(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — The Second Annual Popkomm Innovations in Music & Entertainment Awards (IMEA) are set for September 14, the first day of the annual Popkomm show September 14-16 in Berlin, and will feature 'InsideDigitalMedia' series of podcasts (MP3 audio interview downloads). The podcast series, the first to be offered by an event of this kind, will feature IMEA talent, patron, participant and honoree interviews co-produced by Popkomm IMEA Chairman and Executive Producer Gerd Leonhard, and Phil Leigh, renowned digital media expert and talk show host at "InsideDigitalMedia". The first podcast bowed June 1 with last year's Popkomm IMEA award winner Paul Hitchman, co-founder and managing director of PlaylouderMSP (www.playloudermsp.com).
The awards recognize both individual and corporate leaders in bringing technology solutions to music artists and consumers. There will be five finalists in each of three categories: Mobile Music & Entertainment; Digital Music & Entertainment Innovations and B2B Solutions; and Live Music and Marketing Innovations. These categories also correspond with the main themes of this year's Popkomm Congress.
"I think the future for the music industry is all about partnership and collaboration between innovative technology companies and music rights owners, and entering the Popkomm IMEA Awards is a great platform for establishing new partnerships and presenting new ideas to the music industry," said Hitchman. "And. of course, if you win, both the credibility that this brings in the music industry and the extra media profile can be very helpful in the early stages of a company's development.
"The Web is finally going beyond text and visuals, and into audio," says Leonhard. "And people are now expecting to be able to take radio-shows with them, so that they can listen when and where they want to. Popkomm IMEA will stay ahead of these developments by embracing this new platform."
"I'm thrilled to be partnering with such an influential gathering of the minds," says Leigh. "Debuting our co-produced podcast series with Paul Hitchman is ideal, as he will share his experience at last year's show and lend his advice to this year's contenders." InsideDigitalMedia draws an influential audience of Digital Media industry executives, institutional investors, venture capitalists, investment bankers, and journalists.
"This is a very exciting new way of not only spotlighting the brightest entrepreneurs and startups globally, but it also fosters the overall understanding of new technologies in the entertainment industries," adds Kelli Richards, co-producer of Popkomm IMEA and CEO of AllAccessGroup. "These podcasts will feature the latest hot music & media ventures and provide a sneak preview of the stiff competition between the technological heavyweights to be judged at this year's award show."
Popkomm IMEA media partners include Billboard, Musically, Digital Media Wire, European Tech Wire and Musikmarkt. The official 2005 partner country is Spain. Popkomm 2005 is organized by Popkomm GmbH, Berlin, a subsidiary of Messe Berlin GmbH. –Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen
