Project Jengo

OFFICIAL RULES OF THE CLOUDFLARE PRIOR ART CONTEST

Please read these Official Rules and Regulations (“Official Rules”) before participating in the Cloudflare Prior Art Contest (“Contest”). By participating in this Contest, you agree to be bound by these Official Rules and represent that you satisfy all of the eligibility criteria set out below. THE CONTEST IS A GAME OF SKILL AND WINNERS WILL BE SELECTED BASED ON THEIR SUBMISSIONS, WHICH ARE AN EVALUATION OF THEIR SKILL. THIS CONTEST IS OPEN TO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE ABOVE THE AGE OF MAJORITY AND WHO ARE NOT RESIDENTS OF THE PROHIBITED JURISDICTIONS (DEFINED BELOW) OR LIVING IN A COUNTRY WHERE THE CONTEST IS PROHIBITED BY LAW. DO NOT ENTER THIS CONTEST IF YOU ARE NOT THE AGE OF MAJORITY IN YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE, OR IF YOU ARE OTHERWISE NOT ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE BY THE LOCAL LAW IN YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE.

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THE CONTEST.

1. SPONSOR & COMPLIANCE WITH RULES. The sponsor of the Contest is Cloudflare, Inc., having its principal place of business in San Francisco, California, United States (“Sponsor” or the “Company”). The Company will conduct the Contest substantially as described in these Official Rules. By submitting an entry in the Contest, each entrant (“you”) agrees to comply with and be bound by these Official Rules, which constitute a binding agreement between you and the Company. These Official Rules do not supersede but work in conjunction with the Cloudflare Website and Online Services Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The decisions of the Company are final and binding in all respects.

2. ELIGIBILITY. The Contest is open only to natural persons, who are at least eighteen (18) years of age and have reached the age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence at the time of entry. Team or group submissions are prohibited.

The following individuals are not eligible to participate:

(a) Employees, officers, directors, agents, and representatives of Sponsor and/or Sable Networks, Inc. or Sable IP, LLC (“Sable Entities”), as well as their immediate family members (defined as spouse, mother, father, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces, grandparents and in-laws, regardless of where they live) and those living in their household (whether or not related);

(b) Each person or entity connected with the production or administration of the Contest including any person involved in the development, production, administration or judging of the Contest as well as family members and those living in the same household as those individuals; or

(c) Any person residing in the Prohibited Jurisdiction: (i) resident of a US Embargoed Country (defined to include Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and the Crimea Region of Ukraine); (ii) ordinarily resident in a US Embargoed Country; (iii) subject to sanctions or otherwise designated on any list of prohibited or restricted parties, including but not limited to the lists maintained by the U.S. Government (e.g., the Specially Designated Nationals List and Foreign Sanctions Evaders List of the US Department of Treasury, and the Entity List of the US Department of Commerce), the United Kingdom, the European Union or its Member States, or other applicable government authority; (iv) a resident of Quebec; (v) a resident of the People’s Republic of China, or (vi) a resident in any country that has become subject to US sanctions. Participation is otherwise also prohibited in any country that has a local law that prohibits contests where skill determines the winner.

In the event of a dispute as to the identity of an entrant, the entrant will be declared by using the registered account holder of the email account from which the entry was submitted at the time of entry. The registered account holder is deemed to be the natural person who is assigned the submitted email address by the relevant Internet service provider, online access provider or other organization (e.g., business, educational institution, etc.) that is responsible for assigning e-mail addresses for the domain associated with the submitted email address. With respect to any potential winner, the potential winner may be required to provide the Company with proof that the person is the registered account holder of the email address associated with such entry. No third-party entry or entry through Contest services is permitted – entry by individuals only.

