Philippine Web Awards: GMANews.TV is Best Media Website

GMANews.TV (www.gmanews.tv), the official website of GMA News and Public Affairs, won as the Best Website in the Media category of the 9th Philippine Web Awards, a yearly event staged on Dec. 7, 2006 by Media G8way Corp. (MGC). The People's Choice Award, chosen through SMS and online voting by the public, went to The Official UNTV-37 Website (www.untvweb.com). Named the Most Popular Website of the Year, based on SMS and online voting, was The Official Website of Ang Dating Daan (www.angdatingdaan.com) The awarding ceremonies were held from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium Podium 4, RCBC Plaza in Makati and had a live webcast at www.philippinewebawards.com. A total of 60 websites made it to the finals. Local and foreign judges then evaluated all the finalists by Dec. 1. The scores of each finalist were then tabulated by the Isla Lipana & Co., a member firm of PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Malou Mangahas, editor in chief of GMANews.TV, and Jose Torres, managing editor, received the trophy. Because MGC imposed 10-word acceptance speeches, Mangahas limited herself to this sentence: "Sa Pilipino sa buong mundo, GMANews.TV, serbisyong totoo, bente-kwatro oras, (To Filipinos all over the world, GMANews.TV, true service 24 hours daily)." Those words were awarded at the end of the ceremonies as the Best 10-Word Speech. Mangahas then made another brief speech: "Dahil hindi natutulog ang balita, GMANews.TV, gising kami, araw-gabi, (Because news never sleeps, GMANews.TV, on alert, day and night)." Earlier in the evening three websites earned the distinction of winning both the Best Website and People's Choice Award in their respective categories: • Lifestyle and Leisure - Ang Pamana: The Inheritance (www.angpamana-theinheritance-movie.com) • Schools- Mapua Institute of Technology (www.mapua.edu.ph) • e-Government - Bulacan provincial govenrment (www.bulacan.gov.ph) Other local government units awarded for their websites were Naga City, Lagait town in Misamis Oriental, and Infanta town in Quezon. It was the first time in the history of the PWA that LGUs were honored. According to the PWA website, the category was included in a partnership signed between MGC, the National Computer Center (NCC), and the Commission on Information and Communication Technology (CICT). The other winners: • Corporate - Verdana Homes Mamplasan (www.verdanamamplasan.com.ph) • Corporate, People's Choice - Ayala Land (www.ayalaland.com) • Banking and Finance - China Bank Online (www.chinabank.ph) • Banking and Finance, People's Choice - Unionbankph.com (www.unionbankph.com) • SME - Holy Cow! Animation (www.holycowanimation.com) • SME, People's Choice - 19East Bar & Grill (www.19east.com) • Arts and Portfolio - Anino Shadowplay Collective (anino.sining.net) • Arts and Portfolio, People's Choice - Stephanie Coyuito Photography (www.stephaniecoyuito.com) • Organizations - Ilustrador ng Kabataan (ink.group.ph) • Organizations, People's Choice - Ang Dating Daan (www.angdatingdaan.com) • Community and Portal - E-YellowPages (www.eyp.ph) • Community and Portal, People's Choice - Kaanib.net (www.kaanib.net) • Blogs - Touched by an Angel (aboutmyrecovery.com) • Blogs, People's Choice - Sexy Nomad (sexynomad.i.ph/blogs/sexynomad/) • Celebrities and Personalities - Journey With Terry The Tarsier (www.terrythetarsier.com) • Celebrities and Personalities - The Official Website of Daniel Razon (www.danielrazon.com) • Personal - Joey Alaiza Personal Website (joeyalaiza.com) • Personal, People's Choice - Superluwi - Pinoy na Astig (www.superluwi.com) Website owners consider the PWA as a stepping stone to the Annual Webby Awards, a global event that the BBC hailed as "the most prestigious award in the world." The PWA presenters were Jaime Garchitorena and Gelli Mateo, Pinky Amador and Ibarra "Bombing" Gutierrez (MGC president and CEO of MGC) Francine Prieto and Monchito Ibrahim (president of the Philippine Computer Society). Performing in between presentation of the awards were the Fil-Australian band DNA Rock, Helen, and Join The Club. Recently, MGC president Gutierrez was appointed Webbys Ambassador for the Philippines. Webby Ambassadors are a group of Internet supporters and entrepreneurs in over 15 countries, serving as a "voice on the ground" in their area.-GMANews.TV