Competition rules

What is UBS’s role in the Competition?

1.1        The Competition is set, moderated, administered and managed by UBS Financial Services Inc. (“UBS”) in collaboration with the New Jersey Big Data Alliance (“NJBDA”) and the NJBDA member colleges and universities listed in Section 2. 

1.2        The registration and Proposal submission process for the Competition is administered and managed by NJEDGE.NET Inc.,  a third party service provider engaged by NJBDA.

2.         Who can participate? (Restrictions apply)

2.1        The Competition is open to all undergraduate and graduate students from the following New Jersey colleges and universities only:

• Felician University
• Kean University
• The College of New Jersey (TCNJ)
• Montclair State University
• New Jersey City University
• New Jersey’s Science & Technology University (NJIT)
• Princeton University
• Rider University
• Rowan University
• Rutgers University
• Saint Peter’s University
• Seton Hall University
• Stevens Institute of Technology
• Stockton University
• William Paterson University

2.2        In addition, Participants must be:

(a)        at least of the legal age of majority in their state of residence, and  

(b)        not subject to any bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings or any proceedings relating to the protection of rights of creditors.

3.         Who is not eligible?

3.1        Immediate family members of, and those living in the same household as, anyone from UBS, NJBDA and Edge or any of their respective affiliated and subsidiary companies who are involved in setting up, administering or managing the Competition (especially in the evaluation or judging of Participants and Proposals) (collectively, the “Excluded Parties”) are not eligible to enter or win. “Immediately family member” is defined as husband, wife, civil partner, children, mother, father, sister, sister-in-law, brother or brother-in-law.

3.2        Entries received from persons or residents of countries who are subject to economic sanctions measures imposed by the United States, the United Nations, European Union, Switzerland or any relevant or applicable jurisdiction and/or involving the Crimea Region, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria or Sudan WILL BE VOIDED.

4.         How will the Competition be run?

4.1        The Competition will be conducted online and carried out in two (2) rounds.

1^st Round: Proposal submission

Teams (see Section 5) will be required to submit well thought-out proposals that addresses any or all of the 3 Problem Statements (each a “Proposal”) within the Competition deadlines (see Sections 6 and 7).

Only one (1) Proposal per Team is permitted.

Proposals must be submitted via the UBS Pitch website at ubs.com/pitch. Proposals submitted outside of the UBS Pitch website will be disregarded.

Final Round: Final presentation

Six (6) finalist Teams will be shortlisted to present their Proposals and working models to the judges.

4.2        At the end of the Final Round, three (3) winning Teams will be chosen.

5.         What do I need to do to register for the Competition?

5.1        The registration process for the Competition is administered and managed by NJEDGE.NET Inc, ("Edge", a third party service provider engaged by NJBDA, and is hosted on Edge's plagform (the "Edge Platform")

Use of the Edge Platform and all activities carried out by the Participants on the Edge Platform are subject to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy published on the Edge Platform (collectively, the “Edge Terms”). Please read the Edge Terms carefully. By using or accessing the Edge Platform, you agree to be bound by the Edge Terms.

IF ANY PARTICIPANT DOES NOT WISH TO BE BOUND BY THE EDGE TERMS, PLEASE DO NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE COMPETITION OR ACCESS OR USE THE EDGE PLATFORM.

Each Participant acknowledges, understands and agrees that UBS has no control over, does not assume any responsibility for and does not make any warranties or representations as to the Edge Platform or any information, content, documents or materials therein (other than information relating to the Competition), including but not limited to, accuracy, quality, timeliness, reliability, security or availability, or that the Edge Platform or its contents are virus-free or error-free. Accordingly, neither UBS or its affiliated companies, nor any of their directors, officers, employees or agents accepts any liability for any loss or damage suffered by any Participant or third parties arising out of the use of all or any part of the Edge Platform.

5.2        Registration is a 2-step process:

(a)        Step 1: All Participants must first register themselves individually via the “Register” tab on the UBS Pitch Website.

(b)        Step 2: Participants must form teams, with each team comprising 1-5 Participants (each, a “Team”, and collectively, the “Teams”) and register their Team name and Team members.

5.3        The names and email addresses of all individual registered Participants will be visible during the registration process to enable Participants to reach out to other Participants to form Teams, if desired. There is no obligation or requirement to form Teams comprising more than 1 person to enter the Competition.

