part in the Series. It is a matter for the parent or legal guardian to satisfy him or herself that the participation by their child or ward in the Series will not adversely affect any educational or training process currently being undertaken by the participant.

2. The Participant must be a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago or must have a visa entitling the Participant to enter and work in Trinidad and Tobago.

All Participants must bring a valid form of photographic identification showing compliance with the eligibility criteria referred to in this clause 1. Any Participant who refuses at any time to show photographic identification when requested and given reasonable time to do so may be removed from the Series.
The following persons may be disqualified at the sole discretion of the Production Company from taking part in the Series:-

(a) Any person already professionally involved on a full time or regular basis in the music or entertainment business, including, but not limited, to any person who is already involved in a talent management or agency arrangement and/or in a contract for other performing or entertainment services other than on a once-off basis.

(b) Any persons who are involved in the production of the Series and their immediate family members, including employees, shareholders, directors and agents or representatives of production personnel for the Series, and their immediate family members, employees of Digicel and their immediate family members, employees of New Reality TV T&T Ltd. and their immediate family members and employees or immediate family members of any advertising agencies or corporate sponsors involved in the production of the Series, or immediate family members of any of the judging or administration personnel involved in the Series. Immediate family members shall include all children including step-children, all the parents and grandparents including step-parents and step-grandparents and any legal guardians or their wards.

(c) Any person who has within the previous ten years been the subject matter of a criminal conviction (other than in respect of a road traffic offence where that offence did not involve culpability for the death of a person) or any person who has been otherwise found guilty by a court of law in respect of any such criminal offences.

(d) Any person who is party to an exclusive and/or long term recording agreement, music publishing/song writing agreement, exclusive performing or merchandising services agreement in the entertainment industries which in the opinion of the Production Company would impede the Participant from participating fully in the series in the manner envisaged in these Rules and Regulations.

(e) Any person who in the opinion of the Production Company would not be capable of or in a position to fulfil the obligations expected to be undertaken by the Participant including, but not limited to, their participation in the professional music industry and in particular their participation in talent management recording and merchandising contractual arrangements in a professional manner.

(f) Any person whom in the opinion of the Production Company arising from their conduct either before or during the Series cannot be relied upon to participate in a responsible manner in the Series.

(g) Any person who in the opinion of the Production Company and given the high profile within the entertainment business likely to be achieved by the Participant, and the fact that the Participant will be seen as a role model by young people, is likely to bring either the Participant or the Series into disrepute. Included in the matters which the Production Company may give consideration to are the use of illegal drugs, excessive consumption of alcohol, persistently rowdy or irresponsible behaviour or taking part in any form of inappropriate audio-visual recording or publicity whether prior to or during the Series.

(h) If the Participant suffers any illness, injury or damage which in the opinion of the Production Company would prevent the Participant from fully taking part in the Series, including illnesses or injuries giving rise to vocal difficulty or any other difficulties.

(i) If a Participant is or becomes pregnant, and in the opinion of the Production Company cannot meet the need to ensure the welfare of both the mother and the child, on the one hand and the availability of the Participant up to the end of the Series and if applicable thereafter on the other hand.

The Production Company’s decision in respect of the qualification criteria set out above shall be absolute, final and conclusive and the Production Company may exercise the right to remove any Participant in the Series at any time during the Series if in the opinion of the Production Company the qualification criteria is not complied with.

PAPERWORK
Each participant will be required to fill out and sign the form presented by the Production Company, evidencing agreement to all the terms and conditions therein. The forms will be made available at the audition locations. As the participant advances through the Series, the participant will be expected to enter into further agreements, including without limitation, agreements in respect of talent management, recording services, touring commitments and merchandising services of the participant. If the participant is less than eighteen years of age, both the participant and the parent or legal guardian, will be expected to sign these agreements and the parent or legal guardian will be expected to satisfy themselves that the signing of such agreements is in the best interests of the participant and will not adversely affect any educational or training activities which the participant is currently involved in. Parents or legal guardians are urged to contact the Production Company if they have any doubt or want any matters clarified in respect of the obligations expected to be undertaken by the participant.

THE INITIAL AUDITIONS
Auditions will be held in Trinidad and Tobago on such dates and times and at such locations as the Production Company shall identify. The dates and times for auditions and their locations are subject to change by the Production Company at any time.

