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Online Marketing Institute, ON24 Announce Virtual Event Excellence Award Winners

February 8th, 2010

Program Recognizes Best Practices in Virtual Environments

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – February 8, 2010 – ON24, Inc., the global leader in webcasting and virtual event solutions, and the Online Marketing Institute have announced the winners of the first-ever ON24 Virtual Event Excellence Awards.

“Our clients have recognized that virtual communication is a key to success in today’s changing global economy. They are setting new standards for results and impact with their cutting-edge virtual events,” said ON24 CMO Denise Persson. “These awards were created to recognize those organizations that push the boundaries of virtual communication and define best practices for the industry.”

Five Virtual Event Excellence Awards were given for 2009, honoring the best in virtual event innovation, international reach, attendee engagement, training and partner/customer communication. A video showcasing the award-winning events can be viewed here: https://bit.ly/cEYS8N.

The 2009 winners are:

Attendee Engagement
Lithium Technologies-Social CRM Virtual Summit
Based on post-event research, the summit achieved all objectives for engagement, content quality, ease of use and navigation and interaction. “This virtual environment delivered a solid, immersive experience,” reported one of the summit’s participants. The summit also received high marks for successfully using social technology in a B2B context.

Virtual Event Innovation
UBM TechWeb-InformationWeek 500 Virtual Event
This was a complement to the annual face-to-face InformationWeek 500. Registration exceeded the audience target by more than 200%, with ROI in excess of 70%. Its innovative interface design actually mimicked the Southern California live conference resort venue, bringing the conference to life for anyone who could not attend in person.

International Virtual Event
IBM-Worldwide Dynamic Infrastructure Virtual Forum
The forum allowed customers across the globe to engage with IBM experts. Thousands of participants-from more than 50 countries-attended the 24-hour multi-lingual live event. IBM was able to attract this broad geographical audience by customizing the entire event experience based on language preference. All results exceeded benchmarks.

Partner/Customer Event
Oracle-Oracle Partner eXpo Online
The online event allowed Oracle to more easily update its technology partners on product and partner strategies, which is critical in the rapidly evolving technology space. Making content available on demand further increased reach and participation. Costs were reduced some 75%, and post-event partner feedback was extremely positive.

Virtual Training
Sodexo-Campus & School Services Summer Training
More than 4,500 Sodexo managers were invited to attend the company’s first virtual management training program, and 98% participated. Sodexo was able to provide 20 hours of training for each manager at a fraction of the cost of traditional face-to-face training; in fact, the company estimates savings at about $1 million.

Eligible events were the 300 virtual events based on the ON24 Virtual Show platform produced last year. Nominations were submitted by clients; their partners and customers; and industry market analysts. Judging was conducted by senior Online Marketing Institute executives.The mission of the Online Marketing Institute is to provide unparalleled ways to develop online marketing knowledge and expertise. “The virtual event is the communication solution of our time, designed for where the world is today and where it is going tomorrow,” said Online Marketing Institute CEO Aaron Kahlow. “We at OMI were very impressed with the creativity and execution of the award nominees. Every single nominated event, in fact, was worthy of recognition. Ours was a daunting task.” Nominee evaluations were based on ROI, immersiveness, branding impact, achievement of business objectives and overall quality.

“We really appreciate the interest that has been shown in the awards program, and we are especially grateful to all who sent in a nomination,” Persson said. “We expect 2010 to be another ground-breaking year for virtual events, and we look forward to working with and, ultimately, honoring those companies which will set new standards for innovation, creativity and results.”

About Online Marketing Institute

The Online Marketing Institute (OMI) is an education-focused, career development organization offering marketers accreditation in the various fields of online marketing. OMI’s curriculum of case studies, best practices, peer validation and trends analysis is delivered to students via workshops, webinars, seminars and online learning channels. OMI’s education program has been built in conjunction with leading universities, research firms, and associations to give marketers market-tested practical knowledge that can immediately benefit their careers. OMI’s courses are available to the general public.

About ON24, Inc.

The recognized global virtual events market share leader , ON24 is the world’s leading provider of webcasting and virtual environments for corporate communications and demand generation. ON24 offers fully integrated, enterprise-wide solutions for a wide range of applications, including training, conferences, company meetings, partner expos and virtual trade shows. More than 750 organizations in publishing, technology, life sciences, government and financial services, including IBM, Cisco, United Business Media, Credit Suisse, GE Healthcare, Oracle and the National Science Foundation, rely on ON24. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in New York, London and Singapore. For more information, visit https://www.ON24.com.