DMEA sparks Award – Conditions of Participation of bvitg Service GmbH

3. Participation requirements and registration on the portal

3.1. Students who have submitted their final thesis after January 15, 2025 at a university in Germany or abroad and have worked on a topic relevant to the digital health industry are eligible to apply. Employees of the bvitg e.V. and the bsg are excluded.

3.2. If applicants have written their thesis together, they can apply together. In this case, the prize money will be divided equally.

3.3. It is not permitted to resubmit a thesis that was previously submitted for the DMEA sparks Award (formerly the DMEA Young Talent Award).

3.4. Participation in the competition is free of charge and voluntary.

3.5. It is mandatory to provide the data marked with an asterisk on the portal, as it is required to decide on the application and to carry out the competition and the DMEA.

3.6. All applications will be stored on the portal, even if they are rejected. The bsg uses this data for the planning of future DMEA events, for example, to recruit applicants for presentations at future events or to determine whether applicants have already applied for the DMEA sparks Award at an earlier date. If you do not wish this to happen, you can request the deletion of the applications you have submitted or your entire portal user account by sending an email to dmea@bvitg.de. This has no influence on the transfer of rights of use regarding applications that have already been awarded prizes, which is irrevocable (see section 12 of these conditions of participation).

4. Content requirements for submissions

4.1. Theses (Bachelor's or Master's theses) submitted for the DMEA sparks Award should deal with an aspect of digitalization in the healthcare sector. This includes, for example: Logistics in hospitals, apps to improve care, or the optimization of diagnosis with the help of digital aids. The degree program in which the thesis was written is of secondary importance.

4.2. The topic of the thesis must be summarized in an abstract. Theses without an abstract or with an abstract with insufficient content will not be admitted to the jury assessment. The abstract should include the following aspects:

• Introduction
• Objectives and research questions
• Material & methods
• Practical relevance
• Results
• Conclusion & outlook

5. Formal requirements for submissions

5.1. Abstract (see section 4.2) and the complete thesis must be submitted in PDF format via the portal. When formulating the abstract, please take into account the guidelines and important notes on abstract preparation. In addition, the following information is required for the application:

• Names and contact details of all authors
• Portrait photos of the authors
• Title of the paper
• Abstract (200 words)
• Reference to practical relevance

If the work is marked with a blocking note, a declaration of consent from the company/institution must be sent to the bsg (doreen.kempa@bvitg.de) by the application deadline, which allows the information to be used by the bsg, the bvitg e. V. and the cooperation partners for the purpose of conducting the competition.

5.2. All submissions must be sent to the bsg exclusively via the portal. Once the application has been uploaded, it can still be processed until the application deadline.

6. Determination of the winners

6.1. Based on the abstracts and the theses, an expert jury (see section 7) will select five finalists for each of the two categories “Bachelor's theses” and “Master's theses”. The theses will be evaluated according to the following criteria and with the following weighting:

• Methodology: 15%
• Originality / innovation: 20%
• Practical relevance: 40%
• Quality of the scientific / technical content: 15%
• Structure, composition, presentation of the thesis: 10%

6.2. After the announcement, the finalists must upload a video presentation of their work (maximum 5 minutes) to the portal. These videos should convey the results of the work in a clear and entertaining way. They serve as an additional evaluation basis for the expert jury and will be used for the online voting for the audience award.

6.3. Presentations that violate relevant legal or official regulations or offend common decency are not permitted, i.e. in particular content that is harmful to minors, pornographic, racist, glorifies violence, incites hatred or is offensive. Likewise, contributions may be rejected if they do not correspond to the specified topic or possibly damage the image of the bsg, the bvitg e.V. or the DMEA. In this case, the bsg reserves the right to exclude the entire entry from the current competition. Notification of exclusion will be sent separately.

7. Expert Jury

7.1. The entries will be evaluated by an expert jury consisting of representatives of the Bundesverband Gesundheits-IT – bvitg e. V. and the cooperation partners of the DMEA. One representative each will be provided by BVMI e. V., KH-IT e. V. and GMDS e. V., as well as one representative each from bvitg e. V. and bvitg generation next, the network for young specialists and managers of bvitg member companies.

7.2. The independent and final decisions of the expert jury are not subject to appeal. Legal recourse is excluded.

8. Awards

8.1 Applicants will not receive any remuneration for participating in the competition. As a thank you, bvitg Service GmbH will provide all applicants with a free permanent ticket for DMEA 2026. Finalists can apply for reimbursement of up to €150 from Messe Berlin GmbH for their participation in the award ceremony at the DMEA - provided that the travel expenses are not covered by their employer or university (see section 9).

8.2. The prize winners will be selected from the 10 finalists and will receive the following prize money:

Bachelor theses:

• 1st prize: € 1,500 - 2nd prize: € 1,000 - 3rd prize: € 500

Master's theses:

• 1st prize: € 2,000 - 2nd prize: € 1,000 - 3rd prize: € 500

Audience Award:

• € 500

8.3. The use of the prize money is not earmarked. The prize money will be transferred to the winners within 8 weeks after the event. For this purpose, the winners will be contacted by the organizer and asked to provide their bank details.

9. Travel Cost Reimbursement for Finalists

9.1. Messe Berlin GmbH will reimburse the finalists of the DMEA sparks Award for travel expenses (arrival/departure and one night's stay) for participation in the award ceremony up to an amount of €150.00.

9.2. Travel costs will be reimbursed to the finalists only if their employer or university does not cover the travel expenses. The following costs will be covered for the mentioned individuals:

• One night's stay with breakfast (excluding extras and personal expenses such as parking fees, minibar, telephone, etc.)
• Travel expenses (train and flight in the 2nd class/economy or travel allowance of €0.30 per km)

Conditions:

• The employer or university of the finalist does not cover the costs (please send the declaration for travel cost coverage).
• The total value of €150.00 per person is not exceeded.

