The Webby Awards, the leading international awards identifying and
honoring excellence on the Internet, have been around since the early
days of the digital revolution. Established in 1996, the Webbys are
presented by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a
body of over five hundred leading web experts, business figures,
luminaries, visionaries and creative celebrities - among them Internet
inventor Vint Cerf, political columnist Arianna Huffington, Real
Networks CEO Rob Glaser, "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening,
musicians Beck and David Bowie, and R/GA Founder and Chairman Robert
Greenberg, to name just a few. Members also include writers and editors
of Wired, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Fast Company,
Vibe, Details, Elle, and Wallpaper*.

In recognition of the now ubiquitous use of the Internet as a tool for
business, research and personal affairs, the Annual Webby Awards have
expanded their mission. In addition to the dozens of categories
covering the areas of Web site design and functionality, they also
honor the year's accomplishments in the fields of Interactive
Advertising, Online Film & Video and Mobile Technology. The Webbys
hand out two honors in each category: the Webby Award and the People's
Voice Award. Members of The International Academy of Digital Arts and
Sciences select the nominees for both of these awards, and eventually
choose the winners of the Webby Awards. Second, the People's Voice
Awards, as the moniker indicates, are elected through a voting system
open to the entire online community. Each year, this system amasses
hundreds of thousands of votes from all over the world.

In 2007, the 11th Annual Webby Awards received over 8,000 entries from
over 60 countries and all 50 states and generated over 750 million
media impressions worldwide. At the 2007 Webby Connect Conference, held
in Laguna Beach, California in the fall of that year, Moleskine
notebooks were handed out as gifts to attendees.

For the 12th Annual Webby Awards in 2008, large Moleskine notebooks,
debossed with the Webby Awards Logo and donning a custom paper band,
were presented as gifts to all Webby winners during the awards
ceremony, held in June in New York City.