5.4        Once a Team has been registered, Team members will not be allowed to be part of another Team or to switch to another Team. Individual Participants registered as a 1-Participant Team be a member of another Team.

THE ONLY WAY FOR A TEAM MEMBER TO CHANGE TEAMS OR TO ENTER THE COMPETITION AS AN INDIVIDUAL TEAM IS TO WITHDRAW THE EXISTING TEAM FROM THE COMPETITION AND REGISTER AS A NEW TEAM(S).

To withdraw a Team or individual Participant from the Competition, a Team member must notify UBS through the Pitch website.

6.         How do I submit my Proposal for the Competition?

6.1        The Proposal submission process for the Competition is administered and managed by NJEDGE.NET Inc., (“Edge”), a third party service provider engaged by NJBDA, and is hosted on Edge’s platform (the “Edge Platform”).

6.2        Only one (1) Proposal per Team is permitted. Additional Proposals submitted by the same Team or any Team members will be disregarded.

6.3        Completed Proposals must be submitted via the UBS Pitch website by the Closing Date for Submissions (see Section 7).

ANY PROPOSALS SUBMITTED AFTER THE CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS OR OUTSIDE OF THE UBS PITCH WEBSITE WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

6.4        All Proposals must accurately cite and source all Third Party Data and UBS Materials (see Section 12) used in or relied upon when preparing the Proposals.  

6.5        Participants must make sure that all Proposals and Content do not infringe any third party rights i.e. no stealing or copying of someone else's idea, no plagiarism, no passing off of someone else's project or proposal as your own.

6.6        Once a completed Proposal has been submitted, it becomes a formal submission and no further changes can be made to it.

6.7        The odds of winning depend on the quality of the idea within a Proposal and how the idea solves the Problem Statement and not the number of Proposals submitted.

7.         What are the Competition deadlines?

7.1        The Competition opens on September 10, 2020 at 9:00 AM (EST) (the “Competition Start Date”) and closes on September 30, 2020 at 11:59 PM (EST) (the “Closing Date for Submissions”).

All Proposals must be submitted via the UBS Pitch website by the Closing Date for Submissions to be considered.

Any proposals submitted after the closing date for submissions or outside of the ubs pitch website will be rejected.

7.2        Six (6) Team finalists will be selected and announced on October 6,  2020, and will be notified by email.

7.3        The final round of the Competition will be held on November 17, 2020, from 9:00 AM (EST) to 5:00 PM (EST).

The winning Teams will be announced at the conclusion of the final round of the Competition. 

8.         What is the judging criteria?

Teams will be judged on their understanding of their chosen Problem Statement through the articulation of the scope of the Problem Statement and the Team’s approach to solving the Problem Statement i.e. the framework for the model, underlying key drivers and assumptions and the data sources used.

9.         What are the prizes?

9.1        At the end of the Final Round, three (3) winning Teams will be chosen (the “Winning Teams”). The Winning Teams will each win a cash prize (each, a “Prize”) as follows:

• First Place: USD 10,000*
•  Second Place: USD 5,000*
• Third Place: USD 1,000*

* Each Prize will be awarded and delivered to the Winning Team by the NJBDA member college or university from which the Winning Team Participants are from. UBS is not responsible for delivering any of the Prizes to the respective Winning Teams and Winning Team Participants.

9.2        Prizes are not negotiable, not exchangeable and non-transferable and must not be used to fund or support any illegal enterprise or activity.

9.3        Winning Teams and Winning Team Participants are not entitled to seek a replacement prize or request for substitutions if the Winning Team and/or any Winning Team Participant is unable to or does not wish to accept or receive a Prize “as-is”. Such Prize shall be regarded as “forfeited” by the Winning Team and the Winning Team Participants in such event.

9.4        UBS reserves the right to substitute any Prize with another prize of an equivalent value. If a Prize becomes unavailable for any reason e.g. cancellation of the Competition, UBS shall not be obliged to provide a substitute of equal or higher value or any substitute prize at all.

9.5        Prizes are awarded at the discretion of UBS and no Prizes will be awarded as a result of improper actions by or on behalf of any Participant or Team.

10.        Will UBS pay for my expenses?

10.1      All Participants are solely responsible for paying for their own costs and expenses arising from preparing or submitting their Proposal(s) and for participating in the Competition.

