Poptent publishes video contest/assignment advertisements that are not for contests. These contest/assignment advertisements are published on these dedicated contests announcement websites: www.onlinevideocontests.com, www.vidopp.com, www.filmthenext.com, and www.filmcontest.com.
These advertisements include the words "contest", "prizes", "awards", "rewards", "judged", "judging criteria", "rules" and offers of huge "cash" prizes. The Poptent website requires that you join Poptent before you can see any contest/assignment "rules" and if you join you will be tied to a binding arbitration contract and after you join you will find out that there are no contest rules and these are not contests and are for a "work-for-hire" arrangement that requires you to sign away your copyrights and legal protections in order to participate.
There are NO contests associated with these assignments. There are no contest judges, no contest prizes, no contest rules, and no contest format.
I submitted 34 videos that I created at my own expense to these "contests" and I believed I was entering legitimate contests that followed Federal and State laws and that there would be judges and rules and prizes only to find out there were no contests and now Poptent claims it owns my videos on behalf of the Brand Clients. As of January 29 I have not been paid for video submissions that Poptent has stated they owe me.
On or about August 22 I was notified by Mark Schoneveld Senior Poptent Manager that these were not contests and were for a "work-for-hire" arrangement. PLEASE be aware that these Poptent contests/assignments may not be legitimate contests and before you join Poptent I suggest you contact Poptent and ask for a copy of any contract, agreement, and contest rules. Read the contracts and agreements very carefully and have an attorney help you!
You can contact Poptent here: [email protected], [email protected]
If you have had problems with Poptent you can file a complaint here: http://www.bbb.com
http://www.dma.com
http://www.ftc. Gov
http://www.nadreview.org
The information in this civil complaint is accurate to the best of my
knowledge and is protected by the first amendment and state and federal laws. As of January 29 Poptent has failed to produce any requested contracts, agreements, contest rules and other evidence they claim to have in regards to this matter. Any contract or agreement Poptent or the Brand Clients claim to have with me is void or voidable and unenforceable as a direct result of false advertising. If any information in this opinion is inaccurate please contact me and I will remove or amend this complaint. This complaint is copyrighted 2012. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed and is for information purposes only. I am not an attorney and this complaint is not legal advice. I am not responsible for any use or misuse of this information.
Definition: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) officially defines deceptive advertising as "a representation, omission or practice that is likely to mislead the consumer" and "practices that have been found misleading or deceptive in specific cases include false oral or written representations, misleading price claims, sales of hazardous or systematically defective products or services without adequate disclosures, failure to disclose information regarding pyramid sales,
use of bait and switch techniques, failure to perform promised services, and failure to meet warranty obligations.
If you are an attorney or law firm that handles class action complaints please contact me as we are looking for representation in this matter. Help stop false and misleading advertising!
Thanks very much for your support.
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