[dalbasal]

"ROI" is probably the wrong frame for this question. "Worth it" is better. "Better than X" might be better still, since it frames the question such that "X" needs to be defined and quantified.

The benefits of such a competition are pretty nebulous, and there's no way to convince an ardent skeptic. OTOH, many business decisions are like this and skepticism isn't a viable frame in many cases.

Netflix got visibility with investors and potential employees. Netflix's recommendation engine became famous, even though it doesn't seem impressive as a user. The exercise created a structured way of thinking about their recommendation algorithm. They cemented its importance. Even though they didn't implement the winning solution, they did get a useful benchmark. This was potentially very useful in further decisions in R&Ding the recommendation engine in-house.

All that for $1m?