18 November

Arts Law Reviews the Terms of Competitions Closing in November 2014

Arts Law has rated the terms and conditions of 7 competitions closing in November 2014 out of 5 stars. These ratings are based on a review of the terms and conditions which relate to the entrant’s copyright and moral rights. Read more about the rating system here.

By accepting the terms and conditions of a competition, artists should be aware that they are entering a legally binding contract. For more information on competition conditions see our free information sheet here.

We also invite competition organisers to contact Arts Law for best practice assistance on making their terms and conditions fairer for artists.

 

The International Songwriting Competition received a very positive 4 / 5 stars for fairness to artists. This competition only asks winners for a licence to reproduce their work for limited purposes associated with the promotion of the competition. A cap on the duration of the licence, for example 2 years, and a positive intention to attribute the artist would have led to a perfect score.

WELL DONE:

·         International Songwriting Competition 2014 – deadline 4 November 2014

4 competitions received a respectable 3 / 5 stars for fairness. Under the competition terms, all entrants are asked to provide a licence to reproduce their works for limited uses associated with the competition. However, none of competitions have restricted the term of the licence. If the competitions had limited the licence to finalists or winners for a restricted period of time and attributed the artists wherever the work is reproduced, they would have received 5/5 stars.

NOT FAR OFF:

·         Linden Art Prize – deadline 5 November 2014

·         Belle Arti Prize – deadline 14 November 2014

·         2014 Rio Tinto Alcan Martin Hanson Memorial Art Awards – deadline 1 November 2014

·         Rights on Show – deadline 21 November 2014

2 competitions received 1 / 5 stars for fairness to entrants. Under the terms of the RSL ANZAC Art Award each entrant is asked to agree to an assignment of their intellectual property rights in the work they submit. This means that every entrant gives up all of their rights in the work they create and cannot reproduce the work without the permission of the competition organisers. The Veuve Cliquot Award’s terms and conditions asks all entrants to grant an exclusive, worldwide  licence to the organisers and asks the finalists and overall winner to assign all IP in their entry. If an entrant wants to reproduce the work themselves, they must seek written consent from the competition organisers. Arts Law would be happy to assist the competition organisers improve their terms and conditions:

·         RSL ANZAC Art Awards – deadline 1 November 2014

·         Veuve Cliquot Recreation Awards Mailbox Edition – deadline 15 November 2014

 

Further information

Please email us at [email protected] to tell us about any competitions or prizes you think we should check. 

See Arts Law's competition star rating system for further information or call Arts Law if you would like to receive best practice advice regarding your competition terms and conditions.

See more about Arts Law's campaign to improve competition terms and conditions in the Prizes and Competitions section.