Terms and Conditions of Entry in International Rational Genome Design Contest

(For Privacy Policy see:
Confidentiality and Handling of Personal Information)

2012.05.25 Secretariat of the International Rational Genome Design Contest

Purpose of Contest

The International Rational Genome Design Contest (“GenoCon”) is an international science and technology contest for natural science researchers both within and outside of Japan, which is held for the purpose of improving Synthetic Biology: a discipline for the creation of valuable bioresources from information resources, in order to solve human society and environmental problems.

GenoCon is held for the purpose of competition in the field of “technology for rational genome design” and accepts genome designs for improving the physiology of organisms by rationally utilizing published genome related data.

GenoCon provides opportunities to learn cutting-edge science in an enjoyable way and contributes to the development of human resources for future science and technology by offering the “category for high school students” to participate, in addition to the “category for researchers.” GenoCon also promotes the return of research results to society and contributes to the development of human society by leading to the discovery of better embodiments and combinations of intellectual property rights.

GenoCon is organized by the Bioinformatics and Systems Engineering Division of RIKEN (the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research), Japan (the “Organizer”). Entry in GenoCon is conditional upon compliance with the terms and conditions set out below (these “Terms and Conditions”). The Secretariat of the International Rational Genome Design Contest (the “GenoCon Secretariat”) has been established within the Organizer.

Details and Safety of GenoCon Designs

GenoCon accepts designed DNA sequences, programs, and reports for improving the physiology of organisms by utilizing published genome related data (which is in vivo molecular data, such as DNA sequence data and amino acid sequence data). The designed DNA sequences to be entered in GenoCon must be original, unpublished, and created by the Entrant. If a third party’s contents are included in a program or report that a Entrant submits for entry, the Entrant will be requested to clearly indicate using a reasonable method, such as by stating the URI or SciNetS ID of those contents, (1) that those referenced contents have been quoted from a third party, (2) the name or pen name of the copyright holder of those contents, and (3) the title and other information relating to those contents. Entries may be submitted in either English or Japanese.

However, please be advised that the GenoCon Secretariat will not accept any entry that it determines:

• violates any law, ordinance, municipal ordinance, or other applicable regulation;
• includes any false or illegal statement in the design;
• infringes any rights, including a third party’s intellectual property rights;
• violates the rules of the employer of the Entrant (see definition of “Entrant” in Footnote(2) under “Eligibility” below) or the organization to which the Entrant belongs;
• offends public morals; or
• otherwise violates these Terms and Conditions or is contrary to the purpose of GenoCon.

Eligibility

• GenoCon is open to any individuals who are either aged 15 and over or who are high school students as of April 1, 2012, and the Entrant must enter as an individual in either the “category for researchers” or the “category for high school students” (group entry is not permitted unless otherwise specified). “High school student” (or “high school students” if plural) means a person who has not graduated from high school (including an upper secondary course of a special training college, secondary vocational school, or the high school section of a special education school) and is aged 15 or over as of April 1, 2012. If a person satisfies the requirements above, their enrollment in a high school at the time of entry is not required. “Entrant” (or “Entrants” if plural) means any person who has submitted an entry to GenoCon.
• A high school student Entrant must enter in the “category for high school students”.
• Any other Entrants must enter in the “category for researchers,” even if they are not researchers.
• If an Entrant is under 20 years of age, that Entrant must obtain the approval of their guardians to enter in GenoCon before entering.

Outline

1. Schedule of GenoCon. Please see the planned schedule of GenoCon on the website for GenoCon (http://genocon.org/; the “Website”). The results will be announced on the Website. Please be advised that the schedule above is subject to change depending on the progress of the experimental review. After the entry deadline, no Entrant will be able to withdraw any part of the submission they have prepared on the “My Page” section of the Website (that submission, “Submission” or “Submissions”).


2. Assignment. The assignment will be announced on the Website.


3. Entry. The Entrant must enter in accordance with the entry guideline described on the Website.


4. Submission Requirements for Reviews.
   
   
   
   • Programs. A source program made by the Entrant to output designed DNA sequences by inputting published genome related data of organisms and scientific parameters.
   
   
   • Designed DNA Sequences. “DNA sequence data” designed by the Entrant using the program to provide a solution for the assignment of GenoCon.
   
   
   • Reports. Reports written by the Entrant explaining the program, including algorithms to achieve the designed DNA sequences and academic knowledge used. Please see the entry guideline on the Website for details on how to prepare and submit the programs, designed DNA sequences, and reports above.


5. Selection Committee. The selection committee of GenoCon (the “Selection Committee”) is composed of the Organizer, the technical assistant partners (universities and other entities that will cooperate in document review, experimental review, and final review selection: the “Technical Assistant Partners”; the same applies hereinafter), and other third parties.


