Giant Step wins a Gold EMPixx Award for the flying Gogo’s interactive animation

Giant Step’s ComicReply platform is approved for the Canada Media Fund – Experimental Stream

Memorial Matters and Giant Step launch FuneralConnect.ca – a new platform for Online Memorials available for custom ‘white-label’ implementations. The platform is perfect for funeral homes, cemeteries, and tribute publishers. Read more >>

Giant Step selected as a finalist in the nextMEDIA Digital Hot List for gogoscrazybones.com in the Hot Online Property category.

Giant Step selected as a 2010 nextMEDIA Digital Hot List finalist for the Gogo’s Crazy Bones web site in the ‘Hot Online Property’ category Since its inception in 2007, nextMEDIA has been the launching pad for the newest products in the digital media industry and the top networking and business development platform for the next-generation marketplace. nextMEDIA has expanded to include all areas of the entertainment industry most affected by the changing digital ecosystem, including television, advertising, mobile, gaming and music. The nextMEDIA Digital Hot List program seeks out and showcases the hottest emerging online properties, the most innovative new apps, games and tech solutions, and the freshest ideas from online content creators, with the goal to connect emerging content producers and technology developers with interactive agencies, broadcasters and publishers hungry for new ways to reach out to wired audiences and consumers. The Hot List is organized into three categories that reflect the ways in which agencies and publishers are partnering with content producers and developers. An expert panel of industry leaders have selected six finalists from an amazing range of submissions from across Canada. Finalists showcase live at nextMEDIA Toronto in front of an audience of advertisers, broadcasters, and online publishers […]

Giant Step Inc. received the Gold Award for “Websites / Online Marketing” in the “Toy / Hobby” category – for the Gogo’s Crazy Bones web site [ www.gogoscrazybones.com ]. The International Davey Award is the largest and most prestigious awards competition exclusively for the “Davids” of creativity. David defeated the giant Goliath with a big idea and a little rock – the sort of thing small firms do each year. The annual International Davey Awards honors the achievements of the “Creative Davids” who derive their strength from big ideas, rather than stratospheric budgets. The Davey Awards may be for smaller organizations, but the judges have big reputations. The Davey is sanctioned and judged by the International Academy of the Visual Arts, an invitation-only body consisting of top-tier professionals from a “Who’s Who” of acclaimed media, advertising, and marketing firms. IAVA members include executives from organizations such as Conde Nast, Michael Kors Inc., Disney, The Ellen Degeneres Show, Microsoft, HBO, Monster.com, MTV, Polo Ralph Lauren, Sotheby’s Institute of Art, Victoria’s Secret, Howcast and many more. Award Link (click on Giant Step) >  

ITBusiness.ca – “Small firms look forward to Adobe CS5” >> “… Giant Step also uses Adobe Flash for adding animation and interactivity to Web pages. It also uses Adobe AIR, a tool for building rich Internet applications that run outside the browser on multiple operating systems. “These help us add interactivity to any design, such rich media content, animated content, video, and comic strip dialog bubbles,” said Katz. He said Giant Step used Adobe tools to create a special site targeted at the online community for children’s plastic toy Gogo Crazy Bones. The collectible character-based Crazy Bones were very popular with young children in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Last year, the manufacturers approached Giant Step to put a social media spin on the franchise. Giant Step developed a site that allowed fans to post their own Crazy Bones themed home videos, cartoon strips, photos and “mutations.” Within a year, the fledgling site developed a community of more than 100,000 fans. The site was also honoured for excellence in design, development and implementation at last year’s Interactive Media Awards event.”

Gil Katz shares Giant Step’s Social Media expertise and experience in a panel discussion at the Digital Strategies Conference, a part of Canadian Music Week at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel in Toronto. Social Media – Opportunities to Increase Revenue and Brand Loyalty by Engaging in Online Communities This panel of industry experts will discuss the future of social media, with a focus on consumer trends, marketing programs and content development. As a brand, marketer or content owner, how can social media improve your current marketing and customer acquisition initiatives? What is the opportunity for brands and marketers to target and reach potential consumers through social networks? How are social networks evolving to incorporate advertising programs and licensed content while addressing privacy and piracy concerns? This panel of experts will get under the hood and provide answers to the questions people are asking about the future of social media. Panelists Giovanni Gallucci, Social Media Ninja/Author/Speaker (USA) Kobi Gulerson, Senior Account Exec., MacLaren MRM (Canada) Gil Katz, Managing Partner, Giant Step (Canada) Jake Maas CFO & Head of Business Dev., LivingSocial (USA) Moderator: Sonny Mayugba, Bus. Dev. Director, Sacramento Press (USA)

Giant Step Inc. was awarded Outstanding Achievement for excellence in the design, development and implementation of the Gogo’s Crazy Bones – Online Community [ www.gogoscrazybones.com ]. The honor, granted by the Interactive Media Awards, recognizes that the project met and surpassed the standards of excellence that comprise the web’s most professional work. The judging consisted of various criteria, including design, usability, innovation in technical features, standards compliance and content. In order to win this award level, the site had to meet strict guidelines in each area – an achievement only a fraction of sites in the IMA competition earn each year. View the award > JUDGING SYSTEM & RESULTS  [ taken from the IMA website ] To win an award the entry had to successfully pass through the comprehensive judging system. The judges utilize a points-based scoring system which allows each entry to receive a maximum of 500 points. By adhering to the specific guidelines and criteria of this system the judges are able to maintain the highest degree of fairness, accuracy and integrity; competently and effectively evaluate entries; and, deliver clear results. The project was scored using five specific criteria, with a score from 0-100 awarded for each criterion. […]