Emeril's Best Burger Ever Challenge Rules

June 1, 2007 — -- Think you've got the cooking chops to be part of Emeril's "Best Burger Ever Challenge"?

Here's your chance to find out whether your burger can pass muster with one master chef and a tough crowd -- "Good Morning America" viewers and online voters.

Here's how it works:

Read the rules below, and send your original burger recipe (it can be beef, turkey, veggie, soy, etc.) to "Good Morning America" either online or by regular mail by July 9. If possible, include a photo of the finished product. Include all your contact information including name, address, phone numbers and e-mail address.

To enter online click here.

"Good Morning America" and Emeril Lagasse will choose the Top 10 recipes and ask those entrants to send in a video showing them making their recipe.

On or around Aug. 10, Emeril will present the videos of the Top 5 picks on "GMA." Viewers will then be able to watch the full videos online at ABCNEWS.com and vote for their favorite recipe. Viewer votes will count for 50 percent and Emeril's vote will count for 50 percent.

On Aug. 17, the Top 3 vote-getters will be invited to Bryant Park in New York City, and the winner will be announced on "Good Morning America," where they will cook their winning recipe with Emeril Lagasse.

Emeril's 'Best Burger Ever Challenge Rules'

I. NAME OF SPONSOR(S)

Good Morning America and American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. (Hereinafter collectively referred to as "Sponsor").

II. ELIGIBILITY

Entrants must be legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia. Minors must have permission of parent or legal guardian to enter.

Only original recipes are eligible. Entries must include standard U.S. measurements, a complete list of ingredients in order of use, complete preparation directions, and any other relevant information. The recipe may not have been previously published or won any contest or be currently entered in a competition. Professional chefs and/or cooks are disqualified from participation in this Challenge. Any submission not meeting these requirements will be disqualified.

Any individuals (including but not limited to employees, consultants, independent contractors, and interns) who have, within the past six months, performed services for Good Morning America ("GMA"), American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. ("ABC"), any organizations responsible for sponsoring, fulfilling, administering, advertising or promoting the Challenge or supplying the prize, and their respective parent, subsidiary, affiliated and successor companies, and immediate family and household members of such individuals, are not eligible to enter or play. "Immediate family members" shall mean parents, step-parents, children, step-children, siblings, step-siblings, or spouses. "Household members" shall mean people who share the same residence at least three months a year.

III. HOW AND WHEN TO ENTER

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY.

One entry per person. Send your original recipe for a burger (it can be beef, turkey, soy, veggie, etc.) along with an essay of no more than 100 words stating why it is the best burger recipe. If possible, include a photograph of the finished burger. Also, be sure to include your name, address, all phone numbers and an e-mail address (if available). Recipe and personal information will not count toward the 100 word essay limit.

Mail entries to:

Emeril's Best Burger Ever Challenge

Ansonia Station

P.O. Box 231706

New York, New York 10023-9480

or

Enter online by clicking here .

There you will find instructions on the appropriate and acceptable file formats and sizes for submitting your entry electronically.

All entries must be received by 11:59 pm, Monday, July 9, 2007 whether submitted by U.S. mail or online; same rules apply if you enter online or via U.S. mail.

Entries remain the property of Sponsor and will not be returned or acknowledged.

Good Morning America can provide no technical support and accepts no responsibility for insuring the receipt of your electronic entry. If you experience any difficulties trying to submit your entry online, it is recommended that you send your entry via U.S. mail to the above address.

Sponsor is not responsible for mail that is lost, stolen, late, illegible, incomplete, damaged, mutilated, misdirected, altered, tampered with, or postage-due.

Sponsor is not responsible for failed, partial or garbled computer transmissions, or for technical failures of any kind, including but not limited to electronic malfunction or damage of any network, hardware or software. If for any reason the Challenge is not capable of running as planned, including infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or other causes that corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper conduct of the Challenge, Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual who tampers with the entry process, and to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the Challenge. No responsibility is assumed for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, communications line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to, or alteration of, entries; or any problems or technical malfunctions of any telephone network or lines, computer online systems, servers, or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any e-mail or electronic entry to be received on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any Web-site, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to entrant's or any other person's computer related to or resulting from participation in or downloading any materials from this Challenge.