10.2      All Participants are responsible for ensuring that they have all appropriate and necessary network access, equipment, materials and information to participate in the Competition (including, but not limited, to ensuring that the Participant has sufficient IT equipment, software programs, web browsers, network connectivity and stability and WiFi speed).

10.3      All Participants are solely responsible for acquiring and maintaining such electronic devices and equipment that can handle and will allow them to access and use the UBS Pitch website and the Edge Platform.

10.4      All Participants are obliged and required to take all appropriate and necessary steps to protect and defend themselves against online fraud or cyber-attacks including, but not limited to updating the operating system and security software on the Participant’s electronic or computer devices updated on a continuous basis (e.g. by installing recommended security patches, by observing customary technical security measures, in particular making sure that Participant’s continually install up-to-date and updated firewalls and antivirus programs. Participants must notify UBS immediately upon learning or suspecting that he/she is a victim of a cyber-attack.

11.        Who is responsible for paying taxes?

11.1      All Winning Team Participants must declare and pay any and all taxes, duties or other charges (such as income or profits tax) arising from the award and/or receipt of any Prize(s) or any other benefits from the Competition.

11.2      All Winning Team Participants understand and accept that UBS may be required to report and withhold taxes from the Prizes or other benefits awarded to any Winning Team Participant from the Competition according to applicable laws and regulations, regardless of the Winning Team Participant’s place of residence or home location.

12.        What data, information, resources or materials can Teams use for their Proposals?

12.1      Participants may use any publicly available data sources which that they have proper and legally-permitted access to, provided always that the use of such data, information and materials (collectively, the “Third Party Data”) for the purposes of the Competition, including providing the Third Party Data to UBS, are permitted by the Third Party Data owners and providers.

All Participants are solely responsible for paying for their own costs and expenses incurred from obtaining, using and distributing the Third Party Data (including paying for any subscription or usage fees or any charges or expenses for getting permissions to use the Third Party Data).

12.2      Participants may also use any data, information or materials which UBS or any of UBS’s affiliated or subsidiary companies (the “UBS Affiliates”) may provide for the purposes of the Competition only (collectively, the “UBS Materials”).

Each Participant understands, agrees and accepts that by receiving and using the UBS Data,:

(a) the UBS Materials are provided for information purposes only and to be used solely for the purposes of preparing Proposals for the Competition and not for any other purposes whatsoever;  

(b) the Participant has read and understood the disclaimers and disclosures accompanying the UBS Materials;

(c) the Participant is not intended to be, and will not be treated as, a “client” of UBS and/or any UBS Affiliate for any legal or regulatory purpose;

(d) the Participant must not use the UBS Materials to the detriment of UBS and/or the UBS Affiliates or in any way which would be damaging to the reputation of UBS and the UBS Affiliates or their businesses;

(e) the Participant must not provide the UBS Materials to any banking or financial services firms or to any firm or entity which are competitors to UBS and the UBS Affiliates and their business;

12.3      Any breach or failure by any Participant to comply with the requirements of this Section 11 shall constitute grounds for immediate disqualification of the Participant and the Team which the Participant is a member of.

In addition, such Participant and his/her Team members shall indemnify and hold harmless UBS and the UBS Affiliates, and their respective directors, ofFicers, managers, employees, contractors and agents (collectively, the “associated parties”) and be fully liable and responsible for any and all claims, liabilities, costs, damages, losses, judgements, fines, settlements and expenses (including reasonable legal costs and court fees) arising or resulting from, or related to such Participant and/or Team’s breach or failure to comply with the duties, obligations and requirements with respect to the use of the Third Party Data and the UBS Materials.  

13.        How will the Final Round Participants and Winning Teams be notified?

13.1      Six (6) Team finalists chosen to participate in the Final Round will be selected and announced on October 12, 2020, and will be notified by email. The full list of shortlisted Teams will be published on the UBS Pitch website shortly thereafter.

13.2      The Winning Teams will be announced at the conclusion of the Final Round of the Competition. The list of Winning Teams will be published on the UBS Pitch website shortly thereafter.

14.        What are Winning Team Participants required to do?

14.1      All Winning Team Participants must complete and return to UBS, if and as required, and any other legal or administrative documentation as UBS may require.

