FESTIVAL “UNA VOCE PER SAN MARINO”
THE MUSIC CONTEST LINKED TO THE EUROVISION SONG CONTEST 2024/2025
Whereas:
- Segreteria di Stato per il Turismo, Poste Italiane, Cooperazione ed Expo della Repubblica di San
Marino (hereinafter referred to as Segreteria di Stato), and Radiotelevisione della Repubblica di San Marino (hereinafter referred to as San Marino RTV) and Media Evolution Srl with registered business office in Via III Settembre n.99, Republic of San Marino, SM 47890, E.O.C. SM 29275 (hereinafter referred to as ME) have agreed to create a music contest, a Festival, carried out through several stages, using digital channels with preselection purposes and on-site phases to be held in the Republic of San Marino to determine a Winner to be enrolled on behalf of San Marino RTV in the Eurovision Song Contest. - Segreteria di Stato has obtained the right to select the Artist taking part in the Eurovision Song Contest directly from San Marino RTV by attributing to ME their identification, provided that San Marino RTV will supervise and ensure the compliance with the Set of Rules of the Eurovision Song Contest as well as Winner’s enrolment. Segreteria di Stato and San Marino RTV have attributed and considered ME as the qualified entity for the organization of an international selection of the Artist who will represent San Marino RTV at the Eurovision Song Contest from 2022 onwards. ME is responsible for drawing up the General Rules for each edition of the Festival in line with the Rules of the Eurovision Song Contest in which the general conditions of enrolment, the conditions concerning the selection and all the necessary provisions to ensure the smooth running of the Festival will be outlined. The Award for the Winner of the Festival (or for the runner-up if the Winner withdraws) will be their enrolment in the Eurovision Song Contest which will be provided by San Marino RTV.
- San Marino RTV will be mainly in charge of the following duties: a) filming the Academy & Casting stages in order to make a program called “Aspettando il Festival-Una Voce per San Marino” (“Waiting for the Festival – Una Voce per San Marino”); b) filming the 5 (five) Semi- finals for their broadcasting on delay; c) shooting and live broadcasting the Grand-Final during the Festival. Segreteria di Stato and San Marino RTV together with ME wish to create a contest which should be open to any citizen from all over the world to participate in order to have the chance to win and enrol in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025. Furthermore, San Marino RTV owns a TV channel as well as a Web and Radio broadcaster.
- In accordance with this Set of Rules, ME intends to manage the procedures of enrolment, access and selection for all the stages deemed appropriate in order to create the Contest-Festival and whose Winner will have the right to be qualified – upon presentation by San Marino RTV – to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest. This Set of rules concerns indeed the 2025 edition.
Therefore,
MEDIA EVOLUTION S.R.L.
in accordance with the above-mentioned agreements and in full harmony with the aforementioned entities assumes for the 2024/2025 edition of the Festival, the following
SET OF RULES
Art. 1 – THE CONTESTANTS
Anybody who has reached the age of 16 (sixteen) no later than February 2nd, 2025, can apply for the Festival by submitting their application (hereinafter referred to as the Contestants) to participate either as individual performers or as groups including a performer (e.g. duo, bands, etc). Registrations are open until December 31st, 2024. For minors, consent and subscription of their application must be submitted by their parents exercising parental authority and who commit themselves to actively collaborate to release the permission which is required for minors’ performance during the Festival, signing the consent form and any necessary document and/or requested one. As a consequence, the release of the authorization by the competent Office is a condition to participate in each stage of the Festival. Minors’ parents (and even only one of them in case there is just one) and/or the legal guardian – if appointed by the competent judicial authority (hereinafter also referred to as “parent”) – will be the sole responsible for any presence, act and/or behaviour of their children within the Festival, releasing ME from any liability.
Art. 2 – THE FESTIVAL AND ITS STAGES
In order to proclaim the Winner of the Festival, the Contestants could/should undergo the following phases: a) Online registration on www.unavocepersanmarino.com (hereinafter referred to as the “website”) by verifying their Eligibility;
b) Academy & Casting which is the Educational Phase and the Casting which can take more than one day;
c) Semi-finals: 6 (six) Semi-finals (4 for Selection and 1 for the repêchage round and 1 reserved to San Marino’s citizens taking part in the competition);
d) the Grand Final during which the Winner of the Festival will be announced. The winner (who will be asked to perform their song during the Grand Final) will be enrolled in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 by San Marino RTV, after duly checking their eligibility.
