HTC, Nokia and Apple come out on top of the 2014 Global Mobile Awards

Barcelona (CNA).- The GSMA Association announced the winners of the 19^th Global Mobile Awards on Tuesday afternoon. The annual ceremony which recognizes the latest and the most innovative mobile products, apps, services and initiatives from all over the world, was held at the GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. More than 175 international industry experts, independent analysts, journalists and academics were involved in the judging process. The winners were honoured in an afternoon ceremony hosted by a British comedian, BAFTA and Tony Award winner, James Corden who created a fun and exciting atmosphere. As always, the Global Mobile Awards consisted of six main categories such as the Connected Life Awards, Best Mobile Services, Social and Economic Development, Apps of the Year, Best Mobile Handsets and Devices, and Best Mobile Technology. This year, a new Lifetime Achievement Award has been introduced. In the category of Best Mobile Handsets and Devices, the HTC One beat other big brand names such as the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Apple iPhone 5s to the Best Smartphone Award. The Apple iPad Air was announced as Best Mobile Tablet. Nokia was a runaway winner having received awards in two different categories. The Catalan Government was honoured with a special award for the innovative educational initiative mSchools project.

The 19^th edition of the Global Mobile Awards, the most distinguished awards in the mobile phones industry, was held in the Mobile World Capital, Barcelona on Tuesday afternoon. This year, the ceremony was hosted by a famous British comedian, writer and presenter, James Corden, who broke the ice and created a fun and exciting atmosphere entertaining nominees and participants. He continually flirted with his female co-hosts and poked fun at the various winners as they collected their awards. Other important figures such as Jon Fredrik Baksaas, a chairman of GSMA and President and CEO of Telenor Group, Anne Bouverot, Director General and member of the Board of GSMA, and John Hoffman, CEO of GSMA Ltd joined Corden on stage to present the awards. “With more than 680 high calibre entries this year, the competition was stronger than ever and it is a significant achievement to have been honoured today,” said Hoffman. More than 175 industry experts, independent analysts, journalists and academics were involved in the judging process. As always, the Global Mobile Awards consisted of six main categories such as the Connected Life Awards, Best Mobile Services, Social and Economic Development, Apps of the Year, Best Mobile Handsets and Devices, and Best Mobile Technology.

A new Lifetime Achievement Award introduced

On Sunday, before the start of the Mobile World Congress, the GSMA announced Robert G. Conway as the first recipient of the GSMA Lifetime Achievement Award, newly introduced in the Global Mobile Awards this year. One of Conway’s most important achievements at the GSMA was the attaining of the organization’s most notable event, Mobile World Congress.

HTC, Nokia and Apple – runaway winners

In the Best Mobile Handsets and Devices category, the HTC One scooped top award of the Best Smartphone, defeating other important nominees from big brand names such as Samsung Galaxy Note 3, Apple iPhone 5S, LG G2, or the Nokia Lumia 1020. Nokia has received awards in two different categories, including the Best Low-Cost Smartphone award for the Nokia Lumia 520, the Best Entry-level or Featurephone award for the Nokia 105, and the Best Mobile Infrastructure award for Nokia Solutions and Networks with Telefónica O2 UK Limited for iSON Automation for Operations. The Apple iPad Air was announced the Best Mobile Tablet.

Tony Blair’s wife Cherie picks up an award in the category of Social and Economic Development

Corden brightened considerably, however, when in the category of Social and Economic Development, Tony Blair’s wife Cherie picked up the award for Best Mobile Product, Initiative or Service in Emerging Markets which was won by Vodafone Foundation in India, the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) and the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women (CBFW) for RUDI Sandesha Vyavhar (RSV) project.

Catalonia, the centre of educational innovation – mSchools project recognized

The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, picked up a special award for an initiative honouring Catalonia’s educational system. He delivered a speech and tried to demonstrate the importance of education by using a famous quote by Nelson Mandela, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world, and Catalonia has to follow it.” According to Mas, “Catalonia is a small country with little natural resources, so people are the best asset and our goal is to focus on people and education.”

The mSchools programme is an innovative educational initiative backed by the Barcelona City Council, with the cooperation of the Generalitat de Catalunya (Government of Catalonia) and the GSMA. Launched in 2012, this programme intends to promote the use of mobile technologies with educational value at Catalonia’s schools developing the digital competences and improving students’ academic performance.

 

The full list of winners and finalist for the 2014 Global Mobile Awards is available at: http://www.globalmobileawards.com/winners-2014