GENERAL: The Spectrum Reach 2025 Pay It Forward Program (the “Program”) is committed to supporting the economic growth of all small businesses, while advancing the objectives of diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as community investment. The Program is sponsored and administered by Charter Communications Operating, LLC dba Spectrum Reach (“Sponsor”). The Program will award up to 250 recipients with a Grant that may include business consultation services, advertising creative production services and advertising placement. By entering this Program, you agree to be bound by these Official Rules and Sponsor’s determinations regarding the Program, which are final and binding in all respects. The Program is subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and is void where prohibited.
PROGRAM PERIOD: Program is valid from January 2, 2025, at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time to January 31, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time (the “Program Period”). The time clock of Sponsor’s computer administering this Program is the official clock for this Program. Sponsor reserves the right to shorten or lengthen the Program Period for any reason in its sole discretion. Following the Program Period, Sponsor will review all applications.
ELIGIBILITY: To be eligible as a Qualifying Business (as defined below) in the Program you (“Entrant”) must meet the following criteria as of the first day of the Program Period: 1) You must be a legal United States resident residing in an Eligible Market Area (as defined below) who at the time of entry is 18 years of age or older and the age of majority in the jurisdiction in which you reside (19 in AL and NE). 2) You must be an entrepreneur, or authorized representatives who is the leading executive (i.e. Founder and/or President, CEO, CFO, COO, or any such other similar officer title) of a Qualifying Business located in a Sponsor Spectrum Reach advertising area in one (1) of the designated market areas set forth on Exhibit A (each an “Eligible Market”). Employees of Sponsor, and its affiliates, promotion and advertising agencies, and members of their immediate family (spouse and parent, children and siblings and their respective spouses, regardless of where they reside) and persons living in the same household, whether or not related, of such employees, are not eligible to participate.
To be considered a “Qualifying Business” eligible to apply for a Grant in the Program, the business must meet all the following criteria as of the first day of the Program Period. 1) A business cannot have done any advertising with Spectrum Reach in the past thirteen (13) months. 2) A business cannot be a competitor of Sponsor (including its Spectrum, Spectrum Business or Spectrum Reach divisions), as determined by Sponsor. 3) A business cannot be in bad billing standing or poor billing history with Sponsor. 4) A business must be a for-profit organization, which does not operate in any of the restricted categories within Sponsor’s Spectrum Reach division policy (https://www.spectrumreach.com/terms-conditions). 5) A business must be legally registered to do business in an Eligible Market. 6) A business must have been open and operating for at least one year as of the application Submission date. 7) Applicant must not have an active or pending bankruptcy. 8) A business must not have an active or pending bankruptcy. Preference will be given to any business that 51% owned, operated, and controlled by an ethnic/racial minority which may include Asian American, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American or Pacific Islander. The potential grant recipients are subject to verification of eligibility by Sponsor, which may include completing associated documentation. All Grant awards are made in the sole discretion of Sponsor.
HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS: During the Program Period, visit https://spectrumreachpayitforward.com/ (the “Website”) and follow the directions provided to complete the application describing how your Qualifying Business would benefit from a Grant under the Program (collectively, the “Submission”).
All content included in the Submission must (i) be Entrant’s own original work, (ii) be in English, (iii) cannot be previously published or submitted in connection with any other program, (iv) be in keeping with the Sponsor’s image and (v) not be offensive or inappropriate, as determined by the Sponsor in its sole discretion, nor can it defame or invade publicity rights or privacy of any person, living or deceased, or otherwise infringe upon any person’s personal or property rights or any other third party rights. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any Submission that it determines, in its sole discretion, is offensive or inappropriate, not in keeping with Sponsor’s image or that is otherwise not in compliance with these Terms.
After a Submission has been provided to Sponsor, it cannot be modified in any way and Sponsor is not responsible for any delayed Submission, incomplete Submission, or Submission not received, recognized, or accepted for any reason. Entrant retains all rights in and to its product or service, including all intellectual property rights. No Submission should include any confidential information or any trade secret of the Entrant or any third party. Sponsor will treat all information disclosed by Entrant as nonconfidential. By providing a Submission to the Program, each Entrant hereby grants Sponsor, on behalf of Entrant and Qualifying Business, a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, global, nonexclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, and display the information in the Submission, in whole or in part, and to incorporate it into other works, in any form, media, or technology, now known or later developed, for any purpose including for promotional and marketing purposes, including on websites or social platforms. Sponsor does not guarantee that any Submission will be used as described in the preceding license. Sponsor is not responsible for any unauthorized use by third parties of any Submission.