Documents that will be provided for the contest-Festival will be kept in the archives for 3 (three) months starting from the end of the Grand Final.
a) VERIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY
The Verification of Eligibility is FREE OF CHARGE and its only aim is to verify the eligibility of each Contestant through an evaluation test carried out by an expert, unquestionably selected by ME and who will express their positive or negative opinion. It is agreed that even in case of a negative opinion, the Contestant could still enrol in the Festival.
The Verification of Eligibility will start today and will end on December 28th, 2024; it will be held online by sending a specific form to ME which can be found in the dedicated area of the website posted as “Verifica d’idoneità: form online” (“Verification of Eligibility: online form”). Contestants can thus send their material (links to their videos and/or mp3 files) as specified on the website in the specific section.
b) ACADEMY & CASTING
This first phase will be held in San Marino where ME will announce (it should be Sala Eventi – San Marino Outlet Experience in Falciano, Str. degli Angariari n. 41) and it will consist of 2 (two) days including the Academy & Casting phase.
Sessions will be gradually posted on the official website of the Festival, and they will be considered as the final communication to the Contestants. The Academy is an educational meeting on specific subjects concerning the entertainment and it is meant to study and learn the world of music. The Casting consists in the selection of the Semi-finalists by holding a private audition, on a live basis (the so-called half playback) and the evaluation by the Jury, accredited and decided by ME. The Jury will select about 80 (eighty) or more Contestants that could move to the next phase, provided that ME reserves the right to decide the exact number. The Casting will be recorded by ME.
Jury’s decision is final. Specifically, the Contestant, even during the Casting phase, must report officially to ME any fact, element, issue, event, relation, etc. which could represent in whole or in part a cause or a change – even indirectly – caused by the Jury (or one of its members or anyone in ME organization), and that could alter the decision made by the Jury which must be free and based on a meritocratic and artistic evaluation basing on the personal belief of the members of the Jury. The participation of the Contestant and /or member of the Jury and/or Member of the organization in other Contests/ festivals must be communicated by the Contestant as well as by the member of the Jury in order to replace the member of the Jury considering the participation of the Contestants in more than one contest/festival. The above should be applied for each stage of the contest – Una Voce per San Marino.
The Academy & Casting rounds will be held in several sessions, and they should start from September 2024 according to the final calendar posted on the Festival website. The last session will be held no later than January 26th, 2025. As mentioned above, the schedule will be unquestionably decided by ME and it will be communicated to the Contestants by posting it on the specific area “Academy & Casting” on the Festival website
Only for citizens residing in countries which don’t border with Italy, the Casting could be carried out online upon Contestant’s request and according to ME’s guidelines which will be communicated to those who asked for via email or post.
In order to clarify what stated above, the countries bordering with Italy are: Switzerland, France, Austria and Slovenia.
c-1) SEMI-FINALS
This phase of the contest is reserved to Contestants selected by the Jury and resulting from the Casting round.
The Semi-finals will be held in San Marino approximately on February 14th and 15th 2025. During this phase, by drawing lots, Contestants will compete by performing live (e.g. half playback) in front of an audience and a qualified Jury with experts in the field – unquestionably chosen by ME.
Jury’s decision is final, and it will be released and explained publicly at the end of the Contestants’ performance, and it will be based on evaluation criteria that will take into account Contestants’ artistic value, their originality and their performing and interpreting skills. Semifinals will be 4 (four) for the Casting round and 1 (one) for the repêchage.
During the Casting Semi-finals, the Jury will both select those who will access to the Grand-Final directly and those who will have the chance to take part in the Repechage Semi-final. Plus, other Contestants could also be selected from the Repechage round to access to the Grand-Final. The Repechage Semi-final is an extra opportunity given to Contestants to demonstrate their performance and artistic skills.
The semi-finalists resulting from the Casting/Repêchage Semi-finals will take part in the Grand-Final during which they will compete according to modes and ways unquestionably decided by ME. The Jury will select approximately 10 (ten) Contestants. ME reserves the right to decide the exact number.
