EE renews title sponsorship of the British Academy Film Awards
Following a successful twenty year relationship, EE and the British Academy Film Awards have signed a deal that will see the brand partnership continue through 2018 and 2019. The annual awards ceremony will continue to be known as the EE British Academy Film Awards and the coveted EE Rising Star Award, now in its twelfth year, will remain an integral part of EE’s activation of the partnership.
The awards ceremony was originally sponsored by Orange for sixteen years until new parent brand EE launched in 2012. EE became the title sponsor in 2013 continuing one of the longest standing brand partnerships in the entertainment industry. This year’s ceremony, which took place 12 February 2017, was the fifth year that EE was the headline partner and the first time since becoming part of BT Group.
Since EE took over the title sponsorship, the red carpet at the British Academy Film Awards has been the test-bed for countless innovations from the UK’s largest mobile communications company. From an innovative, live 360 degree red carpet show and exclusive influencer content to allowing film fans to interview the stars live from their living room by beaming them onto 4G-enabled EE Fanbots, EE uses the event to showcase its award-winning 4G network and bring fans and customers closer to the action.
This year, the 70th annual Film Awards, EE helped thousands of film fans get closer to the stars by giving them the chance to have a ‘virtual selfie’ taken on the red carpet. This was made possible thanks to innovative custom-built camera and face-detection technology featured in the EE Roboselfie: a high-tech, selfie-taking robot. EE also filmed red carpet highlights in 360 degrees offering the British public the chance to experience the EE BAFTAs in virtual reality the following day. In addition, EE created a brand new Snapchat filter enabling those watching the night’s proceedings the chance to share videos of themselves holding their very own EE Rising Star Award.
Marc Allera, CEO at EE, said: “Each year we challenge ourselves to continue innovating and pushing the boundaries of what is one of the longest running brand partnerships in our industry, as we aim to bring the magic of the movies a little closer for film fans and our customers. The partnership is extremely important to us as a brand with the reach, talent access and content opportunities it offers us. The special relationship we have built with the team at BAFTA is truly collaborative and a mutual understanding and support of each other’s objectives allows us to keep delivering successful campaigns year in, year out with a consistently strong return.”
BAFTA Chief Executive Amanda Berry said: “We are enormously proud of our partnership with EE. We share a passion for film and together we have grown and developed the Film Awards into an exciting and vibrant event. We have also had the opportunity to try out incredible technology together. Filming the red carpet in 360-degree virtual reality would have been unimaginable 20 years ago. It is very exciting to think about the new opportunities we can explore with EE over the next two years.”
For more information on EE’s partnership with BAFTA visit ee.co.uk/bafta.
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Notes to editors:
About EE
EE, part of BT Group, is the largest and most advanced mobile communications company in the UK, delivering mobile and fixed communications services to consumers.
EE runs the UK's biggest and fastest mobile network, having pioneered the UK's first superfast 4G mobile service in October 2012, and was the first European operator to surpass 14 million 4G customers in December 2015. EE has more than 550 shops across the UK. EE's 4G coverage today reaches more than three quarters of the UK geography. EE plans to extend 4G to 95% geographic coverage by 2020.
EE has received extensive independent recognition, including being ranked the UK's best overall network by RootMetrics®; Best Network at the 2014 and 2015 Mobile News Awards; Best Network at the Mobile Choice Consumer Awards 2016; Best Consumer Network at the 2015 & 2016 Mobile Industry Awards; Best Network and Best Customer Support at the What Mobile Awards 2016; as well as Fastest Network at the 2014 and 2016 uSwitch Mobile Awards.
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About BAFTA
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is an independent charity that supports, develops and promotes the art forms of the moving image by identifying and rewarding excellence, inspiring practitioners and benefiting the public. In addition to its Awards ceremonies, BAFTA has a year-round programme of learning events and initiatives – featuring workshops, masterclasses, scholarships, lectures and mentoring schemes – in the UK, USA and Asia; it offers unique access to the world’s most inspiring talent and connects with a global audience of all ages and backgrounds. BAFTA relies on income from membership subscriptions, individual donations, trusts, foundations and corporate partnerships to support its ongoing outreach work. To access the best creative minds in film, television and games production, visit www.bafta.org/guru. For more, visit www.bafta.org