True, true. As far as I know, the poll did have a prize attached to it (they have in all years up to now, and this year probably wasn't any different.) I myself have cautioned people in other forums not to rush off and file legal complaints until/unless they are willing to sign an affadavit and provide evidence (apparently, Legume et al may have done just that... I do not know.) I do however want to state exactly, with as neutral a POV as possible, what I'm seeing here: First off is credibility troubles - if you have a public vote, then jerk the voting process with some strange explanation and a definate change of procedure from previous contests, then your credibility is going to be called into question... this is natural. Second off, this isn't the first time a contest for prizes on Renderosity has ended under suspicious circumstances. I can count two other contests that have ended under suspicion. The first of those two (which a member, "x2000" actually got banned for mentioning today) involved an Emoticon contest for the OT forum. While there is no need to go into the grisly details, a moderator entered and won a contest she ran. To her (legal) credit, she refused the prize, but the incident nor the fact was ever made public... until a disgruntled moderator posted a screenshot copy of the whole story. x2000 mentioned the contest and its results this morning, and got henceforth got banned because of it, which only adds to the suspicions surrounding it. That screenshot alone is evidence enough to initiate a legal investigation, and there are a lot of folks now who possess this image. However, since the parties involved did not actually claim the prize, the penalties would be minor... a fine at the most. Second off, there was a contest in the 2d forum, in which the 2nd place winner was refused a prize she was originally told she could choose from as 2nd place winner, mostly becuase she had a Macintosh and couldn't use the cheaper Windows-based software prizes. There was a great big stink raised, and eventually, the folks who ran the contest ave her the prize she originally chose. This is not enough to prosecute, but it does compound the credibility problem. Now, we have this current AOY problem. I strongly assume there were prizes attached, as there were prizes attached in previous years. However, since I cannot confirm it, I honestly cannot tell for sure, though anyone with a screenshot could tell you. If complaints do get filed, it will be up to the Att'y general, or the US Postal Service, to determine the course of action. If there is evidence present, and the AOY was indeed a contest for prizes, there will likely be a prosecution involved. However, I cannot speak for either office, so I cannot say for sure. OTOH, as a business, if I were R'osity I certainly wouldn't want even the slightest hint of those risks gathering at my door. Also, there is a factor that hasn't been considered: If Renderosity's credibility is called into question, then those folks supplying the prizes, like Curious Labs, DAZ, Eovia, E-On Software, etc etc... those businesses will likely back away from supplying freebie prizes in the future. CL and R'osity are rather symbiotic, so I suspect that CL would be the last to back away, but there is a point where even they could concievably call it too risky to their reputation. "You aren't owed an explanation from a legal point of view beyond what Tim said, and they certainly won't give one if it means that it will be used against them..." Indeed - but if they're already running for legal cover, then perhaps they should also be considering what to do about the result, before word of it spreads too far and damages their reputation. This post isn't, as many of the site's defenders have assumed, a "slam" on Renderosity. It is merely a statement of one person's observations. However, these observations are offered as a wake-up call of sorts, to help Renderosity appreciate the mess they are hurtling headlong into, in the hopes that they will stop, sit back, and reconsider their course of action, both now and in the future. /P