The auditions will be held at the relevant location and all participants who show up for audition on the date and within the registration period specified in the notices of the audition, will be asked to audition. Participants can either perform individually or in groups of up to four (4) in number. If numbers seeking to audition are excessive, the Production Company reserves the right to limit the number of participants at any particular location. Participants may then try other locations. Each participant will be expected to sing a song of their choice a cappella, i.e. without music or accompanied by acoustic instrument.

Participants from the preliminary audition will be selected for recall to a second and/or third round of auditions based on inter alia their talent, ability, look and style at the sole discretion of the Producer. The judging panel on each occasion may differ from location to location and the judging panels on each round may also differ at the sole discretion of the Production Company. Any participant, who has been auditioned at any one location, may re-audition on the following day. A person who auditions as an individual or as part of a group of two or more participants in one location, that participant may re-audition as a part of a group of two or more participants or as an individual (i.e. not the way they previously auditioned) at the same location.

THE SECOND AUDITION
The adjudication panel on the final audition round will select 10 participants or groups of participants from each location to go forward to a public vote which will take place at the end of the episode of the Series showing that audition. The phone and text lines allowing the public to vote will only be opened once the relevant episode has been transmitted and the result of the vote will be announced at the beginning of the next episodes transmission.

At the end of the auditions, the final 10 participants/acts selected from each location by the judges for going forward to the public vote, will be required to submit to an interview to ensure the participant or any one of the participants of the act selected fulfils the qualification criteria outlined above. The Production Company reserves the right to remove any participant from amongst the ten audition finalists selected and replace them in the event that they are of the opinion that the participant does not fulfil the qualification criteria outlined above.

Subject to the above, the participant or group of participants comprising the act that receives the most votes from the general public, will progress to the next stage in the Series which comprises live studio shows commencing in October 2009.

WILD CARDS
After all the location-based auditions have been completed and transmitted, and the results of the public vote completed and the winning participants/groups of participants comprising acts from each location have been chosen by the public, three (3) participants or groups (“the Wild Cards”) each selected by the judging panel or any method deemed reasonable by the production company will go forward with the nine (9) participants or groups (already chosen by the public vote) to the next stage in the competition, that is to the live studio shows beginning in October 2009. Additional wild cards may be added at the discretion of the production company during any phase of the show.

THE LIVE STUDIO SHOW
The final twelve (12) participants or groups must make themselves available in Port of Spain from 10th October 2009 until such time as the last show is broadcast in the 2009 series, unless earlier eliminated from the Series by the public vote or arising out of non-compliance with the eligibility criteria referred to above.

Each of the last twelve (12) participants or groups will be competing against each other live before the viewing public in the studio final shows. During these studio final shows the phone and text lines will be opened and the public will be able to vote in a manner to be decided upon by the Production Company for their favourite participant or acts.

The phone and text lines will be open for a limited period after the completion of the first studio final show and the results as to the person or persons who have received the least amount of votes from the public will be announced. These persons will then be eliminated from the competition and so on through a further series of live studio final shows until all but one of the participants or acts has been eliminated.

 

The Production Company may decide that more than one participant or act may be eliminated during any one studio final show at their discretion. All arrangements for the participation in the final studio shows and the voting arrangements for same, will be decided by the Production Company in their absolute discretion and in the event that there is any tie of votes, or any dispute or doubt about the voting arrangements, or the participant or acts to be eliminated, the Production Company’s decision shall be final and conclusive.

CONDUCT DURING THE RECORDING OF AUDITIONS OR LIVE STUDIO SHOWS
All participants and groups taking part in the auditions or in the final live studio shows shall conduct themselves in accordance with the directions of the Production Company or the persons appointed by the Production Company including the Director of the Series. If in the opinion of the Production Company, a participant or group (including any member thereof) is conducting himself/itself in any way which adversely affects the recording of the Series, or is unwilling or unable to carry out the instructions of the Production Company or the director of the Series, the Production Company shall be entitled to remove that participant or group from the audition shows or the live studio shows and the participant or group so removed, shall if the Production Company so decides, be eliminated from any further consideration as part of the competition comprising the Series.

Due to the exigencies of production of the Series and the tight schedule for the recording of the Series, the Production Company shall be entitled to remove a participant or group from the Series without prior warning, if in the opinion of the Production Company, the participant or group may adversely affect or interfere with the ongoing production of the Series. The decision of the Production Company in this regard shall be final and binding and there shall be no appeal.