However, it is understood, and all the parties as well acknowledge that minors cannot perform after 24.00, neither during the Semi-finals nor during the Grand-Final; therefore, if the Contestants succeeds in the first stages of the selection, they will not be able to participate in the later phases if their performance is scheduled after 24.00; in that case, audio-video recordings of the Contestant’s performance will be used.
c-2.a) SEMI-FINAL for Contestants who are San Marino citizens
One Semi-final is reserved to Contestants who are San Marino citizens. They should submit their request form to take part in by registering at Academy & Casting to participate in the Casting audition for their verification of eligibility.
The first 12 (twelve) performers will be allowed to perform to the specific and aforementioned Semi-final and 1 (one) of them will have access to the Grand-Final.
The date of the Semi-final for San Marino citizens will be posted on the website. If the Contestant is a band, the following rules must be applied: a) the singer should be a citizen of San Marino; b) at least the majority of the group should be citizens of San Marino.
c-2.b)
Su richiesta della Segreteria di Stato stante l’importante presenza nel territorio della Repubblica di San Marino, il vincitore dell’edizione 2024 del Tour Music Festival categoria canto, questi potrà accedere gratuitamente alla prima delle Semifinali dell’edizione del festival Una Voce Per San Marino 2024-2025 a condizione della piena accettazione del regolamento e sottoscrizione di ogni liberatoria ed impegno attinente anche ed in particolare alle regole dell’Eurovision Song Contest edizione 2025.
d) FESTIVAL GRAND-FINAL
The Grand-Final will be held around February 22nd, 2025 at Teatro Nuovo Dogana or in any other place and day selected by ME upon San Marino RTV’s binding guidelines. The date of the Grand-Final could be changed according to unquestionable needs decided by San Marino RTV.
10 (ten) Contestants will access to the Grand-Final: 8 (eight) will result from the Casting Semi-finals (two Contestants for each of the Casting Semi-finals) and 2 (two) resulting from the Repechage Semi-final. The Contestant resulting from the Semi-final reserved to the Citizens of San Marino is the 11th finalist.
It is an essential condition to access from the Semi-finals to the Grand-Final the full subscription (which is not negotiable, nor questionable) no later than 3 (three) days from the end of the Semi-finals of all the warranty statements about the Contestants’ financial standing and their capacity to face the potential project in case of victory of the Eurovision Song Contest. For this purpose, the Contestants will be asked to demonstrate that they have the financial capabilities which are requested, and that they are supported by a top-quality agency or, in case of self-producers, to own proper conditions and practical feasibility. All mentioned above is subject to the unquestionable evaluation of ME together with San Marino RTV as well as Segreteria di Stato.
The Contestant who will not be evaluated eligible will not access to the Grand-Final.
It is acknowledged that ME could make a proposal of agreement to the Contestant, and this agreement would be binding to their potential victory, in order to guarantee their financial standing and their project quality for a proper participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. The aforementioned scenario is possible provided that the Grand-Final victory is gained and the access to the above-mentioned and prestigious Contest is guaranteed. This proposal should be accepted prior full subscription by the Contestant and/or authors of the competing song and/or producers and anyone entitled to this no later than February 18th, 2025. After this deadline, the Contestant could not participate in the Grand-Final any longer.
During the Grand-Final, the Contestants who will be selected during the Semi-Finals should perform the same unreleased song they had played on the occasion of the Semi-Finals. The Winner will be announced by the experts of the Jury. The Jury is composed of 5 (five) members. 2 (two) are unquestionably selected by San Marino RTV (one selected as the President), 1 (one) is unquestionably selected by Segreteria di Stato and 2 (two) are unquestionably selected by ME.
The Winner of the Festival and their song performed during the Grand-Final will be enrolled in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 by San Marino RTV – after verifying their eligibility.
The Winner of the Festival pledges also for the third party, as of now, to sign and have it signed all the documents required to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, by way of full acceptance and knowledge with obligation of full and complete execution, such as the 2025 license agreement between the owner of the rights on the audio-video recording of the song performed on the occasion of the Grand-Final and the phonographic company selected by the Eurovision Song Contest. This will be posted on the Festival website for the Contestants’ full knowledge since they should confirm to have read the 2024 license which should be valid for 2025 as well; by signing this, the Contestants will participate in the Grand-Final of the Festival. The Winner of the Festival pledges also for the third party, as of now, to comply with rules, commitments and conditions as mentioned in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 set of rules.
Art. 3 – FESTIVAL ENROLMENT
Those who meet the requirements as of art. 1 – regardless of the fact they have undergone the verification of eligibility and/or having received the result – since it is not binding, could enrol in the Festival from today and not later than December 31st, 2024. All application forms are posted on the Festival website in the dedicated area “Come iscriversi” (“How to Enrol”).
Those applications which will result incomplete or unsigned as required in every single part or in case the receipts of payment are missing as specified below will not be accepted.
As far as minors’ applicants are concerned, the subscription of their parents exercising parental authority will be required as well as their application.
3.1. ACADEMY & CASTING
Those who want to enrol in the Academy & Casting stage, both in presence or remotely (if the
condition stated in art. 2b) are fulfilled), should submit the application form, upon payment of the
registration fee as follows:
– Euro 100,00 (Euro one hundred/00), VAT included: both for individuals and groups taking part in the Casting round in September and October;
– Euro 120,00 (Euro one hundred and twenty/00), VAT included: both for individuals and groups taking part in the Casting round in November and December;
– Euro 150,00 (Euro one hundred and fifty/00), VAT included: both for individuals and groups taking part in the Casting round in January;
– For citizens and groups from San Marino, the registration fee is Euro 50,00 (Euro fifty/00) if it is made no later than January 14th, 2025.
– Those who already took part in the previous editions of the Festival can enroll no later than October 31st, 2024 at a discounted cost of Euro 100,00 (Euro one hundred/00), VAT included.
The payment of the registration fees is the essential condition to be enrolled, and it can be made by bank transfer on the bank account of Media Evolution S.r.l. with registered business office in Via III Settembre n. 99, Republic of San Marino, SM 47890, E.O.C. SM 29275, in the person of the sole Director Mr. Denny Montesi with the following bank details: IBAN SM97V0328709801000010314343
3.2. SEMI-FINALS
Those who have been informed of their Positive Outcome at the Academy & Casting round will be able to enroll for the next phase of the Semi-finals, no later than 3 (three) days from the above evaluation, paying the fee for Euro 150.00 (Euro one hundred and fifty/00) VAT included and which is mandatory.
In case the application is not made within the above-mentioned period of 3 (three) days, the Contestant forfeits the possibility to apply for the Semi-finals. The citizens/groups from San Marino participating as Contestants should not pay. However, the application is mandatory. The application form for the Semi-finals is posted on the Festival website and the payment of the fee, which is a condition of validity, must be made on ME’s bank account.
3.3. GRAND-FINAL
No registration fee is required for the Grand-Final.
Art. 4 – MUSIC TRACKS
When participating in each Festival phase, the Contestant will hand over 2 (two) songs and the backing tracks for each one (instrumental only) and 2 (two) full tracks (music and voice) of these songs for a maximum duration of 3 (three) minutes.
The backing tracks (half playback) must be handed over as MP3 file formats on a specific USB-key or CD with the name and surname of the Contestant, as well as the title of the songs and the line-up.
By signing this set of rules, the Contestant gives their consent that the backing tracks delivered to ME will not be returned and they can be deleted and/or destroyed at the end of the Festival. It is understood that, since the aim of the Festival is to select the Winner who will represent San Marino RTV at the Eurovision Song Contest, the aforementioned songs must be in line with this purpose.
4.1. ACADEMY & CASTING
The songs must be 2 (two) and the language can be chosen by the Contestant, on half playback chosen by the Contestant, too.
The duration of each song on half playback cannot last more than 3 (three) minutes; if longer, it can be faded during the audition.
4.2. SEMI-FINALS
The song should be one and the language can be chosen by the Contestant. It must be an unreleased track (art.5) that the Contestant intends to perform at the Eurovision Song Contest 2025.
The half playback performance cannot be more than 3 (three) minutes (which is the duration of the Eurovision Song Contest tracks) and if longer, the Contestant will be excluded.
4.3. GRAND-FINAL
The song should be one, and it must be an unreleased track presented at the semi-finals. The live performance cannot be more than 3 (three) minutes (which is the duration of the Eurovision Song Contest tracks) and if longer than 3 minutes, the Contestant will be excluded.
