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THE 12TH ANNUAL WEBBY AWARDS
ANNOUNCE WINNERS FOR BEST MOBILE SITES
NYTimes.com, ESPN.com, and Zannel among Top Winners
(May 6, 2008)- Capping a banner year that saw mobile technology and content become increasingly smarter and more sophisticated, The 12th Annual Webby Awards today announced winners in seven categories honoring mobile Websites.
In addition, nearly half a million votes were cast by people around the world for their favorite winners in The Webby People’s Voice Awards presented by Nokia. A full list of both Webby Awards and People’s Voice Awards winners can be found at www.webbyawards.com.
Achieving critical and popular consensus, ESPN.com Wireless won both a Webby Award and a Webby People’s Voice Award in the mobile Sports category. The New York Times won in the News and Listing & Updates categories.
Other winners ranged from major brands like NBC’s “Heroes” (Entertainment), Chase SMS Banking (Mobile Marketplace & Services), and Nike 10R (Gaming) to emerging mobile brands like Zannel (Social Networking).
Hailed as the “Internet’s highest honor” by the New York Times,, The Webby Awards is presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a 550-person judging academy whose members include Vinton Cerf, R/GA’s Chief Bob Greenberg, “Simpson’s” creator Matt Groening, Arianna Huffington, and Harvey Weinstein.
“Mobile Websites are becoming increasingly sophisticated, useful, and entertaining, and this year’s winners are at the forefront of this evolution.” said David-Michel Davies, executive director of The Webby Awards. “It’s exciting to honor the innovators who are setting the standard for this important category.”
“The release of smarter and increasingly user friendly mobile devices in 2007 signaled a major shift in mobile technology and has spurred exciting innovation in mobile content,” said David-Michel Davies, executive director of The Webby Awards. “We’re proud to be honoring the innovators setting the benchmarks for this emerging field.”
Winners will be honored at the star-studded 12th Annual Webby Awards Gala in New York on June 10th. Hosted by Saturday Night Live’s Seth Meyers, the ceremony will showcase winners delivering the Webbys’ famous five-word speeches. The winning mobile Websites will be saluted alongside a remarkable slate of special achievement honorees, including Stephen Colbert (Webby Person of the Year) and musician and producer will.i.am (Webby Artist of the Year).
For information on winners in other Webby categories, including Websites, film and video, and interactive advertising, visit www.webbyawards.com/press.
About The Webby Awards:
Hailed as the “Internet’s highest honor” by the New York Times, The Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet, including Websites, interactive advertising, online film and video, and mobile web sites. Established in 1996, the 12th Annual Webby Awards received nearly 10,000 entries from all 50 states and over 60 countries worldwide. The Webby Awards is presented by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. Sponsors and Partners of The Webby Awards include: Adobe; The Creative Group; Nokia; .ORG; Level 3; Getty Images; The Barbarian Group; Digital Kitchen; Adweek; Variety; Wired; IDG; Pequot Ventures; Brightcove; PricewaterhouseCoopers; 2advanced.Net; KobeMail and Museum of the Moving Image.
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