3. WHEN TO ENTER. The duration for the Contest depends on the length of the litigation Sable Networks, Inc. v. Cloudflare, Inc., No. 6:21-cv-00261-ADA (W.D. Tex.) (hereinafter “Sable Case”). The Contest will continue until Sable drops the case fully (and with prejudice — meaning Sable can’t re-file later), there’s a full settlement, or the case has been resolved by the court and all appeal rights are exhausted (collectively, the “Conclusion of the Case”). This means, as long as the Sable Case is active, then the Contest will continue and submissions can be made.

During the Sable Case, the Contest will be broken into 8 different “Chapters,” each of which will last approximately three months (“Entry Period”), but there may be fewer than 8 Chapters if the Conclusion of the Case occurs before April 30, 2023. The corresponding dates are as follows:

Chapter 1

• Dates for Entry: April 26 – July 31, 2021

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: August 1 – August 15, 2021

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: August 16, 2021

Chapter 2

• Dates for Entry: August 1 – October 31, 2021

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: November 1 – November 15, 2021

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: November 16, 2021

Chapter 3

• Dates for Entry: November 1, 2021 – January 31, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: February 1 – February 15, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: February 16, 2022

Chapter 4

• Dates for Entry: February 1 – April 30, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: May 1 – May 15, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: May 16, 2022

Chapter 5

• Dates for Entry: May 1 – July 31, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: August 1 – August 15, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: August 16, 2022

Chapter 6

• Dates for Entry: August 1 – October 31, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: November 1 – November 15, 2022

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: November 16, 2022

Chapter 7

• Dates for Entry: November 1, 2022 – January 31, 2023

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: February 1 – February 15, 2023

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: February 16, 2023

Chapter 8

• Dates for Entry: February 1 – April 30, 2023

• Potential Winner Selection Period*: May 1 – May 15, 2023

• Potential Winner Selection Date*: May 16, 2023

* The dates for Potential Winner Selection Period and Potential Winner Selection Date are approximate. Sponsor reserves the right to lengthen the time it considers winners and to modify the Selection Date for any reason.

Each Chapter begins at 12:00 AM Pacific Time on the first day, and finishes at the end of the “through” day at 11:59 PM Pacific Time (assuming the Conclusion of the Case has not occurred). For example, Chapter 1 runs from 12:00 AM Pacific Time on April 26, 2021, to 11:59 PM Pacific Time on July 31, 2021.

The Company reserves the right to modify any date(s) or deadline(s) set forth in these Official Rules. Eligible entries that are submitted during any Chapter will be considered for a prize during that Chapter as long as the Sable Case is active, and if they do not receive a prize during that Chapter, they will roll over into the next Chapter.

In the event there is a Conclusion of the Case, Sponsor will announce the end of the Contest but will give the public at least 30 days from the Conclusion of the Case (“Grace Period”) to make submissions to be considered for the Final Awards (defined below). After the Grace Period, Sponsor will select final winners from all eligible Submissions (defined below) received during the Contest – in accordance with the requirements delineated in Section 5 of these Official Rules – and award the remaining funds (“Final Awards”).

If the Conclusion of the Case has not occurred by April 30, 2023, Submissions can continue to be made even after Chapter 8’s Entry Period, and they along with all other Submissions will be considered for Final Awards after the Conclusion of the Case. For the sake of clarity, any Submissions made after April 30, 2023, will only be considered for Final Awards.

If the Conclusion of the Case occurs during any of the Chapter’s Entry Period, the Submissions made during that Entry Period will only be considered for Final Awards along with all other Submissions, and no separate awards will be made for that Chapter.

4. CONTENT OF SUBMISSIONS. Eligible participants must submit entries during the one (or more) of the Entry Periods that meet the criteria described in this Section 4 of the Official Rules (“Submission”).