6. Operators of GenoCon. The operators of GenoCon are the Organizer, the Technical Assistant Partners, the Selection Committee, the parties preparing the assignment (the parties engaged in deciding on the assignment of GenoCon), and the GenoCon Secretariat (collectively, the “Operators”).


7. Form Screening. In the form screening, we will judge whether the Submissions entered through the Website satisfy the requirements for reviews. Please be advised that Submissions that do not satisfy those requirements will be excluded from all reviews after the form screening.


8. Document Review. In the document review, the Selection Committee will review the Submissions that passed the form screening from the perspective of scientific knowledge and originality, and select the designed DNA sequences that will be the subject of the experimental review. Please be advised that Submissions on which it is not possible for the Organizer to conduct the tests (including reproduction of the designed DNA sequences by confirming operation of the programs) will not be subjected to the experimental review.


9. Experimental Review In the experimental review, the introduction into organisms and experiments will be conducted based on the designed DNA sequences selected in the document review. Please be advised that even if a designed DNA sequence is selected to be subjected to the experimental review, the Organizer might not be able to conduct an experiment review of that design for reasons such as safety issues, difficulties in conducting the experiment, or experiment costs.


10. Final Review. In the final review, the Selection Committee is expected to make a comprehensive decision based on the results of the screening and reviews above and select
    (1) the winner of the best design award, the good design award, and other awards, and announce the results on the Website. Even Submissions that are not subjected to experimental review may become candidates for
    (2) the best idea award and the good idea award, if those designs are deemed to be excellent from the perspective of scientific knowledge and originality. In addition, Submissions deemed to have developed excellent program tools that display potential for reuse in future contests may become candidates for
    (3) the best program award and the good program award. Please be advised that it is possible no winner will be selected. Also, please be advised that the GenoCon Secretariat is unable to answer any individual inquiries about the reasons for selection regarding any results or the results, process, or reasons regarding any judgment.


11. Exemption from Liabilities Regarding Results of GenoCon. Each Entrant agrees that the Operators will not be liable for any act performed by them in connection with GenoCon or its results unless the act is an act of willful misconduct.

Cost Bearing

Please be advised that an entry in GenoCon is free of charge: however, when each Entrant enters in GenoCon, the Entrant will bear any incidental expenses, such as the expenses for the preparation and consideration of each Submission, and participation and transportation costs for the events to be held in connection with GenoCon. Contest winners may have such costs covered by GenoCon, depending on funding regulations and availibility.

Ownership and Legality of Rights and Handling of Intellectual Property Rights

Each Entrant must warrant that they hold or have appropriately dealt with all intellectual property rights and other reasonable rights necessary for them to enter in GenoCon and license their Submission in the manner set out below, with regard to any invention, concept, information, work, trademark, know-how, idea, etc. included in their Submission or on which their Submission is based, and that no act constituting reuse of their Submission by other Entrants or the Operators in connection with GenoCon will infringe the rights of the Entrant making the Submission or any third party. Each Entrant must indemnify and hold harmless the Operators from any damage arising out of a violation of these warranties.

Each Entrant acknowledges in advance that their Submission will be widely publicized to third parties and each Entrant must determine the scope and contents of information to be included in their Submission at their own responsibility. Each Entrant also acknowledges in advance that the Operators will not be liable for any damage to the Entrant arising from the use or disclosure of their Submission in GenoCon. Each Entrant must ensure that they do not include in their Submission any intellectual property rights, confidential information, or other information that they do not want to be disclosed to any third party, and must take appropriate measures in advance to protect rights to the information included in their Submission within the necessary extent at their own responsibility and judgment.

Although the copyright of a Submission is attributable to the Entrant making that Submission, entry of each Entrant in GenoCon is conditional upon licensing the Submission to “Creative Commons Public License Attribution-ShareAlike (BY-SA), version 2.1, Japanese version” and permitting the use of the Submission by a third party in accordance with the license. The Organizer will deem each Entrant who has entered in GenoCon to have permitted the use of their Submission by a third party in accordance with the license, as a result of entry in GenoCon. If the Submission includes any contents to which it is impossible to apply the license or any contents that impose a constraint in excess of the license on a third party, the Entrant must remove those contents at their responsibility and each Entrant acknowledges in advance that the Organizer can delete those contents or cancel any judgments.

Each Entrant must establish free of charge in respect of the Operators non-exclusive license to exploit or use the patent rights, utility model rights, trademark rights, design rights, and other intellectual property rights (including the right to receive those intellectual property rights and excluding any copyrights; the same applies hereinafter in this Article) included in the Submission, only for the purpose of conducting GenoCon. If the Operators exploit or use any intellectual property rights included in the Submission entered by an Entrant for any purpose other than conducting GenoCon, the Operators will obtain in advance the consent of the Entrant regarding the exploitation and use of the intellectual property rights as necessary upon consultation with the Entrant.

GenoCon will not establish any license to exploit or use any intellectual property rights (excluding those ordinary rights described above) of Entrants or other third parties.