14.2      By accepting a Prize, each Winning Team Participant:

(a)  grants his/her permission (except where prohibited by law) to UBS and the UBS Affiliates to the use of the Winning Team’s and each of the Winning Team Participant’s name, likeness, biographical information, and Prize won for future advertising and publicity in any and all media now existing or hereafter devised throughout the world in perpetuity, without additional compensation, notification or permission; and

(b) agrees to release, discharge and hold harmless UBS and the UBS Affiliates, and all of the Associated Parties from any and all claims, losses, liabilities, damages, demands or causes of action arising out of such use of the Winning Team’s and the Winning Team Participant's information, and/or for the acceptance, use, or misuse of a Prize.

15.        How will UBS use my Proposal?

Each Participant grants UBS a non-exclusive, worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual, royalty-free, sublicensable right and license to:

(a) process and evaluate each Proposal and the content submitted as part of a Proposal therein ("Content") for the purposes of the Competition and for UBS’s own evaluation purposes, including without limitation for determining a Team’s eligibility to be selected for any Prize, or any other rewards or benefits offered by UBS as part of or in conjunction with the Competition; and

(b) display, publish, transmit, edit, store, re-format, reproduce and distribute the Content on the UBS Pitch website, online and any other media now known or in the future invented in order to publicize and market the Competition.

16.        Will my Proposal be kept confidential?

16.1      NO.

PARTICIPANTS MUST NOT SUBMIT ANY INFORMATION THAT IS CONFIDENTIAL.

UBS is under no obligation or requirement to keep any Proposal or the Content confidential and no confidential or fiduciary or other legal relationship is created (or intended to be created) between a Participant and UBS by submitting a Proposal.

16.2      By submitting a Proposal, each Participant represents and warrants to UBS that:

(a) the Proposal and all the Content and information therein are not confidential and are not submitted in confidence or trust, and no confidential or fiduciary or other legal relationship is created (or intended to be created) with UBS by submitting a Proposal; and

(b) the Participant is free to submit the Proposal and disclose and provide the contents and information therein and by doing so, no prior obligation of confidentiality is or has been breached and no proprietary, intellectual property, privacy or contractual rights of any third party is or has been infringed.

17.        Who owns the intellectual property rights to my Proposal?

17.1      All Participants retain title and ownership and all intellectual property rights to their Proposals and Content, except that all title, ownership, intellectual, proprietary and other rights in the Third Party Data and UBS Materials shall remain in the relevant Third Party Data owner and UBS respectively. Participants obtain no rights or license to the UBS Materials other than the limited rights and permission to use the UBS Materials for the Competition as described in these Official Rules. Except as used in a Proposal, all UBS Materials must be kept confidential by the Participants.

17.2      Each Participant acknowledges and agrees that:

(a) UBS may have been and/or has been developing and licensing and may, independently and with third parties, develop and license services and/or products with functionalities which are the same or similar to what is the subject of, or is covered by, a Proposal;

(b) UBS is not prohibited or restricted from independently developing or purchasing competing services and/or products or give any Participant or Team any right with respect to such services and/or products; and

(c) UBS shall not be prevented or restricted from developing and using techniques, ideas, concepts, information or know-how relating to methods or processes of general application described in any Proposal and which can be recalled only from the memories of UBS staff.

18.        What will be my personal information be used for?

18.1      Participants will be asked to provide certain of their personal information and data (such as name, email, telephone number) so that UBS, NJEDA and Edge can administer the Competition. As Participants progress through the Competition, a Participant’s name may also be publicized and published.

18.2      Participants agree that any personal information and data submitted as part of or during the course of the Competition may be disclosed to, shared with and processed by the UBS Affiliates or UBS’s third party agents, contractors, business partners or service providers (who may be located inside or outside of a Participant’s country of residence) in accordance with applicable data protection laws. UBS will not otherwise disclose such personal data to third parties without a Participant’s consent unless UBS is required or requested to do so pursuant to any law, regulation or regulatory order.

18.3      UBS may use a Participant's personal information for recruiting purposes if the Participant has consented to his/her personal information being used for this purpose.

18.4      Use of a Participant’s information submitted on the Edge Platform shall be in accordance with the Privacy Policy published on the Edge Platform.

18.5      Except as expressly provided in these Official Rules, UBS’s use of Participant’s personal information and data shall be in accordance with UBS’s Privacy Statement, published at https://www.ubs.com/global/en/legalinfo2/privacy.html.

