Terms & Conditions

These Terms and Conditions (“T&Cs”) governs the nomination and participation process for the ET NOW Tech Leaders’ Choice 2025 (“Event”) organized by Times Strategic Solutions Limited (“Organizer/ We/ Our/ Us”). By submitting this nomination form, each participant (“Nominee/ You/ Your Organisation”) agrees to be bound by these T&Cs.
  1. OBJECTIVE:
    1. The Event aims to recognize and felicitate distinguished Organisations across multiple categories, selected through nominations from CIOs representing diverse industries and organisations.
    2. The felicitation shall be based on survey where CIOs shall identify and recommend Organisations, they consider exemplary in various domains.
  2. PARTICIPATION:
    1. Subject to (i) your eligibility, (ii) payment of Nomination Fees, (iii) obtaining maximum votes in the survey and (iv) other terms mentioned in this T&C, Your organisation would be eligible for;
      • Deliverables
      • Participation in the Voting process.
      • Entitlement for logo licensing rights.
      • Eligibility for media deliverables.
    2. On submission of this Nomination Form, you shall be liable to pay INR 5,50,000/- (Rupees Five Lakhs Fifty Thousand Only) plus applicable taxes (“Nomination Fee”) in two tranches:
      • Tranche 1 – INR 50,000/- along with submission of this nomination form
      • Tranche 2 – INR 5,00,000/- on completion of voting survey (subject to obtaining maximum votes in Survey)
    3. Upon payment of Tranche 1 and submission of this Nomination form, Your Organisation will be included in the voting process.
    4. Upon completion of voting process, if your Organisation doesn’t achieve the maximum votes in the respective category/ sub-category, then your participation ends there, and Your Organisation will not be eligible for any associated benefits. You will not be required to pay the Tranche 2 and there will be no refund of Tranche 1.
    5. However, if your Organisation obtains maximum votes in the survey, then you would be required to remit the payment of Tranche 2 and then will be eligible for Deliverables in the respective category/ sub-category.
    6. Submission of this Nomination Form along with the payment of Tranche 1 shall constitute a formal, unconditional, and irrevocable expression of interest by the Nominee to avail the deliverables and to participate in the Event, strictly in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.
    7. Upon submission of this Nomination Form, in the event of cancellation of participation by You, or failure, delay, or default in payment of Tranche 2, an interest at the rate of 18% per annum shall accrue on the outstanding amount from the due date until the date of realization. Further, in the event of such non-payment, TSSL reserves the absolute right to withdraw, suspend, or cancel the deliverables at its discretion. Notwithstanding such cancellation, Your liability and obligation to remit the balance Nomination Fee shall continue to subsist in full force and effect.
    8. Nomination Fee is strictly non-refundable, under all circumstances, including but not limited to:
      • Withdrawal or cancellation of participation by Your Organisation, for whatsoever reason.
      • Disqualification due to non-compliance with the T&Cs.
      • Rescheduling of Event Dates or format by the Organizer, due to any reason.
  3. NOMINATION FORM:
    1. Submission of Nomination Form shall not be deemed valid or complete unless and until the payment of Tranche 1 has been duly received and acknowledged by the Organizer.
    2. All mandatory fields of Nomination Form must be duly filled and completed in every respect. Incomplete, inaccurate, or insufficiently filled forms may render the Nominee liable for disqualification from participation, at the sole discretion of the Organizer.
    3. The content and data submitted through Nomination Form shall remain sole responsibility of the Nominee. The Organizer shall, under no circumstances, be held liable or accountable for the accuracy, authenticity, legality, or ownership of the content so submitted.
    4. You hereby declare that all information, and representations furnished in Nomination Form are correct, and complete. In the event any information is found to be false, misleading or misrepresented, You shall be solely liable and accountable for all consequences arising therefrom, including but not limited to indemnifying the Organizer against any expenses, costs, losses, or damages incurred as a result thereof.
    5. You are required to exercise due care and diligence in selecting the appropriate category and sub-category in the Nomination Form. Any modification, alteration, or change in the selected category or sub-category after submission of the Nomination Form shall be strictly prohibited.