Confidentiality

No Entrant may include any confidential information in their Submission. Even if confidential information is included in a Submission, the Entrant acknowledges in advance that the confidential information may be disclosed and the Entrant will not claim for any damages against the Operators.

Handling of Personal Information

The Operators will use personal information that is disclosed by each Entrant only for purposes related to GenoCon.

If any Entrant does not appropriately provide their personal information as necessary for proper conduct of GenoCon, the Entrant might lose their eligibility to enter GenoCon.

Each Entrant acknowledges in advance that their personal information might be disclosed to a third party in the cases provided below. The Operators will not provide any personal information to a third party without permission except in the following cases:

• the personal information of the Entrant, including their name, is widely publicized as an individual who is an Entrant who entered a Submission, for the purpose of publicizing GenoCon;
• the personal information of the Entrant is disclosed to a subcontractor for the purpose of promoting GenoCon or maintaining and managing the Website;
• the name of the Entrant is announced as the name of a winner on the websites of the Organizer and through other media, or it is otherwise necessary to disclose the name of the Entrant for the purpose of conducting or publicizing GenoCon; or
• the Entrant otherwise gives consent for the disclosure of their personal information.

In addition to the above cases, the Operators may disclose personal information of the Entrant to a third party if:

• such disclosure is required by any law or ordinance or any judgment, decision, order, or other action in accordance with any court, administrative authority, etc.;
• such disclosure is necessary to protect the life, body, or property of any person and it is difficult to obtain the Entrant’s consent;
• such disclosure is particularly necessary to improve public health or to promote the sound development of children and it is difficult to obtain the Entrant’s consent; or
• such disclosure is necessary to cooperate with any national authority, local government, or any party that is acting on the behalf of any national authority or local government in carrying out administrative duties under laws and ordinances and obtaining the consent of the Entrant is likely to interfere with those administrative duties.

If the Organizer receives a request from an Entrant to disclose, amend, add to, delete, suspend or terminate the use of, suspend provision to a third party, or notify the purpose of use of any personal information of that Entrant, the Organizer will confirm that the applicant is the relevant Entrant and will faithfully and promptly respond to the request in accordance with the provisions of the Act on the Protection of Personal Information. We ask that any Entrant wishing to make a request regarding the handling of personal information makes that request in writing to the following contact details of the GenoCon Secretariat.

Secretariat of the International Rational Genome Design Contest Bioinformatics and Systems Engineering Division, Yokohama Institute RIKEN, Japan East Research Building E219, 1-7-22, Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama City, 230-0045, Japan

Other Exemptions

The Operators will not be liable for any stealing or plagiarism, destruction, unauthorized access, or falsification of any Submission or any malfunction or restriction on any technology, network, telephone, computer, hardware, or software.

The Operators will not be liable for any loss, including financial and other damage, arising from entering in GenoCon or while they are entered in GenoCon.

Even if an Entrant incurs any damage arising from or in connection with their entry in GenoCon with regard to any intellectual property right, confidential information, or other information included in any Submission entered by the Entrant, the Operators will not be liable for any of the damage.

If an Entrant receives from a third party or makes to a third party any request, complaint, or other demand caused by or in connection with their Submission, the Entrant must resolve the request or complaint and any disputes arising from any of those at their own responsibility and cost and will not cause any inconvenience or damage to the Operators in any way. The Operators will not be liable for any of these troubles. If the Operators incur any damage from those troubles, the Entrant must compensate all damage, losses, and costs arising from their act and incurred by the Operators.

The Operators do not guarantee in any way the scientific accuracy, precision, sufficiency, or the like of the results of the experimental review to be conducted in the GenoCon. The Operators will not be liable for any loss arising from or in connection with the results of the experimental review.

Amendments to these Terms and Conditions and Resolution of Disputes and Doubts

Any dispute arising from or in connection with these Terms and Conditions or GenoCon will be governed by and construed and resolved in accordance with the laws of Japan. If any part of these Terms and Conditions is held to be void, the remaining provisions of these Terms and Conditions will continue to be in effect.

These Terms and Conditions may be amended if the GenoCon Secretariat considers it necessary. Each Entrant must follow the decision of the GenoCon Secretariat on any matter not set out in these Terms and Conditions or any matter giving rise to any doubt.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, all rights of any Entrant to file a suit, to pursue injunctive relief, or to file for judicial proceedings or any other proceedings against the Operators if any dispute or suit arises from or in connection with GenoCon, are hereby excluded, and each Entrant must expressly waive all of those rights.

The Tokyo District Court has an exclusive jurisdiction as the court of the first instance over any dispute arising from or in connection with GenoCon.

GenoCon Secretariat Contact Details

Secretariat of the International Rational Genome Design Contest Bioinformatics and Systems Engineering Division, Yokohama Institute RIKEN, Japan E-mail: genocon@base.riken.jp