(a) Identify Prior Art for a Relevant Patent: First, the Submission must provide prior art against one of the following patents (earliest potential priority date is shown for each patent):

• U.S. Patent No. 6,954,431 (Micro-flow management), April 19, 2000

• U.S. Patent No. 6,977,932 (System and method for network tunneling utilizing micro-flow state information), January 16, 2002

• U.S. Patent No. 7,012,919 (Micro-flow label switching), Apr. 19, 2000

• U.S. Patent No. 8,243,593 (Mechanism for identifying and penalizing misbehaving flows in a network), Dec. 22, 2004

• U.S. Patent No. 6,854,117 (Parallel network processor array), Oct., 31, 2000

• U.S. Patent No. 7,428,209 (Network failure recovery mechanism), June 12, 2001

• U.S. Patent No. 7,630,358 (Mechanism for implementing multiple logical routers within a single physical router), July 9, 2001

• U.S. Patent No. 8,085,775 (Identifying flows based on behavior characteristics and applying user-defined actions), July 31, 2006

• U.S. Patent No. 8,817,790 (Identifying flows based on behavior characteristics and applying user-defined actions), July 31, 2006

• U.S. Patent No. 9,774,501 (System and method for ensuring subscriber fairness using outlier detection), May 14, 2012

(b) Contain the Following Criteria. Next, the Submission must contain the following elements:

• Your name and email address;

• The number of the Sable Networks’ patent at issue;

• What the prior art is, which may be a combination of multiple references (a copy of the prior art is a bonus);

• Where you found it;

• When it was first publicly available;

• Where it was first publicly available;

• A clear and concise explanation and analysis of why you think it reads on the Sable Networks’ patent. The explanation must be backed with a thoughtful analysis of your reasoning that is clearly written and easy for the evaluator to understand. Submissions that include a claim chart will be weighted more heavily.

• An explanation of your story – why you are submitting, what is interesting about this Contest, and what challenges you had to overcome in order to make the Submission. Here, Sponsor will consider whether the story is: (i) entertaining and captures the interest of the reader; (ii) of quality, with complete thoughts and statements; and (iii) clearly drafted.

Submissions that include only prior art that's identified on the Sable patent will not be considered for a prize. All Submissions must be provided at www.cloudflare.com/jengo/sable-prior-art-search during the Entry Period. Any proof of receipt (such as confirmation of email delivery) does not constitute proof of actual receipt of the Submission by Sponsor. Sponsor is not responsible for late, lost, damaged, stolen, misdirected, mutilated, garbled, incomplete, undelivered, or inaccurate Submissions. Proof of transmission does not constitute proof of delivery or receipt by Sponsor. All entries become the property of the Company upon receipt and none will be acknowledged or returned.

5. EVALUATION OF SUBMISSIONS. After the relevant Entry Period, Sponsor or a third party service provider working on behalf of the Sponsor will evaluate the Submissions. In order to be considered for a prize, the Sponsor and its third party administrator will consider the following:

• Meets Requirements Presented in Section 4 of these Official Rules.

• Difficulty. The difficulty involved in the prior art reference. For example, if it is prior art listed on the Sable patents, or found using Google Patents' Find Prior Art button, or already identified in other legal proceedings involving the Sable patents, then this would be less valuable and not considered as heavily as an entry that puts forth time, thought and effort.

• Strength of Prior Art Reference. The Sponsor and the third party administrator will also consider how strong that prior art is against the challenged patent as a legal matter (e.g., it would be more valuable if it discloses every element of every claim very clearly).

• Preference for Sable Patents Asserted in the Sable Case. Preference will be given to prior art against the first four Sable patents listed in Section 4(a) above (i.e., the four patents asserted against Cloudflare in the Sable Case).

Sponsor will give each Submission a score based on its evaluation of these factors. In the event two Submissions are “tied” for a prize, then the Sponsor will consider (a) the “story” provided by the entrant and (b) the clarity and thoroughness of the explanation provided related to the prior art (whether there was a claim chart, for example).

