Shree FM wins top international broadcasting award

Wednesday, 1 December 2010 01:09 -     - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

EAP Edirisinghe Group of Companies Chairperson Dr. Soma Edirisinghe presents the award to President Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees. EAP Group Managing Director Jeewaka Edirisinghe (left) and Ryan Honter are also present.

Inset: Colombo Communications Executive Director Ryan Honter (centre) and Senior Director Marketing Terene Fernando (left) at the 2010 AIBs awards ceremony in London receiving the award from Radio Netherlands Worldwide EU Correspondent Vanessa Mock

Shree FM has won the ‘Most Creative Marketing Strategy’ for Shree FM Badu Malla garnering an unanimous vote from an international panel of judges at the recently concluded AIBs - International Media Excellence Awards in London, United Kingdom.

The AIBs - International Media Excellence Awards, an internationally renowned event held annually is organised by the Association for International Broadcasting (AIB). The award celebrates creativity and factual programming across several broadcast platforms including TV and radio, and also recognises innovation in technology and marketing.

Shree FM took home the award for the Most Creative Marketing Strategy for Shree FM Badu Malla at this year’s awards ceremony held at LSO St. Luke’s in London. In this category the judges were looking for cost-effective, creative and innovative marketing campaigns that broadcasters from around the world can harness in their marketing strategies.

The panel was impressed with the Shree FM Badu Malla entry which is an on-air and onsite promotion of Shree FM.

For this campaign, Shree FM rewarded its listeners with Rs.5000. The station purchased goods worth Rs.5000 from retail stores tuned in to Shree FM. These goods were then given to households who are also tuned in to the station. In order to identify its listeners, Shree FM asked them to put “l listen to Shree FM” signboards outside their homes and retail shops.

There were 16 award categories at the AIBs this year. The winners were handpicked by an international judging panel consisting of highly experienced media professionals from nearly 200 short listed entries from the five major continents.

Colombo Communications Ltd, Executive Director Ryan Honter and Senior Director Marketing Tarene Fernando were present during the event which was attended by a number of renowned journalists, producers and senior executives from major broadcast networks.

“It was a remarkable experience to be a part of such highly esteemed event” Honter said.

“While it was an honour to be nominated, winning the award for the Most Creative Marketing Strategy was overwhelming,” he added.

Other award recipients include the BBC HARDtalk host Stephen Sackur (international

Personality of the Year – TV) and Sony’s 3D technology (Most Innovative Technology, Al Jazeera (Clearest Coverage of a Single News Event), and BBC World Service (Best Current Affairs Documentary - Radio) among many others.

“This is a mega achievement for our organisation but more important a huge honour that has once again put Sri Lanka on the map,” Honter added.

EAP Edirisinghe Group of Companies Chairperson Dr. Soma Edirisinghe presented the award to President Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees recently. EAP Group Managing Director Jeewaka Edirisinghe and Ryan Honter were also present during the award presentation.

This is the second time that Shree FM won an international award this year. The station is also the recipient of the 2010 National Association of Broadcasters International Broadcasting Excellence Award.

Established in 1993, the AIB is the international industry association and global knowledge network for the international broadcasting industry — cross-media, cross-border, cross-cultural. With a reach of over 25,000 communicators and media professionals, AIB is a unique centre of information about international broadcasting, covering TV, radio, online and mobile.

Shree FM is one of the three radio channels (Ran FM, E FM) owned and operated by Colombo Communications Ltd. It is the organisation’s flagship Sinhala radio channel, recognised as the most listened to radio channel in Sri Lanka.

Since its inception, Shree FM has transcended from solely being a vehicle of entertainment to being a vehicle of hope to its audience, earning top national and international accolades for its innovative promotions and programmes.

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