    6. In the event Your Organisation wishes to submit nominations for more than one (1) category, a separate Nomination Form must be duly filled for each category, and a separate Nomination Fee shall be payable for every such submission.
    7. The acceptance of any Nomination Form received after the prescribed deadline shall be subject to the sole discretion of the Organizer, based on operational feasibility and other relevant considerations.
  4. VOTING
    1. Your Organisation shall be eligible to participate in the Voting process only upon successful submission of the Nomination Form and receipt of Tranche 1 payment by the Organizer.
    2. Your Organisation may undertake promotional activities to encourage and obtain votes during the Survey period, provided such activities are conducted in a fair, ethical, and transparent manner.
    3. The Organizer reserves the absolute right to disqualify any Nominee found to be involved, directly or indirectly, in any unethical, manipulative, or fraudulent voting practices.
  5. DELIVERABLES
    1. Subject to payment of entire Nomination Fees, the Nominees with the highest number of legitimate votes in the Survey in their respective categories/ sub-categories shall be eligible for following deliverables:
      1. License to use Tech Leaders’ Choice 2025 insignia across your marketing communications for a period of one (1) year from the date of recognition.
      2. 2 exclusive invitations for the Event.
      3. Felicitate and honour your Organisation at the Tech Leaders’ Choice Celebration Night, in the presence of senior IT decision-makers.
      4. Social media posting on FB, LinkedIn & X: 3 posts each.
      5. Exclusive brand showcase: a dedicated page on the Tech Leaders’ Choice 2025 website featuring your product and success story.
      6. Two 600-words feature articles on etedge-insights.com, featuring your Senior Leader along with image, video, and embedded links.
      7. Exclusive double-page brand feature in the ET Now Tech Leaders’ Choice Playbook, published as a special pull-out in ET Edge Insights magazine and distributed to top industry leaders, including CEOs and CIOs.
      8. One custom video interview (positioned as being recognised as Tech Leaders’ Choice) with your MD/CEO, curated and produced by the ET Edge Editorial Team, featured on ET Edge’s YouTube channel and promoted across all ET Edge social media handles for maximum visibility.
      9. Custom framed front-page cover of the Tech Leaders’ Choice Playbook featuring your brand – a commemorative keepsake.
    2. In case, if Nominee intends to avail any additional media deliverables from the Organizer, the deliverables & cost of it shall be mutually agreed between the parties, where such cost shall be payable in advance.
    3. You shall use the licensed logo strictly in the form, format, and design provided by the Organizer, and solely in relation to the specific category or sub-category for which such logo licensing rights have been granted. Any alteration, modification, or unauthorized adaptation of the logo in any manner whatsoever shall be strictly prohibited.
    4. The recognition granted under this initiative is a symbol of acknowledgment and distinction, and not an award. Accordingly, any advertisement, publicity, or promotional communication issued by You in any medium shall not, directly or indirectly, imply or represent that Your Organisation has been conferred with an award by the Organizer.
    5. You expressly agree and undertake that all marketing, advertising, digital, print, or social media content created or disseminated by You in relation to the said recognition shall be truthful, non-misleading. Any such misrepresentation shall constitute a material breach of these Terms and Conditions, entitling the Organizer to revoke the recognition.
    6. Any advertisement, promotion, or communication by You utilizing the Deliverables or any form of recognition shall be in strict compliance with the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) Code, the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, and all other applicable laws, rules, and regulations. You shall indemnify and hold harmless the Organizer against any claims, liabilities, losses, damages, or penalties arising from any breach or non-compliance thereof.
    7. You shall ensure full compliance with all applicable statutory, legal, and regulatory requirements governing Your specific industry, business, or profession.
    8. The logo licensing rights, if granted shall be for a period of one (1) year. The logo shall be shared on email by the Organizer. Any continuing of usage of logo licensing posts the completion of the Tenure shall be considered as material breach and liable for damages.
    9. Logo licensing if granted by Organizer shall be subject to logo licensing guidelines of TSSL at https://et-edge.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/logo-licensing-guidelines.pdf.
