A Unilateral Offer from Ring

Not an Alien

When OCU law 1L Dubelza Galvan (left) shared this story with me, I thought it would make a good weekend frivolity post.  But then I saw the there are "Official Rules" that govern the offer, and reading those felt non-frivolous.  So here we are.  Thanks a lot, Dubelza.

So Ring is a company that makes doorbells with cameras attached so that you can see who is at your door and, if you live in the United States, arm yourself appropriately.  If you live in Canada, you can see who is at your door and decide whether you should offer your guest fresh-baked pastries or a Molson.

As announced on the company's website, Ring is offering $1 million to anyone who captures footage of an extraterrestrial on their indoor or outdoor device between now and November 3rd.   Clever participants might already be working on ideas.  After all, Halloween falls between now and November 3rd, so there is a non-negligible chance that some kid will earn me $1 million by showing up as ET or Mork or one of those nasty little guys from Mars Attacks or Boris the Animal ("It's just BORIS") from Men in Black III or that thing from Total Recall that advises Arnold Schwarzenegger, "Open your mind!" or . . . well, you get the idea.

Perhaps an Alien?

Nope.  Ring is all over that.  The "Official Rules" define "extraterrestrial" as:

Any life in the universe originating or occurring outside Earth or its atmosphere. The Extraterrestrial must take up physical space in order to be perceived by humans or cameras and have sufficient technology to be capable of traveling to and surviving within Earth’s atmosphere.

So, what are the rules?

First, you have to be a U.S. resident to play.  Sorry, Canada.  Also, while no purchase is necessary in order to win, you have to own (or have shared access) to a Ring device in order to enter.  So, I guess they mean, no additional purchase necessary.  Once you enter, there are two options.  You can win the GRAND PRIZE by submitting scientific evidence of extraterrestrials recorded on a Ring device. It can't be longer than 1 minute.   "Scientific evidence" is also a defined term.

• “Scientific Evidence” is defined as an unaltered video (with audio) recorded with a Ring device (maximum one (1) minute long) containing ALL of the following criteria (the contents of the unaltered video must be recorded during the Promotion Period with a Ring device without the use of computer graphics, digital effects and/or other artificial elements):

  • The Extraterrestrial exhibiting unusual, extraordinary, or unexplainable behavior (i.e. strange movement, velocity, pattern or other unique morphology).

  • An explanation, within the Promotion Entry Form (as defined below), of why the anomaly is necessarily extraterrestrial in origin (i.e., explanation based on theoretical predictions from the existing scientific literature, recovery and analysis of an Artifact or documentation of Extraterrestrial markings or symbols).

  • The Scientific Evidence must unequivocally rule out any known explanations or any new Earth-based phenomena as an explanation (e.g., equipment malfunction, known aerial objects, atmospheric phenomena, recently discovered terrestrial species)

  • The Scientific Evidence must demonstrate that there was no alteration or malfunction of the Ring device on which it was captured (“Corroboration") (e.g., including footage from an additional camera, correlating audio, or other simultaneously-captured data).

The $1 million grade prize will come in the form of an annuity paid out over twenty years.

Feeling uncertain about whether it is really possible to win the Grand Prize? I have some haunting advice for you:

There will also be five "Out of This World" prizes awarded to people who have some time on their hands or really want a $500 Amazon gift card.  

The criteria for these prizes are as follows:

To be eligible to win the Out of this World Prize, all eligible Option One and Option Two Entries, including any Grand Prize Eligible Entrants who do not win the Grand Prize, will be reviewed by the judging panel comprised of representatives from Ring and Hunter (“Judging Panel”) who will award points according to the following criteria:

• 

  Definitely an Alien
  “extraterrestrial(s)” with the most unique communication style (1-10 points)
• “extraterrestrial(s)” that engaged with their Ring device in the most unique way (1-10 points)
• “extraterrestrial(s)” with the most unique mode of transportation (1-10 points)
• “extraterrestrial(s)” with the most unique costume and accessories (1-10 points)
• “extraterrestrial(s)” that made the Judging Panel laugh the hardest (1-10 points)

In case of a tie, there are additional factors:

• Creativity (1-10 points)
• Visual appeal (1-10 points)
• Humor (1-10 points)

I object, on the ground that the first and third additional factors are duplicative of the original factors and so it all comes down to looks.  Typical.