18.6      UBS will not sell or data mine any personal information collected or received in the course of the Competition.

18.7      Unless otherwise agreed by a Participant, personal information or data obtained in the course of the Competition will be destroyed within a reasonable time after the Competition has ended.

19.        What happens after the Competition?

UBS may wish to continue working with certain Participants to develop their ideas further after the Competition. Which ideas will be pursued and/or how the relationship will develop or continue will depend on a case-by-case basis and solely at UBS's discretion. Winning or being a finalist does not guarantee that UBS will want to develop the idea or continue the relationship beyond the Competition.

20.        Can I be disqualified?

20.1      Any Participant that UBS believes does not, or is unable to, comply with and meet these Official Rules, has violated these Official Rules, is not eligible to participate, who has provided false information, acted in a harassing or unsportsmanlike manner with respect to UBS or any other Participant or Team, or tampered with the operation of the Competition will be disqualified.

20.2      In addition, any attempt by a Participant to deliberately damage the UBS Pitch website or the Edge Platform, or undermine the legitimate operations of the Competition may be a violation of criminal and civil laws. Should such an attempt be made, UBS reserves the right to seek damages from any such Participant to the fullest extent permitted by the law and to disqualify such Participant from the Competition.

21.        What is UBS not liable or responsible for? (Release and Limits on Liability)

20.1      UBS is not responsible for any problems which may limit a Participant’s ability to participate in the Competition, such as (but not limited to):

• technical malfunctions of electronic equipment, computer online systems, servers, or providers; or
•  computer hardware or software failures; or
• phone lines, traffic or congestion on the Internet or any website; or
• for any other technical problems including telecommunication miscommunication or failure, and failed, lost, delayed, incomplete, garbled, or misdirected Proposals, submissions or communications.

20.2      UBS is also not responsible for any other errors or malfunctions of any kind, whether network, printing, typographical, human or otherwise relating to or in connection with the Competition, including, without limitation, errors or malfunctions which may occur in connection with the administration of the Competition, or arising from natural disasters, war, fire, flood, earthquake, explosion, acts of terrorism, epidemic or pan-epidemic or civil commotion, power outages or a network or systems failure, sabotage, computer virus, hacking or other unauthorized access or systems breach, strikes or lockouts or labor disputes or other events that prevent the Competition from functioning as intended.

20.3      UBS reserves the right to modify, suspend or terminate the Competition or these Official Rules at its sole discretion, including in the event the Competition Website or Edge Platform becomes infected by a computer virus or is otherwise technically impaired. UBS reserves the right to cancel or suspend the Competition in its entirety should tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures or other causes corrupt the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper play of the Competition.

20.4      By entering the Competition, each Participant hereby irrevocably releases and forever discharges UBS and the Associated Parties from any and all actions, causes of actions, claims, damages, losses, liabilities and demands or any nature whatsoever that the Participant now has or hereafter may have against UBS and the Associated Parties with respect to a Proposal and the Content or howsoever arising from or relating to the Participant’s participation in the Competition.

20.5      To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, UBS, NJEDA, Edge and the Associated Parties exclude all liability and responsibility for any amount or kind of loss or damage that may result to a Participant or a third party (including without limitation, any direct, indirect, punitive or consequential loss or damage or any loss of income, profits, goodwill, data, contracts, use of money, or loss or damage arising from or connected in any way to business interruption and whether in tort (including without limitation negligence, contract or otherwise)) in connection with the Competition, the Competition Website and/or the Edge Platform.

21.        What is the Governing Law and Jurisdiction for the Competition?

21.1      The Competition, including all issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of a Participant, shall be governed by and construed exclusively in accordance with United States federal laws and the substantive laws of the State of New Jersey without reference to its conflicts rules.

21.2      Each Participant agrees that any action at law or in equity arising out of or relating to the Competition, or awarding of a Prize, shall be filed exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Hudson County or Bergen County, New Jersey.

21.3      By participating in the Competition, all Participants waive any claims that may arise under the laws of countries, territories or jurisdictions other than the State of New Jersey. Those who choose to participate in the Competition from locations outside of the State of New Jersey do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws if and to the extent local laws are applicable.

21.4      If any provision of these Official Rules is held to be invalid by a court of law or similar, such provision shall be deemed to be severed from these Official Rules and invalidity shall not affect the enforceability of any other provisions not held to be invalid.