IV. HOW AND WHEN WINNERS WILL BE SELECTED AND NOTIFIED

Eligible entries will be judged on the basis of originality, ease of preparation, appearance, consistency and taste. Decisions of the judges are final as to all contest-related matters. The same judging criteria apply through all levels of the Challenge.

Ten entries will be chosen as quarter-finalists by a panel of judges selected at the sole discretion of Good Morning America. The ten quarter-finalists will be asked to submit a short video, approximately four minutes in length, showing themselves preparing their burger recipe.

A judging panel will review the quarter-finalist entries and select five of these entries as semi-finalists. On or about August 10, 2007, videos of the five semi-finalists may be featured on Good Morning America along with a burger created by GMA following the recipes as submitted. The semi-finalists will then have their recipes and possibly other audio/video clips featured on the Good Morning America website and viewers will be invited to go to abcnews.com to vote for their favorite burger. Voting will begin at approximately 9 a.m. ET on or about August 10, 2007, and will end at approximately 11:59 am ET on or about August 14, 2007.

On or about August 14, 2007 the top three entrants, based on the number of on-line viewer votes received, will be deemed Finalists. Finalists will be invited to appear on Good Morning America where the Winner will be announced. Winner will be determined based on an even weighting of viewer votes received and the GMA panel of judges. After Winner is announced, Winner will be invited to prepare their burger on the show with Emeril LaGasse, schedule permitting.

Finalists must be available to appear on Good Morning America in New York on or about August 17, 2007. Choice of dates for any appearance is at Good Morning America's sole discretion. If a Finalist is unable to travel on the dates selected, that Finalist may be required to forfeit prize and the semi-finalist with the next highest number of votes may be deemed a Finalist, if time permits.

In the event of a tie, the entrant with the highest score in the originality category as received by the first panel's round of judging will be deemed the entry to continue on at any point in time during the competition when a tie might occur. In the event any entrant who proceeds into advanced levels of competition is deemed ineligible, fails to comply with Challenge procedures, or is not available to claim prize during specified dates, any prize may be awarded to a runner-up.

Entrants selected to participate in advanced levels of participation will be notified by phone and or e-mail in August 2007. All responses to notifications and execution of paperwork required for advanced participation must be completed in the time specified by the Sponsor.

V. PRIZE(S)

Finalists may be asked to travel to New York to appear on Good Morning America during August 2007 (exact date to be determined by Good Morning America.) If Finalist is unable to travel, the finalist with the next highest score may be selected.

Finalists who may be invited to New York City to appear on Good Morning America may each receive one (1) night's hotel accommodations (one room, single occupancy). If Finalists live more than 250 miles from final destination they may each receive one (1) coach class, airfare from an airport near the Finalist's home to a New York area airport and ground transportation from airport to hotel/studio. If a Finalist lives within 250 miles of New York City, Sponsors, at their sole discretion may provide alternate transportation.

Approximate Retail Value of three finalist prizes is $1,500.

Final actual value at time of booking and travel may be substantially more or less depending on dates of travel, point of origin and ticket availability. Some restrictions apply. All expenses not specifically provided for herein are the winner's sole responsibility.

Federal, state and local taxes, if any, are the sole responsibility of the winner, who will receive an IRS Form 1099 reflecting the final actual value of any prize valued at $600 or more.

Winners are not entitled to exchange or transfer prizes or to obtain cash or other substitutes, but Sponsor in its sole discretion may substitute prizes of equal or greater value.

If won by a minor, prize will be awarded in parent's or guardian's name.

Finalist Prize of appearing on Good Morning America is subject to availability. Sponsor is not responsible for cancellation or preemption of show or for other circumstances that make it impractical or impossible to fulfill this element of the prize. This element of the prize has no approximate retail value, and if it becomes impractical or impossible to fulfill this element, Sponsor's only obligation will be to provide the remainder of prize.

