2012 International Digital Emmy Award Nominations Announced

Canada Dominates with 4 Nominations First Time Emmy® Nomination for Kenya & Japan 

New York, February 16th, 2012 – The International Academy  of Television Arts & Sciences announced today that nominees from 7 countries will  compete for this year’s International Digital Emmy® Awards.  The awards ceremony will take place, during MIPTV’s Opening night festivities on Sunday, April 1, in Cannes at the Martinez Hotel.

There are 12 nominees in 3 categories, Digital Program:  Children & Young People; Digital Program: Fiction and Digital Program: Non-Fiction. The full list of Nominees from:  Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, Kenya, Sweden and the United Kingdom follows this release.

“The technological strides we see every year in digital content delivery are constantly providing production tools to enhance the viewer’s experience. We congratulate our nominees for their creative and technological achievements in this flourishing sector of our industry.”, said Bruce L. Paisner, President  & CEO of The International Academy.

“It is no surprise to see Canada dominate the nomination slate,” said Catherine Warren, International Academy member and president of FanTrust Entertainment Strategies. “With our deep expertise in digital media and our leadership in convergence funding, Canada continues to be the go-to place for launching new forms of entertainment.” Warren is also a board member of the Bell Broadcast & New Media Fund, which has provided Canadian companies with more than $100M for digital media television ventures.

This is the first time that a program from Kenya is ever nominated for an Emmy and the first time that a program from Japan is nominated for a Digital Emmy. Shujaaz.FM,a multi-media communications project, designed to inspire and motivate millions of Kenyans to take action to improve their lives and engage with urgent issues that shape their future, is nominated in the Children & Young People category. NHK World TV Digital Disaster Coverage, the HD coverage of the massive earthquake and tsunami that hit the east coast of Japan on March 11, 2011, from helicopters and robot making full use of various digital platforms as well as linear TV, is nominated in the Non-Fiction category.

Click here to read the full press release with nominations from iemmys.tv.