    10. You shall timely provide all the materials and contents in the prescribed format. Any delay of failure to provide such material within the specified timeline shall be deemed as default and the relevant media deliverables shall be considered deemed completed without any further obligation on the part of the Organizer.
    11. Organizer shall retain full and exclusive editorial control over the Event, Advertorials, and all associated Deliverables, including the right to edit, modify, or adapt any content to ensure alignment with editorial standards, brand guidelines, and legal compliance.
  6. RIGHTS OF ORGANIZER
    1. Organizer reserves the right to amend or supplement these Terms and Conditions, without prior notice. You are therefore advised to keep yourself regularly updated with such modifications on Organizer’s website.
    2. Organizer reserves the right to seek proof of any information, data, or representation provided in the Nomination Form. Failure to furnish such proof within the prescribed timeline, or the discovery of false, incorrect, or misleading information, shall render Nomination liable for disqualification without any refund or further notice.
    3. Organizer reserves the right to reject or disqualify any Nomination that, in its sole discretion, fails to meet the eligibility criteria, is misleading, or is offensive or otherwise deemed inappropriate for participation.
    4. Organizer shall have the unrestricted right to use, reproduce, publish, or display the submitted information, including text, images, audio/video clips, logos, or any other content, through any medium – Print, Radio, Television (free-to-air, cable, satellite, DTH), Mobile, Internet, or Digital platforms – for the purposes of promotion, publicity, related to the Event or Survey.
    5. The decision of the Organizer, in all matters relating to the interpretation and implementation of these Terms and Conditions, shall be final, conclusive, and binding on all Nominees, and no correspondence or appeal shall be entertained in this regard.
  7. GENERAL:
    1. TSSL shall have the right to restrict access or remove any person from Event premises and/or deny other deliverables, if such person is involved in any act, which is threatening, defamatory, obscene, violative of any law, infringement of any IPR, misleading statements, causing harm to other attendees, breach of any rules of the Event premises.
    2. Your Organisation existing ownership of Intellectual Property Rights (“IPR”) shall continue to vest with you and there is no intention of transferring any IPR to the other party. All IPR including copyrights, trademarks, etc., in the Event shall be held and solely owned by TSSL. Your Organisation allows Organizer to use Your Organisation’s name, logo, trademark, service mark & other IPR, only for the purpose of providing deliverables.
    3. Organizer will not be liable if it is prevented from or delayed in performing it’s obligations due to the happening of any force majeure event (Force Majeure means an Event including but not limited to fire, flood, storm, lockdown, epidemic, pandemic, war, any executive/ judicial order or civil strike or happening of any other event beyond control of TSSL).
    4. Notwithstanding any terms contained in any other document, these Terms & Conditions supersedes and replaces all oral or written communication, including but not limited to application forms, correspondence, purchase order or other communications between the Parties relating to the subject matter hereof. Irrespective of any documents signed between the parties, Organizers obligations shall be restricted to terms, mentioned herein. In case of any dispute arises between any other document and these Terms & Conditions, these terms shall prevail over any other document.
    5. All information submitted by You shall be treated as confidential and the Organizer will not disclose such information to any 3rd party without prior consent, except as required by law.
    6. Organizer reserves the right to modify, postpone, or cancel any aspect of the Event, including but not limited to nomination criteria, categories, voting mechanisms, or event dates, without prior notice. Hence, the Nominees are expected to keep themselves informed.
    7. Nominees must maintain ethical conduct throughout this journey. Any misrepresentation or behaviour that harms the reputation of the Organizer or its stakeholders may lead to disqualification without refund.
    8. This arrangement shall be governed by laws of India and shall be subject to the sole jurisdiction of the courts of Mumbai.
    9. By submitting the nomination form and paying the applicable fees, You confirm having read, understood, and agreed to be bound by these Terms & Conditions in their entirety.
    10. If any provision of these Terms & Conditions is deemed to be void, invalid, or unenforceable, that provision shall be severed from the remainder so as not to cause invalidity or unenforceability of the same. All remaining provisions of these Terms & Conditions shall then continue in full force and effect.