The 2004 Radio-Mercury Awards Call For Entry.

The 2004 Radio-Mercury Awards call for entry kicks off on January 1st in a celebration of Radio that recognizes creative excellence. The competition will award a total of 13 cash prizes worth over $150,000, including the coveted $100,000 Grand Prize.

This year’s competition marks the debut of online, automated entry registration on the Mercury Web site at http://www.radiomercuryawards.com . The actual commercials can be uploaded as MP3 files, or mailed on a CD, DAT, or cassette.

The Radio-Mercury Awards will celebrate Radio by rewarding the creators of the best Radio commercials of 2003 with eleven $5,000 cash prizes, nine from the General Category and one each from the Spanish-Language and Station-Produced Categories, all of which are eligible to compete for the $100,000 Grand Prize. In addition, the Radio-Mercury Student Award, which is already underway, will grant $2,500 to the winning college or university. The Public Service Announcement Category Award provides for a $2,500 donation to be made in the winner’s name to their charity of choice. Every winner also receives the spectacular Radio-Mercury Awards trophy.

Entry fee for the 2004 Radio-Mercury Awards is $100 per commercial; PSA’s and Student entries are $30 each. Entries must be received by February 27, 2004 and must have aired for the first time during the 2003 calendar year on a commercially licensed US Radio station. The late entry deadline is March 5th, with a late entry fee of $130. The PSA entry fee will remain at $30. Student entry deadline is March 12, 2004.

Bestowed annually to recognize, encourage and reward excellence in Radio creative, the 2004 Radio-Mercury Awards will be held at an exclusive, invitation-only luncheon ceremony on Wednesday, June 9th at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. The luncheon attracts luminaries from the creative community as well as high-ranking Radio industry executives.

To contact the Radio-Mercury Awards, email me*****@*ab.com or call (212) 681-7207. The Radio-Mercury Awards were established in 1992 to encourage and reward the development of effective and creative Radio commercials. Approximately 12,000 commercials have competed for over $2.2 million in prizes. The Radio Creative Fund (RCF), a non-profit corporation funded by the Radio industry, governs the Radio-Mercury Awards.