Television Academy Chairman and CEO Bruce Rosenblum announced today that the Academy is initiating a two-year, two-step transition to online voting beginning with the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards season.
UPDATE: For more information about the online voting process, or to opt out of online voting, visit the Online Voting Information page.
"This is the first in a series of new initiatives for the Academy that will be rolling out over the coming months," said Rosenblum. "We refine the Emmy Awards process every year, and this migration to an all-digital, online voting procedure will ensure that voting is easy, private and secure. This is all part of our ongoing mission to activate greater member engagement, to inspire and help our members develop their professional potential, and to bring new and long-established voices within the television community together to continue to chart a bold path for our industry."
Following several months of investigation, the Television Academy has contracted with San Diego-based Everyone Counts, which has handled a number of national voting contests, to deploy the two-year rollout of online voting for the Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2014, online voting will be employed only for the first round of Emmy voting to determine the nominees across all categories. In 2015, online voting will be extended to all rounds of Television Academy's Emmy voting process, determining nominees and winners in all categories.
In a recent survey, seventy percent of the Academy's voting members indicated they would prefer to vote digitally, online. However, during the 2014 and 2015 Emmy seasons, the Academy will also provide a paper ballot for members who might wish to opt out of the online voting procedure. Online voting will make it easier for the more than 16,300 eligible voting members to take part in the awards process, including those who live overseas or have experienced problems with domestic mail service.
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