(23 May 2007 2:45 pm)

MUMBAI: Reed Midem, which will organise the television trade event Mipcom in Cannes, from 8-12 October, has announced that the third edition of the Mipcom Mobile TV Awards has been expanded by a new partnership with the Marché du Film and the Short Film Corner, key components of the Cannes Film Festival.

The partnership will introduce two new film categories into the awards. Launched at Mipcom 2005, the Mobile TV Awards honour creative excellence for new short form audiovisual entertainment content and services for mobile and, also new this year, internet media.

The two new categories in partnership with the Marché du Film and the Short Film Corner are:

1. Best Short Film originally created or repurposed for Mobile

2. Best Film shot on a mobile device

The rest of the categories for this year are Best Made-for-Mobile TV or Film Channel, Best Cross Platform & interactive Mobile TV Format, Best Mobile Service for Social Community and User-Generated Content, Best Short Form Audiovisual Entertainment made for Mobile and/or Internet Drama, Best Short Form Audiovisual Entertainment made for Mobile and/or Internet Comedy, Best Short Form Audiovisual Entertainment made for Mobile and/or Internet: Lifestyle/Music and Best Short Form Audiovisual Entertainment made for Mobile and/or Internet: Factual

Festival de Cannes executive director of the Marché du Film Jerôme Paillard says, “The Marché du Film and the Short Film Corner are very happy to be partnering with the MIPCOM Mobile TV Awards on the two new film categories that we have developed together. We want to make these new platforms more accessible for the film industry which continues to seek new distribution possibilities and ways to enhance filmmakers’ creativity.”

The call for entries for the Mipcom Mobile TV Awards will open next month. Last year’s competition brought in a record number of 290 entries from 34 countries.