is it legal to charge to enter a contest board?

[annawildone]

i was told that it wasnt legal and we could get our sim shut down for charging for people to enter contest board, is it legal to do this or not?

[Rolig Loon]

That's a tricky question. It's not against the TOS to charge an entry fee to a contest, but it is a violation of the Gambling Policy to run a lottery.  Basically,

"It is a violation of this policy to wager in games in the Second Life® environment operated on Linden Lab servers if such games:

1. Rely on chance or random number generation to determine a winner,

   OR

2. Rely on the outcome of real-life organized sporting events,

AND provide a payout in

1. Linden Dollars (L$)

   OR

2. Any real-world currency or thing of value."

However,

"If the 'payout' involves objects that are more akin to novelty objects that cannot readily be converted into Linden dollars, real-world currency or value, then that activity will likely be permitted. "

I have only highlighted a couple of relevant sections of the policy.  I recommend reading the whole thing.