Marketing Guide: Collaborating with GitLab Legal
This page provides resources and process guides to GitLab Marketing for recurring Legal requests in the following areas:
- Promotional Games
- Publicity Waiver and Release
For information on trademarks, see Trademarks at GitLab
Promotional Games
Engaging legal for approval
From time to time, GitLab sponsors promotional games. While these seem simple enough and may be an effective marketing tactic, there are quite a few factors for Legal to consider when planning such an event. Because of this, requests for Official Rules should be submitted at least 2 weeks prior to the date you need a decision.
If you are planning a promotional game, you will need legal approval for the proposed promotional game. Please use the Promotional Games Legal Template housed in the Marketing Ops repo.
The following explanations will help you fill out the template completely. This is essential, as all of the questions were developed based on legal requirements. Issues that do not answer all the questions will not be approved and the due date may be impacted.
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Type of Promotional Game. Please check the type of event you are hosting or add an additional type if the options do not fit your promotional game. This is an important step as the type of promotional game is often the starting point for knowing what laws to review. If it’s a type of game not included in the list, please provide a detailed description of how the game will work.
- Giveaway: This is where every participant that completes the prescribed action gets the prize or complimentary gift. Official rules may not be required for giveaways, provided the giveaway description includes clear conditions of participation (what you must do) and any restrictions (such as max of 100 prizes/complimentary gifts, first come first serve, while supplies last).
- Game of Chance: (Example: Prize Draw/Sweepstakes): This is a promotional game where there is an element of chance in the determination of a winner. These promotional games may include objective qualifying requirements but the winner(s) are selected at random from a pool of qualified entries.
- Game of Skill: This is a contest or competition - where the winner is selected as the result of the best entry and would include objective standards/criteria upon which the entry is judged.
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Social Media Platforms: Social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn have their own rules covering promotions on their platforms.
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Raffles. Please avoid using the term “raffle”, as raffles are a type of lottery whereby the participants pay money to purchase a ticket for the opportunity to be entered into a drawing. Raffles are normally conducted for charitable purposes and differ from a traditional sweepstakes, where participants can enter without making a purchase and must be able to enter for free.
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Hosting Country. Because laws vary based on locale, it is necessary for Legal to know as much as possible about where the promotional game will take place. (In the case of remote events, please tell us the intended audience. For example, it may be targeted to EMEA users/prospects. Legal will then review our internal guidelines to determine which country we will designate as the host country.)
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Promotional Game Description. Various countries have certain requirements regarding what information must be communicated in the promotional game descriptions. While you may make small edits to your description throughout the process of developing your promotional game, it is important for Legal to know what communication to entrants will look like so we can ensure that it complies with local law. The game description should be clear regarding what steps the consumer needs to take and what they need to do in order to participate.
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Use of Personal Data. You must articulate what you will do with personal data you collect through the promotional game so Legal can help you ensure that communication and/or consent is handled properly.
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Questions. The questions you intend to use for a survey or quiz as part of a promotional game must be submitted for review. This is mainly for informational purposes so that Legal can understand more about the promotional game and what rules may apply. It is unlikely that we will “disallow” the questions, but we may have input for wording. The questions will also help us know what language to include in customized rules.
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Prize Descriptions and Depictions. Please provide as much information as possible regarding the prize(s) that will be awarded including, for example, the number of prizes, size(s) available, color(s), technical specifications, etc. The rules must clearly describe the prize(s) so that the prize is not subject to interpretation or create confusion. The brand name of a prize can be used in the description. If an image of the actual prize will be used, it shouldn’t be so prominent that it looks like the prize manufacturer is sponsoring the promotion.
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Prize Values. Local law often hinges on the value of the prizes, so it is necessary to know what prizes and how many prizes will be awarded prior to creating rules. Legal may request a change in prizes if the value amount is over a certain threshold and adds significant Legal requirements to the event. This will vary from country to country and sometimes from state to state. As a rule, prize values should not exceed US$599.00, to avoid U.S. tax form requirements, and the total value of all prizes in a promotion should not exceed US$4,999.00, to avoid registration and bonding requirements in certain U.S. states.
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Awarding Prizes. The method and criteria for winning a prize must be detailed, as this will affect what the rules will include. For example, in a game of chance/sweepstakes, winners are selected through a random drawing. In a contest/game of skill, winners are selected through criteria on which they are judged.
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Winner List. You must make a winner list available (public URL or via email request), as this is a requirement in nearly every jurisdiction. We take privacy seriously, so we will post first initials and last names where allowed by law.
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Declaration of Eligibility and Release: This declaration, also known as an Affidavit, is a written statement signed by the winner, which is used to confirm the winner’s identity and eligibility including the name, age and address, in order to win a prize as per the Official Rules. The Declaration also includes a publicity release which gives the Sponsor the right to use the winner’s name and likeness for advertising or publicity purposes in perpetuity, where permitted by law (not allowed in Tennessee, USA).
Once your issue description is completely filled out, Legal will review all the details in light of the applicable laws and make recommendations to tailor the promotional game. Legal will also provide the Official Rules and the Abbreviated Rules. Depending on the locale, you may be required to obtain a translation of the rules to local languages. Legal does not provide this, so you will need to ensure that you have the ability to procure this through Marketing vendors. Some rules can be translated through automated services, but others may require human translation depending on the prize amounts and jurisdiction.
Hosting the Promotional Game Rules
Any promotional game sponsored by GitLab must be accompanied by Official Rules. Once legal has drafted and provided these to you, you will need to create a new page under the GitLab Sweepstakes page and add a link to the list of Current promotional games. Once you have added the rules for your promotional game, link to these from the landing page of your entry form or promotion.
Abbreviated Rules, with a link to the full Official Rules, must be present wherever there’s a mention of the promotion or prizes. Abbreviated Rules will be provided by legal.
Note: Remember to move your page from the Current to the Past lists once your promotional game is complete.
Official Rules for internal GitLab team member only sweepstakes, contests and giveaways, should be placed on the Legal - Internal Sweepstakes, Contests and Giveaways page of the internal handbook. Instructions for uploading Official Rules for internal promotions can be found there.
Publicity Waiver and Release
For requests related to the use of an individual’s image or voice in print or digital media, for team members and non-team members, refer to the Publicity Waiver and Release Guidelines and Process.
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