LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--For two decades now, the IBC Innovation Awards have recognised collaborative and innovative work which has proved transformative in the world of media. Last year, the IBC Awards programme added two more major honours: the Young Pioneer Award and the Social Impact Award.
IBC has now opened its call for nominations for these awards.
Unique in the industry, the IBC Innovation Awards celebrate completed projects, which take a real requirement – creative, operational or commercial – and develop a solution, through the co-operation and collaboration of users and technology partners. The yardstick for the judges is the successful implementation of the new solution, and so the trophy itself goes to the end user company, while at the same time honouring the efforts of the technology suppliers.
There are three categories: for the most innovative projects in Content Creation, Content Distribution and Content Everywhere. The size and scale of a project is not a deciding factor: a small but highly effective initiative that solves a real-world problem is just as likely to win as a multi-million dollar redevelopment.
The media industry must continue to attract young, vibrant talent to drive the pace of change. The IBC Young Pioneer Award celebrates the newest and brightest movers and shakers, whether they are creative stars, the developers of new technologies and approaches, or making waves in the business world. The first ever winner of the IBC Young Pioneer Award, in 2019, was Vera Bichler, the first woman football director at Austrian national broadcaster ORF.
Environmental and social issues should be at the top of everyone’s agenda today. The IBC Social Impact Award recognises initiatives and campaigns which are making a difference in sustainability, diversity and inclusivity, and environmental responsibility.
In its inaugural programme, finalists for the IBC Social Impact Award included a programme from Turkish national broadcaster TRT to develop journalism skills among young people, and particularly the dispossessed refugees within its borders; a programme to provide life-saving warnings for coastal communities in India; and an academic film-maker committed to creating the finest content with the smallest environmental footprint.
Winners of all these awards will be announced at the IBC Awards Ceremony, to be held on Sunday 13 September. The sparkling ceremony will also see a number of other awards, including IBC’s most prestigious, the International Honour for Excellence – previous winners have included the movie directors Ang Lee and Peter Jackson; the Science and Technology Research Laboratories of NHK; and Sir David Attenborough and Joan Ganz Cooney, the creator of Sesame Street. In 2019 director, producer and actor Andy Serkis was the recipient of this award for his contribution to the industry.
If you are involved in an innovative project – as instigator or technology provider; if you know of a high-flyer under the age of 30 (or you are one yourself); or if you are making a difference in social and environmental responsibility, then IBC needs to hear from you. Nominations are open now, and close at midnight on 22 April.
All information and nomination forms can be found at https://show.ibc.org/ibc-awards/enter-the-ibc-awards