VI. RELEASES

By participating, entrants agree to be bound by these official rules and the decisions of the Sponsor/Judges and the Challenge administrator, which shall be final in all respects. All quarter-finalists may be required to complete the documentation and provide the information required to complete a background check.

By participating in this Challenge and accepting any prize that they may win, entrants agree to release Good Morning America, American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., their parent, subsidiary, affiliated and successor companies, any other sponsors, advertising and promotion agencies and prize suppliers, and each of their respective officers, directors, agents, representatives and employees, as well as each of their respective successors, representatives and assigns (collectively, the "Released Parties") from any and all actions, claims, injury, loss or damage arising in any manner, directly or indirectly, from participation in this Challenge and/or acceptance or use of the prize.

All recipe submissions will become the sole property of ABC, which may reprint or otherwise exploit the recipe in any manner, in any media. By submitting recipes, you agree that your name, voice, likeness and biographical data may be used by ABC for promotional and advertising purposes without compensation, unless prohibited by law. By participating in this contest, entrants agree to abide by all contest rules and by decision of judges. Entrants also agree to release Good Morning America, ABC, Inc. The Walt Disney Company, their parent subsidiary and affiliated companies, and their respective agents, representatives, officers, directors and employees, from and against any claim, liability, loss or expense of any kind resulting from entry or participation in the contest or acceptance or use of the prize. Winner will be required to sign and return an affidavit of eligibility, release and indemnification within seven days of notification of winning. All taxes are the sole responsibility of the winner.

Entrants authorize the Released Parties to use their name, voice, likeness, biographical data, city and state of residence and entry materials in programming or promotional material, in any media now know or hereafter created, worldwide in perpetuity, or on a winner's list, if applicable, without further compensation unless prohibited by law. Sponsor is not obligated to use any of the above mentioned information or materials, but may do so and may edit such information or materials, at Sponsor's sole discretion, without further obligation or compensation.

By submitting entry materials (including but not limited to essays, photographs, videotape or other materials that may be requested from participants), entrants certify that such materials are original and created by entrant, that entrants have the necessary rights, permission and authority to submit such materials, and, if applicable, that entrants maintain a valid copyright in the materials. Entrants acknowledge that such materials may be included and/or discussed in a broadcast, that such discussion may include statements or opinions by the broadcast talent or others about the entrants, the entrants' appearances and/or the materials, and that those statements and opinions may be considered surprising, humiliating, embarrassing, derogatory, defamatory or otherwise offensive or injurious to them, Sponsor's employees, its studio or at-home audience and/or other third parties. Entrants release the Released Parties from any actions, claims, injury, loss or damage allegedly caused, directly or indirectly, by any such statements or opinions made during a broadcast.

CAUTION: Any attempt to deliberately damage any Web site or undermine the legitimate operations of the Challenge may be a violation of the criminal and civil laws, and should such an attempt be made, Sponsors reserve the right to seek damages from any such entrant to the fullest extent permitted by law. Sponsors reserve the right to cancel or modify the Challenge if its fairness is compromised or if it becomes technically corrupted.

To claim prize: (a) winner must provide proof of age, identity and residency; (b) winner must sign and return affidavit of eligibility/compliance with rules, publicity/liability release and indemnification; and (c) winner's intended guest(s) or travel companion(s), if any, must sign liability/publicity release, all within the time period specified by Sponsor.

Sponsor may require any of Trip guests to be accompanied on the Trip by his/her parent or guardian, who will count as one of the guests included in the prize. Sponsor may require all Trip guests' parents or guardians to execute and return a Release of Liability prior to the Trip.

VII. MISCELLANEOUS; WINNERS' LIST

Void where prohibited. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply.

Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual who tampers with the entry process and to cancel, terminate, modify and/or suspend the contest in the event of tampering or other circumstances, including but not limited to acts of God or civil disturbance that render it impractical or impossible to complete or fulfill the contest as originally planned.

For a list of winners, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to ABC News, 147 Columbus Avenue, Room 602, New York, NY 10023 within 30 days after Challenge end date, or log onto GMA's webpage at abcnews.com. Vermont residents may omit return postage.