Travelers are responsible for their information and the completeness of the documents. (Travel expenses information from Messe Berlin)All parties are obligated to limit the travel costs to the necessary extent. If deviations from the principles of economical and efficient use were necessary, this should be sufficiently justified.

9.3. For reimbursement, an official invoice with receipts must be submitted to Messe Berlin GmbH by mail after the DMEA:

Messe Berlin GmbH
Messedamm 22
14055 Berlin, Germany

Subject: Travel Cost Settlement DMEA 2026

The invoice can also be sent by e-mail with digital receipts and the declaration on the assumption of travel expenses to the following e-mail address: dmea@messe-berlin.de. The invoice must be submitted as a PDF. The invoice must state the event, the date of participation, the reason for the invoice and the bank details. In addition, a declaration must be enclosed stating that the respective employer or university will not bear the travel costs itself.

9.4. Note: The invoice must indicate whether the applicant is liable for VAT or not. In the case of VAT liability, a VAT number must also be provided.

9.5. The travel costs must be invoiced to Messe Berlin GmbH within 8 weeks after the DMEA, including the necessary receipts.

9.6. The invoice will be reviewed by Messe Berlin GmbH within 30 days of receipt. The specified amount will then be promptly transferred to the specified account of the applicants.

10. Publication of Competition Results, Names, Titles, Abstracts, and Extracts from Thesis, Videos, and Photos

10.1. Information about the DMEA sparks Award and its results will be reported in DMEA media, bvitg e. V., and bsg, on the DMEA website, and possibly initiated through press and public relations activities of DMEA in other media.

10.2. bsg, bvitg e. V., and Messe Berlin GmbH are entitled to use full names, titles, and abstracts of the thesis and/or extracts from this work, as well as photos of the finalists, in event-related print and digital products (e.g., program websites, highlight flyers, social media posts).

10.3. bsg, bvitg e. V., and Messe Berlin GmbH are entitled to publish the video created by the finalists (see Section 6.2) on the DMEA YouTube channel, the DMEA website, and an online portal of Messe Berlin GmbH.

11. Image and Sound Recordings

bsg, bvitg e. V., and Messe Berlin GmbH will record, archive, and use events and the award ceremony for the purpose of DMEA program documentation in film, images, and sound, in the following ways:

• Broadcast as a live stream and publicly available for download on an online platform of Messe Berlin GmbH and on the DMEA website.
• Use for public communication measures of Messe Berlin GmbH, bsg, or bvitg e. V. in connection with DMEA (e.g., website, social media, print media).
• For editorial reporting within their public relations work in their own and third-party print and digital media.
• Transfer to press representatives for the purpose of reporting on DMEA.

12. Usage Rights

12.1. Applicants grant bsg all necessary rights to fulfill this contract. This includes, in particular, the right to use full names, titles, and abstracts of the thesis and/or extracts from this work, photos, and self-created videos of the finalists, as well as the use of image and sound recordings as described in Section 11.

12.2. The granting of rights is irrevocable, unlimited in time and place, transferable, and includes, in particular, the right to reproduce, distribute, and make publicly accessible.

12.3. bsg will respect the personality rights of the applicants in the use.

13. Premature Termination of the Competition

If there is a significant reason, bsg reserves the right to interrupt or terminate the competition without prior notice. A significant reason exists, for example, if proper execution of the competition can no longer be ensured for technical or legal reasons. There are no claims by the applicants against bsg in the event of interruption or premature termination of the competition.

14. Legal Consequences for Violation of Participation Conditions

Individuals or their contributions may be excluded from participation if there is a violation of the participation conditions or attempted manipulation. In this case, bsg reserves the right to take legal action, especially if third parties assert claims against bsg for legal violations. Prize money can also be retroactively revoked and reclaimed in the event of a violation of the participation conditions. There are no claims by the applicants against bsg in case of exclusion.

15. Liability

15.1. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that their submissions do not infringe on the rights of third parties (e.g., copyrights).

15.2. If a submission violates the rights of third parties, the respective applicants release bsg, bvitg e. V., and Messe Berlin GmbH from all claims by third parties based on a violation of copyrights or other third-party rights attributable to the respective applicants.

15.3. bsg is liable without limitation for intentional or grossly negligent behavior and always in the case of culpable violation of life, body, or health, in cases of fraud, when assuming a guarantee, or for claims under the Product Liability Act.

15.4. In the case of simple negligence, bsg is only liable for the violation of cardinal obligations. A cardinal obligation is an obligation whose fulfillment enables the proper execution of the contract in the first place and on whose compliance the other party may rely. In the case of negligent violation of a cardinal obligation, bsg's liability is limited to the reimbursement of foreseeable and typical damages.

16. Miscellaneous

If individual parts of these participation conditions are ineffective, the validity of the remaining participation conditions remains unaffected. In place of the invalid provisions, an appropriate regulation that most closely corresponds to the purpose of the invalid provision shall apply.

17. Data Protection Information (Art. 13 GDPR)

Please refer to the separate data protection notification of bvitg Service GmbH for program participation.

18. Jurisdiction and Venue, Applicable Law

18.1. Berlin is agreed upon as the place of jurisdiction and venue, to the extent legally permissible.

18.2. German law applies, excluding conflict of laws and the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods.

19. Final Provisions

19.1. Should individual clauses of these general terms and conditions be wholly or partially ineffective, or should the contract contain a gap, the effectiveness of the remaining contractual clauses or parts of these clauses shall remain unaffected. In place of the ineffective or missing provisions, the relevant statutory provisions shall apply.

19.2. Changes to these participation conditions (including this written form clause) require written form.

(Status: Oktober 2025)