Art. 5 – DEFINITION OF COVER SONG AND UNRELEASED SONG
Concerning the songs to be performed at the Festival, they shall be:
A) cover songs: a song previously interpreted and released by another well-known Artist who is the original performer. The term released, as used here, means that the track is presented and used in any form and/or way including its availability to the audience, even free of charge (e.g. internet), and/or its use during other contests.
B) unreleased songs: a song that has never been interpreted, performed neither used by the same Contestant/Artist, in any form/way, and that has not been already released, duplicated, put on market neither broadcasted via radio/TV nor used in other contests. Plus, it should not be found as a record in stores neither on the web (You Tube)/website nor in digital form, streaming in line with the Rules of the Eurovision Song Contest which have been established by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and are approved by the contest’s governing body, the Reference Group.
Art. 6 – RULES OF CONDUCT
The Contestants of the event are aware of the importance of the Festival as a contest involving Segreteria di Stato and San Marino RTV, as well as the modes to access to the Eurovision Song Contest and, therefore, they guarantee their personal obligation and they commit themselves for the whole duration of the Festival to always maintain a proper and disciplined behaviour avoiding to damage with their own performance, in any way, third-party rights.
In particular, the Contestant should inform, before or during each performance, but before the end, any incompatibility and/or conflict of interests with one of the members of the Jury. This way ME, maybe by informing RTV and/or Segreteria di Stato, could evaluate to change the member of the Jury in order to convey a transparent, clear and meritocratic evaluation according to the artistic evaluation which should be free and independent from the Jury. The omission of this communication is a serious breach of the code of conduct resulting in Contestant’s elimination. Contestants arriving late to the call will be eliminated. During the performances, taking into account what is mentioned in art. 2 letter b, the Contestants could not assume attitudes neither wear clothes/have hairstyles which are in contrast with morality so violating the law (of the Republic of San Marino) and in particular against the Republic’s Coat of Arms, or third parties’ rights. They should not neither pronounce sentences, make gestures, use objects, wear clothes with advertising/promotional references (even indirectly) nor with detrimental references to the image of the Republic of San Marino.
On the occasion of the TV final night, ME, basing on its unquestionable judgment, may change clothes, accessories, hairstyles, gestures and anything that is against the values as mentioned in the Code of Ethics of San Marino RTV (https://www.sanmarinortv.sm/chi-siamo/azienda/codice-etico-c195/ codice-etico-a182741) to which ME refers.
ME also reserves the right to exclude Contestants at any time during the various stages of the Festival if they do not comply with the rules of this Set of Rules or if they assume a conduct which 7 is against the principles of good faith and if they don’t respect public decency and morality. Contestants must pay particular attention and must be acknowledged of and fully accept the Code of Ethics and the Organizational Model of the television broadcaster that will record live the event. In particular, it is strictly excluded that anyone can access to a later
stage or can even access to the Grand-Final as a consequence of agreements with anyone, since, in order to get to the Grand Final, Contestants must succeed the stages as mentioned in this Set of rules, due to Contestants’ meritocracy. For the proper and smooth running of the Festival, the Contestants, and in case of minors their parents and/ or guardians, now for then, are committed and must report to ME the presence of people who, pretending to be employees and/ or collaborators of the Festival, ask for money in exchange of any kind of service or that propose illegitimate agreements to pass the evaluations and/or selection phases and/or to get directly to the Grand-Final. Contestants are therefore invited to be wary of those who are not included in the list of Official partners, reporting any abuse to ME. Omitting this information, as well as any agreement with the above boasters by the Contestants and/ or parents exercising authority and/or anyone on behalf of the Contestants, will determine the full faculty for ME to exclude and eliminate the Contestant from the Festival. Plus, considering the violation of the fiduciary relationship, ME reserves the right to take legal action to obtain a compensation for the moral and material damage suffered.
Art. 7 – CONTESTANTS’ RIGHTS AND DUTIES
7.1. FEES AND/OR REFUNDS
The Contestants of the event commit themselves unconditionally, without claiming any compensation. Contestants are in charge of travel and daily expenses and/or other expenses as well as backing tracks (master). If the Festival is not held due to force majeure (e.g. COVID-19), the Contestants will be entitled, upon request, to receive the refund of the amounts corresponding only to the registration fees already paid; refunds are not foreseen for any other reason. Any further claim and/or reason towards ME and the Festival and those mentioned in the introduction will be excluded.
