How will the winners be chosen?

Contest entries will be reviewed by a panel of judges consisting of consisting of one City Official, two members of the business community, two members of the public, and two members of the academic community.

Judges will make their selections based on the following criteria:

  • Usefulness – utility to citizens of Ottawa overall, or any particular demographic of users in Ottawa
  • Originality – uniqueness and inventive nature of application
  • Ease of use – the overall usability of the application
  • Access – ability for the application to be used by the broad array of citizens

The People’s Choice award will be awarded based on the number of community votes received.

What do the different contest categories mean? What, specifically, will qualify my app for it? Can my app be eligible for more than one category?

The contest categories have been designed to capture the diversity of life in Ottawa, and to encourage the development of a broad range of applications to improve the quality of life in Ottawa.

Having Fun in Ottawa (Arts and Entertainment) – apps aimed at leisure and fun in Ottawa, for example using restaurant data.

Getting Around (Transit & Transportation) – apps designed to make it easier for people to get around the city, for example using bicycle path data.

Green Environment/Sustainability (Environmental Preservation and Sustainability) – apps designed to help preserve our natural environment, for example using green-space locations data.

Community Building – apps developed to encourage people to connect with others and improve the quality of life in Ottawa, for example using voting locations data.

Economic Development – apps designed to stimulate economic growth and development in Ottawa, for example using tourism information.

What is an Application Idea?

It’s important for this contest to engage beyond the web development community. We need everyone’s ideas on how we can leverage technology improve the living experience in Ottawa. To that end, we wanted this contest to be open to everyone’s ideas. However, it’s hard to judge ideas; they are all good! So what we’ve decided to do is reward you for taking the time to submit an idea. If you have a proposal for an app, but don’t know how to build it, tell us anyway. If you do, you will be entered into a random draw to win a mobile device.

Is my app eligible if it also uses commercial data?

As long as the commercial data is publicly available then you can feel free to use it.

How do I submit my ideas and application to the Contest?

You will need to complete the form provided and include your first and last name, company name (if applicable), address, city, province, postal code, and e-mail address.

All applications must be hosted and publicly available on the entrant’s own website or a third-party website. All users submitting iPhone applications to this contest must make their applications publicly accessible by the contest entry deadline (5:00pm EST January 3, 2011) via the Apple iPhone App Store, found at: http://www.apple.com/ca/iphone/apps-for-iphone/.

Does my application need to work after the competition?

Yes, in order for there to be real value for residents, all applications submitted to this contest must be made publicly accessible for a period of at least six months after the contest entry deadline.

Once I submit my application, does the City of Ottawa own my app, or do I?

We want you to prosper from your creation. Application developers retain ownership rights of their submitted applications and are permitted to sell the use of their applications commercially if they choose to do so.

Can I enter more than one idea or application to the contest?

Absolutely, we want to see all your ideas!

Who is eligible?

As long as you are a resident of Ontario and over the age of 18 you’re eligible.

What is your definition of student?

For the purposes of this contest, a student is defined as someone who is registered in at least one course for credit at an educational institution in Ontario that is either a Secondary School, Public University, Private University, Public College, or a Private Career College.

Can I enter as a team?

Yes, team work fosters creativity. Prize money will have to be shared with your team mates.

If my idea or app was largely developed years ago, can it qualify for this competition?

Yes, as long as it benefits residents or visitors to Ottawa, you are free to incorporate code that you have built/started/launched in the past.

What happens if I want to make changes to my submission?

Your app will be hosted on a third-party site you’ve set up. Feel free to change the app through the course of the competition. Just remember that you will be judged on the app that exits at the close of the competition (5:00pm EST January 3, 2011). If you need to make a change to your form, log into your account and make the appropriate changes before the end of the competition.