6. ORIGINAL WORK. By entering, you warrant and represent that your Submission is an original work, created by you, and that no other party has any right, title or claim to any aspect of your Submission. Further, you understand and agree that if your Submission is deemed to copy or otherwise contain elements of another person or entity’s work, your entry into the Contest shall be forfeited and you will not be entitled to a prize.

7. SELECTION AND NOTIFICATION OF POTENTIAL WINNERS. While the Sable Case is active, following the conclusion of an Entry Period, Sponsor will evaluate the Submissions (in accordance with Section 5 of these Official Rules) during the Potential Winner Selection Period identified in Section 3 of these Official Rules. It will then select up to ten (10) Submissions as potential winners and notify them on or about the Potential Winner Selection Date that is provided in Section 3 of these Official Rules. The Sponsor and/or the third party service provider will keep notes or records of the evaluation of each Submission. After notification, potential winners will have one week to complete the Prize Documentation (defined below) and accept the prize. In any instance where an alternative potential winner is selected, Company will select the entrant with the next best Submission as a potential winner.

After the Conclusion of the Case and the following Grace Period, Sponsor and its third party service provider will evaluate all Submissions that were received and award the remaining prize money to those Submissions that are determined to be final winners in accordance with these Official Rules. For example, if there is a Conclusion of the Case during Chapter 4 of the Contest, Sponsor will notify the public and provide at least 30 days from the Conclusion of the Case for new Submissions. After that time period, it will award the remaining prize funds in accordance with the terms of these Official Rules.

Once an individual is selected as a winner, they will not be considered for another prize during another Chapter of the Contest but they may receive a Final Award at the discretion of the Sponsor.

8. TERMS OF WINNER SELECTION. Sponsor shall have the final, binding decision on all matters and interpretations relating to the Contest and these Official Rules. The Company reserves the right to disqualify any entrant or potential winner and may refuse to award any payment to a person who is ineligible or has violated any rule, gained unfair advantage in participating in the Contest, or obtained potential winner status using fraudulent, unfair or illegal means. All potential winners are subject to verification by the Company. An entrant is not a potential winner eligible to receive any prize or payment, even if the Contest should so indicate, unless and until the Company has verified the entrant’s eligibility. Potential winners will be notified by telephone and/or email and must meet all eligibility requirements. Return of a potential winner notification as undeliverable, or inability of the Company to contact a potential winner by telephone or email within the time period stated in the notification, may result in disqualification of such potential winner, and an alternate potential winner may be selected at the Company’s discretion. In the event a potential winner declines the notification or any payment of the prize, the Company may, at its discretion, select an alternate potential winner.

9. WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT. The winners will be announced approximately ten (10) business days after the Potential Winner Selection Date, which is identified in Section 3 of these Official Rules.

10. PRIZES. Sponsor will award a total of $100,000 USD in the Contest. The Sponsor intends to award each winner at least $1,000 USD, but reserves the right to alter the amount of payment to each winner based upon the strength of the Submissions. At the end of the Contest, the Sponsor reserves the right to award “Final Awards” to Submissions that it determines to have provided exceptionally strong Submissions. Payment will be delivered using a method chosen at the Sponsor's sole discretion, which may be wire transfer, ACH, check, online payment system such as PayPal, or any other commercially reasonable payment method. Lost or stolen payments will not be replaced. The payment does not include any other item or expense not specifically described in these Official Rules, and all additional expenses if any, are the sole responsibility of the successful entrant. Payments may not be transferred or assigned. All taxes incurred in connection with any payment, and the reporting consequences thereof, are the sole responsibility of the respective recipient.

11. WINNER’S LIST. A list of winners will be available upon request for one year after the announcement of the winners. Please send any request for such a list to priorart@cloudflare.com. The names of the potential winners may, at the sole discretion of the Company, be posted on the Company’s website.