The Production Company shall be entitled to require any participant or group taking part in the Series to refrain from wearing any items of clothing which displays, is connected with or otherwise involves trademarks, logos, business names or the name, image or likeness of a person living or dead and will also be entitled to require persons not to carry on to its premises/locations/venues any possessions including any weapons, liquid substances, illegal drugs or any other materials which in the opinion of the Production Company should not be carried or be in the possession of persons participating in the Series.

Any participant or group who in the opinion of the Production Company attempts to tamper with or influence any part of the process comprising the Series, whether involving any approach to any judges participating in the Series, or in any way interfering or manipulating any of the voting procedures being undertaken in connection with the Series, may be removed from the Series by the Production Company. The Production Company’s decision in this regard shall be final and conclusive.

PRIZES
The prizes available for the winning Participants or Groups in the Series are as follows:

1st TT$100,000
2nd TT$60,000
3rd TT$40,000

 

The nine (9) finalists from the auditions and the three (3) Wild Cards will all be provided with details of the contractual arrangements in relation to the Prizes. The contractual arrangements will be between the participants/groups and New Reality TV T&T Limited. The Production Company recommends that the participants/groups retain their own Attorney-at-Law to advise them on the contractual arrangements which they will be asked to enter into.

If having considered the contractual arrangements any participant/group decides that they are not willing to enter into those contractual arrangements or declines to do so when required, the Production Company reserves the right to withdraw the participant/group from the Series and replace them with participants/groups or other persons which the Production Company may choose in its absolute discretion.

GENERAL CONDITIONS
By participating in the auditions and the ongoing Series, participants/groups agree to be bound by these rules and the decisions of the Production Company as final and conclusive, and any arrangements made by the Production Company including the appointment of panels of judges and with respect to the voting of the audience.

The Production Company shall be solely and exclusively entitled to use all or any material recorded as part of the Series, including any and all material recorded by any participant/group as part of or in connection with the Series in all media now known or hereafter to be invented worldwide and in perpetuity, and in particular without limitation of the foregoing for the publicity and promotion of the Series and to freely use the name and likeness of the participants/groups and any of their friends, families, supporters or other persons accompanying them as part of the publicity and promotion of the Series or otherwise.

The participants/groups and all those who participate in the Series with them also agree to waive irrevocably, unconditionally and in perpetuity any moral rights vested in them and acknowledge that the opportunity to participate in the Series is full consideration including equitable remuneration for rental and lending rights, any rights of communication to the public by cable and satellite for all services and participation of the participants/groups and any and all of them, and the participants/groups and each of them accept that no monies, residual fees, repeats fees or any royalties whatsoever are due to them in respect of any and all forms of uses and exploitation or republishing of the Series or any part of the Series in all media now known or to be invented worldwide in perpetuity.

The Production Company cannot be responsible in any way if a participant/group encounters any difficulty in attending the auditions, or the final live studio shows, as a result of any difficulties of transportation, inadequate or mistaken directions given by the Production Company, or any arrangements made by the Production Company with the Participants/groups or any of them.

Each of the participants/groups (and any member thereof) agrees to fully indemnify and to hold the Production Company harmless for any illnesses, injuries, physical and/or mental damage and/or for any loss or damage whatsoever or howsoever occurring to or suffered by any of the participants/groups (or any member thereof) and/or all those who participate in the Series with them, while taking part in the Series.
Each of the participants/groups (or any member thereof) waives any claim the participant/group may have for loss of an opportunity to enhance their reputation, arising from any of the eventualities referred to above or any other difficulties they may have or encounter in taking part in the Series, or for the reason the Production Company decides that the participant/group does not comply with the qualification criteria (of any such criteria) or otherwise decides that the participant/group should not continue to participate in the Series.

The Production Company, their subcontractors and agents shall not be responsible in any way whatsoever for any technical failure or malfunction or any other problem in any telephone network or line, system, server, provider, or otherwise which may result in any votes being lost or not properly registered or recorded and each of the participants/groups (and every member thereof) hereby waives any claim whatsoever the participant/ group may have for any loss/damages arising from any such problems; it being previously acknowledged that the decision of the Production Company in respect of all voting and counting shall be final and conclusive.