7.2. WITHDRAWAL OR NON-PARTICIPATION
By signing their registration form, Contestants accept and expressly endorse the non-rescindable contractual obligation to refund ME for damage to image in case of unmotivated non-participation in the Grand-Final of the event – if the Contestant was selected among the Finalists – even including the participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. In this case, the damage suffered by San Marino RTV in charge of the enrolment in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 will be taken into account. Contestants who have withdrawn during the previous phases will not be entitled to any refund.
7.3 DISQUALIFICATIONS/EXPULSIONS
If disqualification occurs, at discretion of ME in accordance with this Set of Rules, the Contestant who is immediately after could take over the rights and the powers of the Disqualified Contestant, and so on. The aforementioned procedure should be in line with the production time of the Contest and it is unquestionably decided by ME. Facts mentioned in arts. 2b) and 6) are considered serious breach of this Set of rules. As a consequence, ME has the right to decide the disqualification of the Contestant and its judgement is unquestionable.
7.4. COMMITMENTS
By signing this Set of rules and the participation in the Contest, the Contestants undertake, now for then, free of charge and without costs of any kind and type, to give ME the right to shoot and/ or take photo and/ or record, even via authorised third parties, by means of television, cinema, photos and phonographic media on film, tape or any other current or future media, their own image, their 8 own voice, their own name and their artistic performances delivered during the Festival, with full right for ME to reproduce, broadcast, transmit, make available, duplicate, create, pair, synchronize, print, publish and project the shots and/or the photos and/or the recordings, as a whole or in part, during the Festival or separately, by any means currently known (by way of example and not limited to: TV, satellite, cable TV, radio, web radio, web tv, social networks, internet, downloading, streaming, analogue and/or digital systems, DVB-T, DVB-H, DVB-X, online and offline, fixed-line
transfer to ME the master of music tracks that will be used by the Contestants, and it must be exclusively owned by them, free from any and all rights (except for SIAE – in its execution for the songs protected by them) for the so-called related rights both of the phonographic producer and of the performers (with specific release of liability by the Contestants, keeping these costs at their exclusive charge). The Contestants have such rights and, by participating in the Festival, they renounce to any and all indemnity/ reimbursement/fee, even as a fair compensation, having taken this into consideration in the determination of the fee to enrol in the Festival, including the transfer to ME and considered the free verification of eligibility even for this synallagma. In particular, the Contestants, with the aforementioned transfer, for free and without charges and/or costs of any kind and type, with the right to transfer to third parties the master of the music tracks of the songs presented at the Festival, as per the aforementioned art. 5, undertake to transfer the so-called “connected rights” both of the phonographic producer and the performers (with specific release of liability of the Contestants, who will keep these costs at their exclusive charge) and the Contestants, now for then, assuming full responsibility, declare that they will deliver the bases/ tracks suitable for duplication directly to the production, declaring and guaranteeing to be the sole, exclusive and unique owner of all the phonographic rights on these, and that they have acquired the rights from any and all partners and rightful claimants, and to be able, freely and without prejudice or limitation, to transfer the rights of use, including the diffusion in any form and manner, the provision to the public, the recording and all secondary rights in general, to ME, which receives them; and this is an integral part of their participation in the Contest, given the setting of the fee, which has also taken into account this essential and mandatory assignment, non-exclusive for the period from the delivery of the tracks (audio master) to December 31, 2025;
deliver to ME, before the date of the Semi-final, the master with the bases (music and voice) of the tracks presented at the Festival as stated in the aforementioned art. 5 (cover song and unreleased song), on a CD and/or on a MP3 file format of proper phonographic quality;
Participate in live activities with commercial purposes and/or concerts organized in the Republic of San Marino with the only refund of the expenses and within December 31, 2025.
and mobile telephony, UMTS, GPRS, HSDPA, etc.) or any means that will be invented in the future, in any form and manner, without any limitation of time and/or space, through websites, web radio, web TV, social networks, etc., even by transferring it totally and/ or partially to third parties. It is understood that the above mentioned license is essential for their participation in the Festival and this has also been taken into account in setting the registration fees (including the free-of-charge stage), in order to pay flat rates to the Contestants as well.