One entry per Entrant and per Qualifying Business in the Program Period. Multiple entries received for any Entrant or Qualifying Business after the first entry received will be void. Duplicate Submissions will not be honored and will become the property of Sponsor. Submissions from non-profit organizations, charitable groups or post office boxes will not be honored. Fraudulent Submissions may result in criminal prosecution. The odds of being awarded a Grant will depend on the number of eligible Submissions received during the Program Period.
REVIEW CRITERIA AND SELECTION OF GRANT RECIPIENTS: During the Promotion Period Submissions will be reviewed based on the following criteria 1) Completeness of Submission, 2) Demonstrated need of the Qualifying Business, 3) Ability to articulate a plan for business growth and 4) the Qualifying Business’ ability to articulate and/or demonstrate how they work to uplift their local community by advancing DEI initiatives or otherwise investing in the community’s local economic health. The Program is designed to identify motivated and deserving multicultural businesses that demonstrate need, readiness for growth, and commitment to community.
Sponsor may award Grants (defined below) to approximately 250 Entrants whose Submissions are selected by Sponsor in its sole discretion (the “Grant Recipients”). The number of Grant Recipients may vary by Eligible Market based on need and Sponsor availability. Grant Recipients will be notified by email or phone within approximately three months of completing a Submission.
If a potential Grant Recipient is ineligible or the business does not meet the criteria of a Qualifying Business or Entrant has not complied with these Terms, cannot be reached, or declines the Grant for any reason, in Sponsor’s sole determination, such potential Grant Recipient will forfeit the Grant and an alternate recipient may be selected. Sponsor, in its sole discretion, may attempt to award the Grant to alternate Grant Recipients in the Eligible Market, or Grant(s) in question for such Eligible Market may go unawarded.
GRANT AWARDS: Approximately 250 Grants are available. The number of Grants awarded in any single Eligible Market, is based on availability in Sponsor’s sole discretion. Grants may consist of up to $15,000.00 in services from Sponsor’s Spectrum Reach division and may include some or all of the following components (a “Grant”) A) production of one (1) :30 second TV commercial, B) a three (3) month TV or streaming schedule, C) three (3) months support from local marketing experts, D) access to on-demand educational content and expert industry insights, and E) invitations to exclusive speakers’ series and events featuring industry leaders with local market experiences (availability of Grant components varies based on Eligible Market and in Sponsor’s sole discretion). There is no ability to substitute any Grant component(s) with a cash equivalent. Grants may not be used for political or national ads.
Grants must be redeemed in the timeframe indicated by Sponsor, including production and advertising schedule, and is null and void outside of these dates. Sponsor, in its sole discretion, shall determine and have control over the schedule, rotation, day parts, programming, networks, channels, and stations covered by, included in, or related to the advertising component of a Grant.
After Grant Recipients are selected, they will be contacted via phone or email and the Grant verification and fulfillment process will begin. Grant components will be made available and fulfilled as quickly as possible, but the timing will vary based on Grant components rendered to a Grant Recipient. There are a select number of services that can be added to a Grant through Sponsor’s Spectrum Reach division. These added services will be charged at current rates. The Grant Recipient is responsible for the timely payment of all monthly charges and taxes of any additional services not awarded under the Grant. If the Grant Recipient fails to make a payment for the additional services, the Grant components, as well as the additional services, will be impacted and may be suspended or disconnected.
GRANT CONDITIONS: Entrants and Grant Recipients may not substitute, assign or transfer Grants or redeem a Grant for cash, but Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to substitute a Grant (or component thereof) with one of comparable or greater value. Grant Recipients will be required to execute a Spectrum Reach Customer Agreement and an Affidavit of Eligibility, a Liability Release, and (where imposing such condition is legal) a Publicity Release (collectively, “Grant Claim Documents”). If potential Grant Recipient refuses to sign and return all Grant Claim Documents within ten business days, potential Grant Recipient may be disqualified and an alternate potential Grant Recipient may be selected. Sponsor makes no warranties, and hereby disclaims any and all warranties, express or implied, concerning any Grant in connection with the Program. All Grant details are at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Grant Recipients are responsible for all applicable federal, state and local taxes, if any, as well as any other costs and expenses associated with Grant acceptance and services being provided under the Program. Grant Recipients are strongly encouraged to consult with their tax advisors to determine any tax consequences in connection with Grant award acceptance and Program participation.