12. OWNERSHIP AND LICENSE. All Submissions shall become the exclusive property of the Company and you hereby renounce any and all rights in and to the Submission. Except where prohibited by applicable law or regulation, by submitting an entry, you grant the Company a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free license to use your name, character, photograph, voice, image and likeness in connection with the promotion of this Contest, as well as the content and information (including your story) that is included in the Submission, and you waive any and all claims and/or rights to receive any royalties or other compensation for the Company’s use thereof, unless prohibited by law.

13. PERSONAL INFORMATION/PRIVACY. Entry into this Contest requires entrant to enter his or her email address and certain other personal information. The Company’s and/or its data processors' servers and computer systems will collect personal data collection in connection with this Contest. You may withdraw your personal data upon request; however, you will be disqualified as an entrant in this Contest if you withdraw your personal data prior to the determination of the potential winners and fulfillment of the payment(s). Company will use and share this personal information in order to fulfill the requirements of the Contest, and to market and promote the Contest. For example, Company may share this personal information with third parties who are helping to administer the Contest, as well as to contact participants and potential Prize recipients regarding the Contest. Company may also publicize your participation in the Contest, including the promotion of the story that you included in your entry. Depending on the participant’s country or jurisdiction of origin, personal information may be transferred across borders. Where necessary, such transfers are made using appropriate safeguards. By participating in the Contest and agreeing to these Official Rules, participants hereby consent to Company’s use of participant’s personal information in this manner. Information submitted to Company as part of the Contest will be treated in accordance with Company’s privacy policy located at https://www.cloudflare.com/privacypolicy/.

14. PRIZE DOCUMENTATION. Potential winners will be required to complete, sign and return an affidavit of eligibility/publicity, IP license and release (“Prize Documentation”). Sponsor may require additional information from winners as part of this process; for example, the tax laws in some countries may require the potential winner to provide additional personal information in order for the prize to be awarded. As another example, Sponsor may require the potential winner to provide bank account information to receive payment. If these documents are not returned properly executed in the time period provided by the Sponsor in the notification, or if they are returned to the Company as undeliverable, that potential winner will not be eligible for a prize and the prize will be forfeited and awarded to an alternate potential winner at the Company’s discretion.

15. DISQUALIFICATION AND FRAUDULENT ENTRIES OR TAMPERING. Any individual who attempts or otherwise encourages, directly or indirectly, the entry of multiple or false contact information under multiple identities, or uses any device, service or artifice to enter or encourage, directly or indirectly, multiple or false entries, as determined by the Company, will be disqualified. If, in the Company’s opinion, there is any suspected or actual evidence of electronic or non-electronic tampering with any portion of the Contest, or if a computer virus, bug, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical difficulties, or failures compromise or corrupt or affect the administration, integrity, security, fairness, or proper conduct of the Contest, and/or the Contest is not capable of being conducted as described in these Official Rules, the Company shall have the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual who tampers with the entry process and to void any entries submitted fraudulently, and/or to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend this Contest, and conduct a random drawing to select the payment to successful entrants from all non-suspect entries received prior to action taken, or as otherwise deemed fair and appropriate by the Company. Sponsor may also disqualify or prohibit a participant from participating in the Contest or winning a prize in this or any other promotion conducted by Sponsor if in Sponsor’s sole discretion Sponsor determines that said participant has violated the Official Rules or has threatened or is attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest by cheating, hacking, deception, or other unfair playing practices, or intending to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any other participants or Sponsor’s representatives. The Company reserves the right to prosecute any fraudulent entries to the fullest extent of the law.

16. RIGHT TO MODIFY OR CANCEL. If for any reason this Contest is not capable of running as planned, including but not limited to infection by computer virus, Internet failure, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, a force majeure event, or any other causes beyond the reasonable control of Sponsor which corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, fulfillment, or proper conduct of the Contest, Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to terminate, suspend, or modify the Contest.

