The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS) - the industry leading organisation responsible for presenting the world-renowned Webby Awards, Internet Week New York and Internet Week Europe - today announced the winners of the inaugural Lovie Awards, the European sister of the Webbys.
The first-ever European awards, honouring and celebrating the best of the European web, has shortlisted entries from 17 countries with trophy winners from 14 countries, demonstrating a wide variety of entrants in the four main category types: Websites, Mobile & Apps, Online Advertising, Internet Video, in over 75 categories.
Two winners took home two and three Lovie Awards respectively in multiple categories, displaying the diversity and power of some of the best media, advertising and entertainment concepts this year. Tribal DDB Amsterdam won gold across three different media types, Websites, Video, and Advertising, with their work for Philips. The BBC scooped gold in two categories, Food & Beverage, as well as Education.
The Digital Story of Nativity, the viral video with over nine million views, telling the story of Jesus as it would be told via social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, won a Gold Lovie Award in the Viral Video category. The video was thought-up and created by the Portuguese ad agency Excentric.
A Gold Lovie in the Utilities & Services category in Mobile was won by Skype, the internet communications company, for their iPad application. SoundCloud, the social sound platform based in Berlin, excelled in the Websites Services category.
Meanwhile Vice UK, the London-based arm of the global culture publication, picked up a Gold in the Online Film & Video - Documentary category, with a stirring piece about the Arab Spring rebellion in Syria. A Lovie Award was won by History Pin in the Mobile & Apps Education & Reference category, ensuring that our glimpses of the past will continue to be shared while building up to a huge story of human history.
ASOS, the global online fashion and beauty retailer was awarded a Gold Lovie in the Lifestyle: Tablet category for the innovative ASOS Marketplace.
Winners will be presented with their Lovie Award at a special awards party, doubling up as the grand finale of Internet Week Europe 2011, held on November 11 in the legendary St Luke's Hawksmoor church in Shoreditch. The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, which selects The Lovie Award Winners, comprises an outstanding line-up of European web industry experts including startup expert Reshma Sohoni of SeedCamp, Elke Klinkhammer of Neue Digitale/Razorfish, Jesus Revuelta of Doubleyou, Giuliano Giorgetti of AC Milan, Deezer founder Jonathan Benassaya, Chester Chipperfield of Burberry, Nicke Bergström of Mother, as well as the renowned musician Imogen Heap.
"We brought the Lovies to Europe because we knew there was a breadth and scale of excellence on the European Internet that was not being recognised," said David-Michel Davies, Executive Director of IADAS. "These inaugural Lovie Award Winners confirm that belief beyond any doubt."
"Award programs are ultimately validated by the quality of the things they manage to recognise," added Nicolas Roope, The Lovie Awards Chair. "In The Lovie Awards' inaugural year we already see an all-star line up of the best of the best of the European internet scene surface in the shortlisted and trophy winners. We're feeling very good about The Lovie Awards and we're feeling great about what this means for Europe."