Blogs Make Debut on AOP Awards Shortlist
For the first time, publishersÂ’ use of blogs and user-generated content has made it onto the shortlist of the Association of Online PublishersÂ’ (AOP) annual Awards
LONDON (PRWEB) September 9, 2005
Q4Music. comÂ’s blog (www. Q4music. com/blog (http://www. Q4music. com/blog)) published by Emap Performance Interactive, The Guardian blogs (http://blogs. Guardian. co. uk (http://blogs. Guardian. co. uk)), the BBCÂ’s London bombs amateur video footage on its BBC News Player (www. BBC. co. uk/news (http://www. BBC. co. uk/news)), and VNU Business PublicationsÂ’ Newsgator aggregation tool (www. VNUNet. com/Newsgator (http://www. VNUNet. com/Newsgator)) have all been shortlisted in the Innovation category of the AOP Online Publishing Awards 2005.
Alexandra White, director of AOP, commented: “The sheer breadth and diversity of the 2005 shortlist is testament to the degree of editorial - and commercial - innovation and creativity, which is happening in the UK online publishing industry at the moment.”
The inclusion of blogs and user generated content to this yearÂ’s shortlist is a reflection of a growing acceptance by the UKÂ’s premier publishers towards harnessing more user-generated and community-driven content within their online propositions.
Also shortlisted in the category were Blinkx. tv, AdGenie on AutoExpress. co. uk by Dennis Interactive, the Sun Online TV Video News on TheSun. co. uk, and The ScotsmanÂ’s online archive (www. archive. scotsman. com).
The AOP Awards, now in its fourth year, has been established as a showcase of the most innovative and high-quality online content in the UK. Some 220 entries were received for the prestigious Awards, which will be presented at a celebratory dinner on 7 October at the London Hilton Park Lane, following the AOP Online Publishing Conference 2005, themed Content Matters.
The 2005 shortlist also features some of the best UK event-led websites from the past year, such as UKRadioAid (www. UKRadioaid. com), the BBCÂ’s Olympics (www. BBC. co. uk/Olympics (http://www. BBC. co. uk/Olympics)) and Proms (www. BBC. co. uk/proms (http://www. BBC. co. uk/proms)) websites, and ReutersÂ’ Interactive TV Channel, all featuring substantial video coverage, as well as several products aimed at the mobile market, such as DennisÂ’ Maxim Mobile and The Wall Street Journal for Blackberry.
AOP is holding a forum for publishers on blogs and user-generated content on the afternoon of 21 September, featuring case studies from Associated New Media, the BBC, Caspian Publishing and Menshealth.
About AOP
For more information about the AOP Conference, Awards or forums in 2005, visit www. ukaop. org. uk/awards (http://www. ukaop. org. uk/awards) call Lisa Quinlan Rahman at 020 7400 7532.
The UK Association of Online Publishers (AOP) is an industry body representing online publishing companies that create original, branded, quality content. AOP champions the interests of approximately 160 publishing companies from diverse backgrounds including newspaper and magazine publishing, TV and radio broadcasting, and pure online media. Together they publish around 1,150 products and attract more than five billion page impressions per month.
AOP presents a unified voice to industry and Government, specifically to address issues and concerns relating to all areas of online publishing. AOP publishes original research, hosts forums, conferences and events, covering a range of topics from paid-for-content, subscription models and data protection, through to copyright, content management, new technologies and audience measurement.
AOP recently investigated the importance of B2B websites in the lives of business decision makers, in research titled 'The role of B2B websites'. Last year AOP produced the highly acclaimed consumer research ‘Reaching the Online Elite’ and every year it delivers the annual member benchmarking study, the ‘AOP Census’.
The AOP autumn Online Publishing Conference & Awards is its annual industry event. It attracts the biggest names in online publishing to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the industry and celebrate outstanding achievement. The 2005 event will be held on 7 October at the London Hilton, Park Lane.
Members include Associated New Media, BBC, BSkyB, Capital Radio Group, CNET Networks, Channel 4, Dennis Interactive, The Economist Group, Emap, FT. com, Future Publishing, Guardian Unlimited, Haymarket Publishing, Independent Digital, IPC Media, ITV Online, News International, Reed Business Information, Reuters, Telegraph Group Limited and Which?. In addition, PPAi (Periodical Publishers Association Interactive) retains a corporate seat on AOP board: representing the interests of magazine publishers online. www. ukaop. org. uk
Contact:
Matthew Leach
Immediate future Ltd.
0845 408 2031
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