The Alabama Launchpad Business Plan Competition requires each participant (i.e., team member) to agree to the following conditions. Disqualification and/or forfeiture of prizes can result for team entries that fail to comply with these eligibility requirements.

General Requirements:

The purpose of the Alabama Launchpad Business Plan Competition is to promote and reward marketable high-growth ventures that have the potential to grow and thrive in Alabama and to attract future funding.  The competition is for new, independent ventures in the seed, start-up or early growth stages, or for the expansion of an existing business into a new high-growth market.  Generally excluded are the following:  buy-outs, real estate syndications, tax shelters, franchises, licensing agreements for distribution in a different geographical area, and spin-outs from existing corporations.

The Director and officers of Alabama Launchpad reserve the right to make the final determination of the eligibility of business ventures submitted for competition.  The decisions made by the Director and officers of Alabama Launchpad are final. Disqualification can result for team entries that fail to comply with these eligibility requirements.

Registration and Application Fee:
All teams must register for the competition through the Registration page. Payment of the $50 registration fee can be made through PayPal or by check payable to Alabama Launchpad as indicated in the Phase I Instructions.

Originality and Intellectual Property Rights:
All participants must certify that the ideas and concepts outlined in the submissions to the Business Plan Competition are the original work of the participants.  If intellectual property is involved, participants have obtained the legal rights to use (or have identified plans to obtain these rights) and there are no legal impediments to launching the business. 

Competition Eligibility Requirements:

At least one team member must be affiliated with one of the participating universities, either as a student, faculty member, university employee, university alumnus of no more than five (5) years, or a former faculty member of no more than three years removed. While there is no restriction on the total size of each team, participants may not join more than one team.

A team may have members that are not affiliated with the participating universities.  All team members are expected to be active participants throughout all phases of the competition, and no team member should be someone who was simply recruited to assist in qualifying/pitching the business concept for the competition.

Financial Disclosures:
Any external funding received by the company must be identified and reported to Alabama Launchpad, including the timing, sources and uses of this funding.  Ventures that have raised equity capital in excess of $100,000 from sources other than team members or their friends and families, or that have had more than $1 million in sales in the calendar year immediately preceding the competition are not eligible.  Federal grant awards, including funding from government’s SBIR/STTR Programs, are excluded from this restriction.

Business Operations:
Participants must intend to launch the proposed business in Alabama and maintain the company headquarters and primary business operations in the state for a period of five (5) years. 

 

Post-Competition Requirements for Winning Teams:

General:
Participants understand that winning teams will be required to provide Alabama Launchpad with documentation that verifies specific requirements prior to receipt of the cash prize. Winning teams will have 90 days from the date of the competition finale to satisfy all competition requirements.

Payment and Use of Prize Money:
Participants and winning teams understand that receipt of the cash prize requires approval by Alabama Launchpad of the planned uses for the prize money and that the funds may be distributed over time based on milestones achieved.

None of the prize money awarded may be used for repayment of personal investment in the business or repayment of other debt. 

Business Operations:
As noted above, Alabama Launchpad winners must maintain the company headquarters and the majority of its business operations within the State of Alabama for a period of five (5) years following the award.  This includes a requirement that senior management of the company will operate and reside in Alabama.

University Affiliation:
For winning teams, at least one team member affiliated with the university must remain involved with the company in a principal role. Examples of such a role include (but are not limited to) a member of senior management, having an equity stake, cheif scientific advisor, board member, etc. Alabama Launchpad may ask for specific documentation to verify these relationships. 

Incorporation and Intellectual Property:
Alabama Launchpad winners must be incorporated prior to the award being disbursed.  Prize money will be awarded to the business and not to individual team members.

Prior to receipt of the cash prize, winning teams must provide documentation that the business has the legal right to use any and all intellectual property referenced in their business plan. In extenuating circumstances, an extension beyond the initial 90-day limit may be granted.

Forfeiture and Repayment of Prize Money:
Winning teams understand and agree that, if any material misrepresentations are discovered or if a winning team is not able to satisfy the above requirements, the team may be disqualified and/or the company may have to immediately repay any cash and prizes that have been received plus 8% annual interest.

Winning teams understand and agree that, if a winning company moves its headquarters or a majority of its business operations outside the State of Alabama within five (5) years of payment of the award, the company has to repay Alabama Launchpad the cash prize money plus 8% annual interest.  Alabama Launchpad has the sole discretion in determining whether a company has moved a majority of its business outside of Alabama.

Waivers and Releases:
Participants agree to waive all claims against Alabama Launchpad, any and all judges, reviewers, mentors, other sponsors, and/or participants in the Business Plan Competition for any actions that occur as part of, arise out of, or are in any way related to participation in this Business Plan Competition.

Participants understand that no confidentiality of any information is provided and that protection of highly confidential trade secret information and other intellectual property is the responsibility of team members.  Alabama Launchpad will not require competition judges, mentors, or reviewers in the competition to sign nondisclosure documents.  All participants are urged to seek professional guidance on the type of information that should be included in their business plan competition submissions.  Alabama Launchpad and its officers assume no liability for release of confidential information by the competitors, judges, mentors, or reviewers.

All Business Plan Competition submissions become the property of Alabama Launchpad and will not be returned to the team.  Participants are strongly advised to keep their own copies of their Business Plan Competition submissions. 
For academic research purposes, university representatives may be given access to all business plans and judges' reviews that are produced during the competition.  Additionally, such representatives may request demographic information from team participants.

Participants grant to Alabama Launchpad the right to make photographs, audio recordings, and/or video recordings of all Business Plan Competition events or meetings, and further grant to Alabama Launchpad the unlimited right to publish, without compensation, participants’ and company names, any non-financial information, photographs, audio recordings, and video recordings for promotional, public relations, and advertising purposes.

All decisions made by the judges on all matters relating to the Alabama Launchpad Business Plan Competition are final.  Alabama Launchpad, at its discretion and without prior notice to the competitors, reserves the unrestricted right to interpret these rules, and to alter, amend, or change competition rules, conditions, or awards.

 

Updated 8/26/2008