About The Competition

This page applies to the 2008/09 competition.

What is Idea Idol?

Idea Idol is the flagship business ideas competition run by Oxford Entrepreneurs. We are giving away £10,000 for your ideas. The final of the competition will take the form of a 2 minute pitch to a panel of judges followed by a short Q&A. All you have to do to enter is answer three short questions. A more detailed timeline of the competition can be found below.

What kind of Ideas are we looking for?

We are looking for any type of idea! It can be social, commerical, artsy or technical.Although your idea does not have to be a profit making one, tt must be something that is feasible and realistic.

Will my idea be stolen?

Between you submitting your idea and the final, we can guarantee that nobody will steal your idea. Everybody who is part of the judging process will have signed Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) ensuring that they won’t discuss/steal your idea. If your idea gets to the final, then we can’t guarantee the secrecy of your idea. We would however like to emphasize that the real success of an idea lies in the implementation process rather than the idea itself.

Why enter Idea Idol?

Other than the chance to win up to £10,000 you will get the chance to pitch your idea to potential investors who could support you in helping to make your idea a reality with the Oxford Early Investment Network and Cmypitch.com, and have the opportunity to win free incoporation from Henmans LLP. You will also receive media coverage and gain a tremendous amount of experience in presenting your idea, with mentoring and support provided along the way.

Can I submit more than one idea?

You can submit as many ideas as you like. Spam us with every other thing that pops into your mind if you please, you never know what might win Idea Idol!

What is involved?

First up, submit your idea(s) now, by answering three short questions.

The best ideas will be invited to write an executive summary. We will help provide entrants with sufficient mentoring and offer support and advice - this stage is designed to be a really valuable learning process for all involved.

Prizes?

Up to £10,000 cash injection with no strings attached
Free Legal Incorporation from Henmans LLP
Free Pitches on Cmypitch.com and the Oxford Early Investment Network

Overview of the Rules for Idea Idol 2009

Idea Idol is a competition where any student Member of Oxford Entrepreneurs (from the University of Oxford or Oxford Brookes)  can present their Business Idea, based on an initial submission  followed by an Executive Summary if shortlisted. This will then be followed by a final where entrants pitch their idea to a panel of judges.

• Entries can be made by an individual or by a team of up to 2 students.
• Entries should be submitted electronically via the website: www.ideaidol.com by 11.59pm on 1 February 2009.
• A professional review panel will undertake shortlisting of entries and 25 entries will be shortlisted and invited to submit an Executive Summary of their business idea and attend an Executive Summary and Mentorship evening on 9 February 2009.
• There is no charge for entering the competition.

II. Judging Criteria Overview

The Judging Panel of the competition will be appointed by Oxford Entrepreneurs. The actual criteria used for judging the technical and commercial merits of a participant’s entry are based on the professional opinions of the judges in evaluation of both the written and verbal presentations. The judges’ decisions will be final and any disputes regarding the results will not be entertained.

The judges will evaluate the ideas from the perspective of an investment group who will decide on which idea they would be most likely to fund. The panel’s decision will be influenced by:

• The quality of the idea
• The business potential
• The technical feasibility
• The persuasiveness of the written and oral presentation

Ultimately, they will vote for the team(s) that convinces them to invest.

III. Terms of Entry

All teams are expected to abide by the specific rules enumerated below as well as the overall spirit of the Competition. Oxford Entrepreneurs (the “ Organiser ”) reserves the right in its sole and absolute discretion to disqualify any team that violates the rules, regulations or the spirit of the Competition.

A. Team member Involvement

Each Team (or individual) will be responsible for the preparation and presentation of a business idea (the “Business Idea”) to the judges of the Competition, who will have an opportunity to question the Team on the entry.

• The competition is for new, independent ideas. The Organiser reserves the right in its sole and absolute discretion to exclude Business Ideas on the grounds of illegality, offensiveness, or for any other reason.
• Multiple entries by individuals/teams is acceptable

The Competition is open to teams made up of graduate and undergraduate students of Oxford University and Oxford Brookes , who are enrolled in the academic year 2008/9 (each, a “Team”) and are members of Oxford Entrepreneurs. Each Team will be responsible for the preparation and presentation of a business idea (the “Business Idea”) to the judges of the Competition, who will have an opportunity to question the Team on the Business Idea.

The maximum number of participants on a Team is two (2), although each Team may invoke the assistance of non-executive affiliate members (“Non-executives”) such as faculty members, alumni, post-doctorate students, researchers and other staff for the purposes of the research and development of the Business Idea. There is no limit to the number of Non-executives who may assist with a Business Idea. Non-executives will not participate in the presentation of the Business Idea to the judges, nor in the subsequent question and answer session.

Each Team may submit more than one Business Idea, and individuals may be members of more than one Team.

B. Confidentiality and Intellectual Property

Business Ideas that are dependent upon licensing technologies from universities or research labs are not excluded from the Competition and will be encouraged on condition that they have not been commercialised prior to entry.

Entries should be made subject to applicable university intellectual property and other regulations as set out below or in force from time to time. It is a condition of entry into the Competition that each Team: (i) ensures that no third party other than the Team (such as a research sponsor or another member of the university who participated in the research of the Business Idea) has any intellectual property or rights in the Business Idea which may hinder its exploitation; and (ii) indemnifies the Organiser on demand for all liability incurred by the Organiser in connection with a breach of any third party rights.

The Organiser intends that each Team that develops a Business Idea will retain all legal and equitable rights to the Business Idea at all times prior to and following the Competition except as stated below. In no event shall the Organiser be liable for any infringement of the Team’s intellectual property or other rights.

Due to the nature of the competition, the Organiser will not ask judges, reviewers, staff or the audience to agree to or sign a non-disclosure agreement and they will not be deemed to be subject to any duty of confidence.

All public sessions of the Competition, including but not limited to oral presentations and question/answer sessions, are open to the public at large. Any and all of these public sessions may be broadcast to interested persons through any media, which may include radio, television and the Internet. Any data or information discussed or divulged in public sessions by a Team should be considered information that will likely enter the public realm, and Teams should not assume any right of confidentiality in any data or information discussed, divulged or presented in these sessions.

The Organiser may make written notes, photocopies, photographs, videotapes and/or audiotapes of the presentations including the plan of the Business Idea and other documents, charts or materials prepared for use in presentation at the Competition (the “ Materials ”).

The Organiser may use the Materials in any book or other printed materials and any videotape or other medium that it may produce, provided that any profits earned from the sale of such items is used by the Organiser in its sole and absolute discretion for the encouragement of entrepreneurship.

It is a condition of entry that each Team/entrant grants the Organiser a non-exclusive, irrevocable world-wide right in all languages, and in all media, to use or to publish the Materials in any book, other printed materials, videotapes or other medium.

It is a condition of entry that each Team submits to the retention and transmission of their personal information (both within and outside of the EEA) by the Organizer or its affiliates.

C. Further information

Please direct any queries to ideaidol@oxfordentrepreneurs.co.uk

Definitions

Term	Definition
Competition	Idea Idol
Entrant	Individual / team who submits an entry to the competition
Ideas	Ideas and concepts contained in an Entry
Entry	Entrant submitted complete Entry Materials
Business Idea	Entrant submitted 100 word idea
Guidelines	Located within the Rules section of the Competition Handbook
Organiser	Oxford Entrepreneurs
Competition Officials	Organiser and judges