The National Organization for Women Foundation is hosting a poster contest to celebrate the Love Your Body Campaign. The grand prize winning poster will be used as part of a national campaign to challenge the media’s use of violent, drug-addicted, starved, surgically-enhanced images of women and to fight against industries that profit from women’s dissatisfaction with their bodies. Entries are accepted from all countries.

Prizes vary for different categories. One category prize winner will be selected as the grand prize winner to be reproduced and distributed nationwide as the official 2009 Love Your Body Campaign poster and featured on the NOW Foundation web site. The grand prize winner will receive an additional cash prize of $600. Deadline is 1 December 2008. Visit the site to learn more.

A design competition between the euro mints has resulted in the pre-selection by the Mint Directors of 5 designs.

To celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the launch of Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and the creation of the euro, all euro-area countries will issue a commemorative 2-euro coin with a common design. It will be available at the beginning of 2009.
A design competition between the mints of the euro area has resulted in the pre-selection by the Mint Directors of 5 designs, presented here. The final winning design will be selected exclusively by your votes via this web page.

The selection is open to all EU citizens and residents. Each person may only vote once. A prize of a set of high-value euro collector coins will go to a participant chosen at random from those who voted for the winning design. Voting will be closed on 22 February 2008.

Please visit the site for more details.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

One Million People to Audition for ‘America’s Next Video Star’

Uvoto.com Launches World’s Largest Talent Contest and Interactive TV Show

SAN DIEGO, Jan. 16, 2008 — What if a few tips from your friends could launch your singing career? What if your mom really is your biggest fan? Does a local indie band from Kansas really have a fair shot at fame in Hollywood? Until now the answer was no, but that is all about to change with the beta launch of www.uvoto.com and the world’s largest talent contest called “America’s Next Video Star.”

The free contest gives millions of people the chance to become the next TV star by sharing their audition videos online in categories such as singing, dancing, acting, modeling, fitness, cooking, and martial arts. The videos are promoted on digital media networks, social network community sites, blogs, mobile phone carriers, and television, thus making it the largest interactive TV contest platform in the
USA.

Contestants can catapult to the top of the rankings chart and earn money by accepting tips from fans who text message their supporting votes. Uvoto.com is unique because it provides a marketplace to directly pay money collected from advertising and votes specifically to the stars who receive tips. This business model can disrupt the Hollywood dependence on singular mass audiences and successfully aggregates many micro-audiences. Uvoto does not spend money on commercials or have celebrity judges who influence mass opinion. Instead Uvoto lets the Mob of fans decide the winners and tip their favorite performers. The contest allows unlimited numbers of contestants to access media distribution channels and promotion tools that spread through viral marketing.

America’s Next Video Star was created by a San Diego start-up called N1NE Multimedia. Tom Marchesello is the young CEO who turned down VC money, and quietly built the company over the last 2 years. He says it is easy to make mistakes if you listen to too many of the wrong people: “I had an idea for making a powerful media experience that bridged TV, mobile, and web technology. But the challenge was to make it be fun and easy to use. I think Uvoto is the first generation of platform that really achieves the goal of delivering fairness and opportunity to millions of talented people. I’m excited to see who is going to be America’s Next Star.” For additional information on Uvoto and America’s Next Video Star, contact Tom Marchesello or visit www.uvoto.com.

About N1NE Multimedia:

N1NE Multimedia is a digital media and entertainment company that produces interactive television shows, SMS voting systems, and Web 2.0 applications. The CEO is Tom Marchesello, an Internet and technology entrepreneur, who has previously built innovative media companies such as e-commerce giant SonyStyle.com to digital advertising network FuelCast Media.

Contact:

Tom Marchesello
N1NE.com
858-240-2248
www.uvoto.com

WebRing, Inc., a pioneer in Internet social networking, is pleased to announce the inaugural Iron WebMaster Competition. The Iron Webmaster competition is a Web site design contest modeled after the hit TV show “Iron Chef.” Like the TV show, contestants are given a theme that they must incorporate into their design. The competition consists of a 5-part website design challenge that takes place over the next 12 weeks. Prizes will be awarded throughout the competition at the end of each round, and a grand prize winner, the Iron WebMaster, will be crowned at the conclusion of all rounds. Winners will be chosen by a combination of popular votes received from site visitors and a select panel of judges.

“We’re very excited to be a part of this event,” says Tim Killeen, President of WebRing, Inc. “This should be fun for both competitors and visitors alike. We see this as a great opportunity for aspiring web designers to showcase their creativity and gain exposure while having a little fun at the same time.”

The Iron WebMaster competition ends at 11:59 p.m. (EST) on December 31, 2008, but SIGN UP NOW for the first round of the competition or you may lose out entirely. No purchase is necessary to win. Amateurs, professionals and aspiring Web designers alike are invited to compete for the title of Iron WebMaster. Visit the site to learn more.