Online contests with social networks

One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media storing instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause:

• receiving, at one or more server computers of a contest distributor contest data for a first online contest, wherein the contest data includes a plurality of message templates for the first online contest, wherein each of the plurality of message templates specifies what type of information will be in a message or how the message will be formatted;
• causing, to be displayed on a client device to a first user, on a first web page of a first online social network of a first social network provider, first contest data that indicates that the first online contest is in a locked state and an indication of a second web page of the contest distributor;
• receiving, at the contest distributor and responsive to the first user interacting with the second web page of the contest distributor, first input that indicates an intention by the first user to participate in the first online contest;
• determining that the first user has not already indicated an intention to participate in the first online contest;
• determining that one or more attributes of the first online contest satisfy certain criteria;
• determining that the first user has not reached a limit of a number of times the first user has entered the first online contest;
• sending, from the contest distributor, first request data that indicates a first request, by the contest distributor, for one or more permissions allowing the contest distributor to access information from the first social network provider about the first user;
• after sending the first request data, receiving, over a computer network and at the one or more server computers of the contest distributor, first acceptance data that indicates that the first user accepts the first request;
• in response to receiving the first acceptance data, one or more server computers of the contest distributor performing:
• causing the first user to be entered in the first online contest only after determining that the first user has not already indicated an intention to participate in the first online contest, that one or more attributes of the first online contest satisfy certain criteria, and that the first user has not reached a limit of a number of times the first user has entered the first online contest;
• selecting, based on one or more criteria, a first template from the plurality of message templates;
• generating, based on the first template, a first message that includes data about the first online contest or a contest provider that initiated the first online contest;
• and
• causing the first message to be sent over the first online social network to a first plurality of users that are connected to the first user in the first online social network;
• receiving, over the computer network and at the one or more server computers of the contest distributor, second acceptance data that indicates that a second user accepts a second request, by the contest distributor, for one or more permissions allowing the contest distributor to access information from the first social network provider about the second user;
• in response to receiving the second acceptance data, the one or more server computers of the contest distributor performing:
• causing the second user to be entered in the first online contest;
• selecting, based on the one or more criteria, a second template from the plurality of message templates, wherein the first template and the second template are different;
• generating, based on the second template, a second message that includes data about the first online contest or the contest provider that initiated the first online contest;
• and
• causing the second message to be sent over the first online social network to a second plurality of users that are connected to the second user in the first online social network.