Sponsor, reserve the right, in its sole discretion, to conduct a brief interview with any Entrant and request any Entrant to provide additional materials relating to their Submission. Sponsor reserves the right to not award any Grants, if in its sole discretion, it does not receive any suitable Submissions. No details of the deliberations on individual Submissions will be revealed to Entrants or the public. Certain Submissions may be featured from time to time by Sponsor during and/or after the Program Period in Sponsor’s social media pages and other channels, in the sole discretion of the Sponsor. Being selected as a featured Submission is unrelated to the review criteria and does not guarantee selection as a Grant Recipient.
WITHOUT LIMITING THE GENERALITY OF THE FOREGOING, GRANTS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AND SPONSOR HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL SUCH WARRANTIES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND/OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. Grant Recipient agrees to comply with all applicable regulations in connection with redemption. Sponsor will not be responsible for Acts of God, epidemic, pandemic, acts of terrorism, civil disturbances, work stoppage or any other natural disaster outside their control that may cause the cancellation or postponement of Grant redemption.
Each Entrant hereby irrevocably grants to Sponsor, its designees, affiliates, successors and assigns, the exclusive, irrevocable, fully paid, universal license to use, copy, sublicense, transmit, distribute, publish, delete or display their Submission in any media now known or hereafter devised including, but not limited to all forms of electronic media, print media and all forms of internet and wireless protocol in perpetuity and throughout the universe for advertising, marketing, publicity and promotional purposes in connection with the Program and other promotions. Sponsor shall have the right, in its sole discretion, to edit, composite, morph, scan, duplicate, or alter the Submission for any purpose which Sponsor deems necessary or desirable, and each entrant irrevocably waives any and all so-called moral rights they may have therein. No Entrant may release on their own or through a third party any publicity or other materials regarding their participation in the Program, without Sponsor’s consent.
GENERAL CONDITIONS: Acceptance of a Grant constitutes Grant Recipient’s permission for Sponsor and its designees to use Grant Recipient, Entrant, and Qualifying Business’ name, photograph, likeness, voice, biographical information, statements and address (city and state) for advertising and/or publicity purposes worldwide and in all forms of media now known or hereafter developed, in perpetuity, without further compensation. Entrants agree that the Sponsor (A) shall not be responsible or liable for, and are hereby released from, any and all costs, injuries, losses or damages of any kind, including, without limitation, death and bodily injury, due in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, to participation in the Program or any Program related activity, or from Entrants’ acceptance, receipt, possession and/or use or misuse of any Grant component, and (B) have not made any warranty, representation or guarantee express or implied, in fact or in law, with respect to any Grant, including, without limitation, to any Grant component’s quality or fitness for a particular purpose. Sponsor is not responsible for incomplete, illegible, misdirected, misprinted, late, lost, damaged, or stolen Submissions or Grant notifications. No mechanically reproduced, illegible, incomplete, forged, software-generated or other automated Submissions will be accepted. These Terms cannot be modified or amended in any way except in a written document issued by Sponsor. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of these Terms shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other provision. In the event that any provision is determined to be invalid or otherwise unenforceable or illegal, these Terms shall otherwise remain in effect and shall be construed in accordance with their terms as if the invalid or illegal provision were not contained herein.
By participating in the Program, Entrants agree to be bound by these Terms and the decisions of the Sponsor, which shall be final in all respects. Sponsor expressly disclaims any responsibility or liability for injury or loss to any person or property relating to the fulfillment of any Grant, and all Entrants agree to waive any and all claims against the Sponsor and its affiliated companies, subsidiaries, officers, directors, employees, agents, contractors, sponsors, representatives, and any and all other companies associated with this Program, and all of their respective officers, directors, employees, agents, representatives, successors and assigns (collectively, “Released Parties”) for any injury, damage or loss that may occur, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from the participation in the Program or from the receipt or use of any Grant or activity related to the receipt or use of any Grant.
All Submissions will become the property of Sponsor. This Program cannot be combined with any other Sponsor offers. Sponsor reserves the right to change or cancel this Program without prior notice.
CONDUCT OF PARTICIPATION: By entering the Program, Entrant affirms that he or she has read and agrees to abide by the Terms and the decisions of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any Entrant acting in violation of the Terms or found tampering with the Submission process or with the operation of the Website or the Program. ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT OR ANY OTHER INDIVIDUAL TO DELIBERATELY UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE PROGRAM MAY BE IN VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS, AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES FROM SUCH ENTRANT TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
CHOICE OF LAW: ALL ISSUES AND QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE CONSTRUCTION, VALIDITY, INTERPRETATION AND ENFORCEABILITY OF THESE TERMS, OR THE RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF ENTRANT AND SPONSOR IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROGRAM, SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE SUBSTANTIVE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, USA. WITHOUT GIVING EFFECT TO ANY CHOICE OF LAW OR CONFLICT OF LAW RULES OR PROVISIONS THAT WOULD CAUSE THE APPLICATION OF ANY OTHER STATE’S LAWS.