7.5. CONDITIONS TO ACCESS TO THE SEMI-FINALS
In order to complete and integrate what is mentioned in art. 7.4 (Commitments) binging on Contestants, it is specified that the Contestants selected for the Semi-finals undertake, as of now, to:
The above duties and assignments have been taken into account for all that is borne by ME in organizing the Festival and they are an essential condition for the access to the Festival.
Art. 8 – ORGANIZATION’S RIGHTS
8.1. COMMERCIAL AND ADVERTISING ACTIONS OF THE ORGANIZER AND OF THOSE MENTIONED IN THE INTRODUCTION
ME has the right to match the Festival and/or its television and/or radio broadcasting, with one or more commercial and advertising initiatives, including but not limited to: sponsorship operations, TV promotions, sponsorships, merchandising without any of the Contestants having anything to claim. By signing this Set of rules, Contestants undertake, now by then, to grant ME, without any charge, the right to use their own image for commercial and advertising initiatives as mentioned above, for the duration of four years from the moment of signing this Set of rules, and this has been taken into account in determining the registration fees as referred to in the aforementioned art. 4.
8.2. TV, AUDIO, PHOTO SHOOTS
ME has the right to record and/or film and / or have recorded and / or have one or more phases of the Festival filmed and broadcast by third parties, on TV and on an audio-visual, photographic and phonographic level. By signing the consent form attached to the application form, each Contestant authorizes the photos, recordings and filming, by conceding the exploitation of their image rights concerning their public performance and their presence in the Festival, even for the purposes of any operations of commercial and advertising activities referred to in the previous paragraph, without any limitation of time and/or space and without having anything to expect from ME and from third parties. ME has the right to use the aforementioned photos for the possible creation of a photobook of the Festival, as well as to publish and share photos, recordings and filming through websites, web radio, web tv and social networks. ME, will be also entitled to sublicense rights to third parties, especially to Segreteria di Stato.
8.3. CONTESTANT SELECTED BY ME
ME reserves the right to unquestionably select up to maximum 5 (five) Contestants for projects of particular relevance and interest in the music and artistic industry.
At ME’s discretion, in case one or more Contestants (as cited above) and up to maximum 5 are selected, they can access to the Grand-Final in addition to the 11 (eleven) Finalists as selected according to the aforementioned art.2 and without taking part in the previous rounds of the Festival, without prejudice to the obligation to enroll and fully accept this Set of Rules.
Art. 9 – AMENDMENTS TO THIS SET OF RULES
During the period of validity of this Set of Rules, ME, at their sole discretion, may make additions and amendments for purposes unquestionably assessed by ME for organizational and functional purposes. ME may also introduce amendments and integrations to protect and safeguard the artistic level of the event, for unforeseen events or occurrences, including any issue related to COVID-19, without prejudice to the spirit of the premises and to the smooth running of the event. Such integrations and amendments shall be considered to be fully valid and effective when they are posted on the Festival website and therefore all the Contestants are required to visit this website.
Art. 10 – COMMUNICATIONS
Any communication provided by this Set of rules will be validly posted on the Festival website or communicated by e-mail to the e-mail addresses shared by Contestants in the application form.
Contestants are therefore required to visit the Festival website and ME declines as of now any kind of responsibility for any misunderstanding, delay or missed contact details.
Art. 11 – ARBITRATION
Any dispute concerning the interpretation and execution of this Set of rules will be settled with a specific appeal to the Arbitration Committee. The interested party should first send ME a statement of objection (by registered letter with return receipt) within the peremptory term of 10 (ten) days as of when the event that the party intends to challenge occurred. If ME states that the allegations made by the party are unfounded, they must 10 submit a specific appeal to the Arbitration Committee in the headquarters as specified below within the peremptory term of 5 (five) days from the receipt of the return letter of rejection by ME. The seat of the Arbitration Committee is located in San Marino. The Arbitration Committee, which will decide, as a neutral mediator, without procedural formalities and in the shortest possible time, will be composed of three members: one appointed by ME, one by the applicant and one as the President appointed by Segreteria di Stato. The judgment of the Arbitration Committee shall be final and unappealable. By accepting this Set of Rules, the Contestant defers to the decision taken.
San Marino, 31/07/2024
