Rugby World Cup 2011 takes place from 9 September to 23 October 2011 (the Tournament) and will be the biggest event New Zealand has ever hosted.

Over 85,000 international visitors are expected, and economists estimate it will inject over $540 million into the national economy. Alongside the opportunities that exist for exposure to an international audience is the need to understand and comply with the relevant provisions of the Major Events Management Act 2007 (MEMA), which protects the exclusive rights granted to official Tournament partners, sponsors and licensees against “ambush” by unauthorised entities.

Protecting the exclusive rights of these entities is vital to ensuring the ongoing financial success of the Tournament, the surplus revenue from which is used to fund the sport of Rugby on a global basis.

For further information about the MEMA, please see the MEMA Guide on rugbyworldcup.com/mema.

This note is intended to assist bars and restaurants to operate in compliance with the relevant restrictions.

Advertising that suggests an association with the Tournament As a declared major event under the MEMA, it is prohibited to suggest an association with the Tournament unless authorised to do so by the event owners, Rugby World Cup Limited (RWCL).

This is designed to protect the rights of association granted to the official Tournament partners, sponsors and licensees in return for their investment in the Tournament.

This means that words or emblems which call to mind the Tournament, including the words “Rugby World Cup”, “RWC”, “World Cup 2011”, “Rugby New Zealand 2011”, “Webb Ellis Cup”, or the images set out below can generally only be used in advertising and promotional materials by official Tournament sponsors and other officially associated entities (see the Annex to the MEMA Guide for details).

The question to be asked in each case is “is this likely to suggest an association with the Tournament to a reasonable person?”.

Under the MEMA, any unauthorised representation that suggests an association with the Tournament is prohibited, so it is not simply a case of avoiding using the words “Rugby World Cup” if an association with the Tournament is in fact suggested.

Tournament hospitality A number of Official Corporate Hospitality Agents have been appointed in relation to the Tournament.

These entities have the exclusive rights to advertise and promote their hospitality services in connection with the Tournament.

Entities other than the Official Corporate Hospitality Agents are not permitted to suggest an association between their hospitality offerings and the Tournament.

By way of example, the following wording would not be permitted in advertising materials:

• “Rugby World Cup function”

• “Special Rugby offer: Dinner and return transport to the World Cup games” 2 Screening of Tournament matches Bars and restaurants are entitled to screen matches as they would with any sports event (provided the terms of their agreement with Sky or other provider allow it, and subject to any applicable council rules).

Bars and restaurants will however need to be mindful of the MEMA when communicating the fact that matches will be shown.

Bars and restaurants should avoid the use of the Tournament logo or other protected words or emblems to advertise the fact of a screening.

Consider using wording along the lines of “Rugby showing here tonight” or “Scotland v Georgia live here tonight” – this gets the message across without risk of breaching the MEMA.

In addition, bars and restaurants should also avoid suggesting that they or the brands they stock are associated with the Tournament, for example by advertising that matches are sponsored or presented by an entity which is not officially connected with the Tournament.

Advertising in close proximity to Tournament activity zones Special considerations apply to bars and restaurants located close to venues of Tournament activity.

Under the MEMA, “clean zones” and “clean transport routes” have been declared around the Tournament match venues.

While these clean areas are in force, unauthorised temporary commercial activity that specifically targets fans travelling to or from official Tournament activities is restricted, including advertising of any kind within clean zones (or visible from within clean zones) or along clean transport routes.

Generally the only entities that are authorised to engage in this kind of activity are the official Tournament sponsors.

Those who accept money or other consideration for the placement of advertisements are subject to the MEMA, as well as those who pay for, commission or authorise the advertising.

Street trading inside clean zones is also prohibited.

Maps of each of the clean zones, clean transport routes and details about the relevant clean periods are available in the MEMA Guide.

The MEMA contains a number of exceptions for this prohibition on advertising, the most important of which is for advertising done by an existing organisation continuing to carry out its ordinary activities.

This means that established signage and other long-standing advertising is unaffected by the clean zone provisions – the restrictions only apply to departures from ‘business as usual’.

These rules will restrict, for example, existing bars or cafés who might want to expand to cater for extra patronage in a way that departs from their usual practice, and/or engage in new forms of advertising in an attempt to attract the attention of fans travelling to or from Tournament matches.

Existing local authority bylaws, district plan rules and legislation such as the Resource Management Act 1991 continue to apply, and may prohibit or restrict temporary commercial activities such as street trading or extensions to trading premises.

It should therefore not be assumed that an activity is ‘safe’ simply because it is taking place outside a designated clean zone or clean transport route.

Bars and restaurants aligned with Heineken and/or Brancott Estate Heineken is a Worldwide Partner of the Tournament and Brancott Estate is an Official Sponsor of the Tournament.

As such, they have exclusive rights to associate their beer (in the case of Heineken) and wines (in the case of Brancott Estate) with the Tournament and to use Tournament intellectual property such as the Tournament logo in advertising and promotions.

While certain bars and restaurants that are aligned with Heineken and/or Brancott Estate may be entitled to engage in certain advertising and promotional activities that reference these entities’ official association with the Tournament, these opportunities do not arise automatically simply because sponsors’ product is stocked.

Any leverage of Heineken or Brancott Estate’s association with the Tournament must have the specific authorisation of DB Breweries in the case of Heineken, or Pernod Ricard in the case of Brancott Estate, who in turn will obtain the necessary authorisation from RWCL.

As these activities are authorised by RWCL the MEMA restrictions do not apply.

Please contact your DB Breweries/Heineken or Pernod Ricard/Brancott Estate representative for further information.

Note: These Guidelines are intended as general information only.

Whether or not an activity will or will not infringe the MEMA (or any other rights) will depend on the individual circumstances in each case, and the ultimate interpretation of the MEMA will be determined by the Courts of New Zealand.

If you have any concerns about the application of the MEMA in a particular situation please seek legal advice.

These guidelines have been written on behalf of Rugby World Cup Limited.