DISPUTES: Entrant agrees that: A) any and all disputes, claims, and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Program, or any grants awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and solely and exclusively in federal or state courts located in New York; entrant submits to sole and exclusive personal jurisdiction to said courts in the State of New York for any such dispute and irrevocably waives any and all rights to object to such jurisdiction; B) any and all claims, judgments, and awards shall be limited to actual out of pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering this Program but in no event attorneys’ fees; and C) 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 for actual out-of-pocket expenses, and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
USE OF DATA: By participating in the Program, each Entrant acknowledges that Sponsor will collect private or personal data about the Entrant that is included in the Submission (the “Personal Information”). Sponsor may collect and use the Personal Information for purposes of this Program as authorized under these Terms and for marketing purposes. Sponsor may share this information with third parties who need access to this information to perform services on Sponsor’s behalf. Information collected from Entrants is subject to the Sponsor’s Privacy Policy which can be found at https://www.spectrum.com/policies/your-privacy-rights
GRANT RECIPIENTS: A list of 2025 Grant Recipients may be posted on the Website. Program Sponsor is Charter Communications Operating, LLC dba Spectrum Reach, 1633 Broadway, 40th FL, NY, NY 10019.
EXHIBIT A
Eligible Designated Market Areas
DMA | State |
Albany | NY |
Alpena | MI |
Austin | TX |
Bakersfield | CA |
Bangor | Billings |
Binghamton | NY |
Birmingham (Anniston and Tuscaloosa) | AL |
Buffalo | NY |
Butte-Bozeman | MT |
Casper-Riverton | WY |
Charlotte | NC |
Cheyenne-Scottsbluff | WY |
Chico-Redding | CA |
Cincinnati | OH |
Cleveland-Akron (Canton) | OH |
Columbia, SC | SC |
Columbus, OH | OH |
Corpus Christi | TX |
Dallas-Ft. Worth | TX |
Dayton | OH |
Duluth-Superior | WI |
El Paso (Las Cruces) | TX |
Elmira | NY |
Erie | NY |
Evansville | IN-KY |
Flint-Saginaw-Bay City | OH |
Grand Junction-Montrose | CO |
Grand Junction-Montrose | CO |
Grand Rapids-Kalamazoo | MI |
Great Falls | MT |
Green Bay-Appleton | WI |
Greensboro-High Point-West Salem | NC |
Greenville/ Spartanburg/ Asheville/ Anderson | SC-NC |
Greenville-New Bern-Washington | NC |
Greenville-Spartanburg-Ashville-Anderson | SC |
Harlingen | TX |
Helena | MT |
Honolulu | HI |
Huntsville-Decatur (Flor) | AL |
Kansas City | KA |
Laredo | TX |
Lexington | KY |
Lima | OH |
Lincoln | NE |
DMA | State |
Los Angeles | CA |
Louisville | KY-IN |
Madison | WI |
Mankato | MN |
Marquette | MI |
Medford | OR |
Milwaukee | WI |
Missoula | MT |
Montgomery-Selma | AL |
Myrtle Beach-Florence | SC |
New York City | NY |
Norfolk-Portsmouth-Newport News | FL |
North Platte | NE |
Omaha | NE |
Orlando-Daytona Bch-Melbourne | FL |
Paducah-Cape Girardeau-Harrisburg | KY-MO-IL-TN |
Palm Springs | CA |
Portland-Auburn | ME |
Preque Island | ME |
Quincy | MO |
Raleigh-Durham (Fayetteville) | NC |
Reno | NV |
Rochester | NY |
Rockford | WI |
San Antonio | TX |
Santa Barbra-SanMar-San Luis Obispo | CA |
St. Joseph | MO |
St. Louis | MO |
Syracuse | NY |
Tampa-St. Pete (Sarasota) | FL |
Terre Haute | IN |
Toledo | OH-MI |
Traverse City-Cadillac | MI |
Tri-Cities | TN-VA-KY |
Utica | NY |
Utica | NY |
Waco-Temple-Bryan | TX |
Watertown | NY |
Wausau-Rhinelander | MI |
Wilmington | NC |
Yakima | WA |
Youngstown | OH |
Yuma- El Centro | AR |
Zanesville | OH |