17. RELEASE. By participating in the Contest, you (a) release the Company and its affiliates, agents, representatives, officers, directors, shareholders, and employees ("Released Entities"), from any and all liability for any claims, costs, injuries, losses or damages of any kind caused by participation in the Contest, including the unauthorized or illegal access to personally identifiable or sensitive information or acceptance, possession, use, misuse, or nonuse of the payment that may be awarded; and (b) acknowledge that the Released Entities have neither made nor are in any manner responsible or liable for any warranty, representation or guarantee, expressed or implied, in fact or in law, relative to a payment including, without limitation, the payment quality or availability. No Released Entity is responsible for incorrect or inaccurate printing or typographical errors in any promotion-related material, incorrect or inaccurate transcription of entry information, or for any human or other error, technical malfunctions, lost/delayed data or voice transmission, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, line failures of any telephone network, computer equipment, software, inability to access any online service or website or to complete a telephone call, or any other error or malfunction, or late, lost or misdirected mail, or any injury or damage to entrant’s or any other person’s computer or other equipment related to or resulting from participation in this Contest. By providing a Submission in the Contest, you agree that you are not putting Company on notice of any patent and you further agree not to assert any such patent against Company. By participating in this Contest, you agree that you (or any successor-in-interest to any claim of yours) will not use the fact that Company reviewed your Submission in any future lawsuit against Company.

CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT OR ANY OTHER INDIVIDUAL TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEBSITE, TAMPER WITH THE ENTRY PROCESS, OR OTHERWISE UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, THE COMPANY RESERVE THE RIGHT TO COOPERATE IN THE PROSECUTION OF ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL(S) AND TO PURSUE ALL REMEDIES TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

The Company’s failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. The Released Entities shall not be liable for any injury, damage, loss, expense, accident, delay, inconvenience, or other irregularity that may be caused or contributed to (a) by wrongful, negligent, or unauthorized acts or omissions on the part of the Released Entities or any other person or entity furnishing services, products, or accommodations as a part of a payment or any of their agents, servants, employees, or independent contractors, (b) by any defect in or failure of any vehicle, equipment, instrumentality, service, product, or accommodation that is owned, operated, furnished, or otherwise used or provided by the Released Entities or any person or entity furnishing services, products, or accommodations as a part of a payment, (c) by the wrongful, negligent, or unauthorized act or omission on the part of any other person or entity not an employee of the Released Entities, or (d) by any cause, condition, or event whatsoever beyond the control of Released Entities.

18. DISPUTES/ARBITRATION. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, entrant’s rights and obligations, or the rights and obligations of the Company in connection with the Contest and any action related thereto will be governed and interpreted under the laws of the State of California, without giving effect to any conflicts of laws principles that require the application of the law of a different jurisdiction. Entrants agree that any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or relating to the Contest or any payment shall, in good faith, be amicably resolved between an entrant and the Company. In the event that an amicable resolution cannot be reached, all such disputes, claims or causes of action shall be exclusively resolved by binding arbitration (all aspects of which shall be kept strictly confidential) pursuant to the Federal Arbitration Act and the Commercial Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association, with arbitration to occur in San Francisco, California before a sole arbitrator, without resort to any form of class action. Entrants and the Company agree to give up any right to litigate claims in a court or before a jury, or to participate in a class action or representative action with respect to a claim. The laws of the jurisdiction where the entrant is located may differ from California law. Any and all claims, judgments and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering into this Contest but in no event attorneys’ fees and under no circumstances will entrant be permitted to obtain awards for, and entrant hereby waives all rights to, claim punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any other damages, other than out-of-pocket expenses, and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased.

19. MISCELLANEOUS. The names of individuals, groups, companies, products and services mentioned herein, and any corresponding likenesses, logos and images thereof reproduced herein, have been used for identification purposes only and may be the copyrighted properties and trademarks of their respective owners. If any provision of these Official Rules is found to be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable form these Official Rules and shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any remaining provisions. Headings and captions used herein are solely for reference and shall not be deemed to affect in any manner the meaning or intent of these Official Rules.