Festival of Media

What Festival of Media does

Festival of Media, legally operated as C Squared Networks Ltd (incorporated in England and Wales, company number 08391925), is a London-based privately held awards business founded in 2007 by Jeremy King. The company runs six distinct media-campaign awards programs — FOM Global Awards, FOM Latin America Awards (launched 2010), FOM Asia-Pacific Awards (2011), FOM North America Awards (2017), M&M Global Awards (inherited, ~34 years old), and FOM Cause Campaign Awards — collectively benchmarked as the premier recognition platform specifically for media campaigns (rather than creative advertising). Entries are submitted by media agencies, advertisers/brands, media owners, adtech vendors, and media consultants from 30+ countries, with 70+ trophies awarded annually across flagship programs and 25-32 categories per program.

The technology stack is modest but functional: each program runs on a dedicated online entry portal (white-labeled via the Awards Compass awards-management platform), and in 2024-2025 Festival of Media layered two AI text tools on top — the AI Entry Navigator, which uses NLP and a recommendation engine trained on 20 years of historical winner data to recommend the top five award categories for a given campaign submission, and the AI Entry Writer, which drafts written submissions in the Festival of Media template. No external API, SDK, or app surface is documented. The underlying moat is principally brand/IP rather than technology.

The revenue model is event-driven and multi-stream: (i) per-entry transaction fees ranging from £349-£625 (or USD-equivalent) with tiered early-bird/standard/extended deadlines across the six programs; (ii) sponsorship/partnership packages (Jury Dinner £12-15k, Session Partner £5k, Category Partner, Judging Lunch/Drinks Partner £5k each, Ceremony Venue Partner); and (iii) ancillary trophy re-purchase (Grand Prix/Gold £599, Silver £549, Bronze £499 plus shipping, with optional engraving). Headcount is 11-50, revenue is not publicly disclosed, and the company has no disclosed institutional investors, parent, or subsidiaries — operating as an independent, founder-led niche media business.

Name

Festival of Media

Legal name

C Squared Networks Ltd

Website

https://www.festivalofmedia.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Festival of Media is a London-based independent awards business operating six regional and global media-campaign awards programs (FOM Global, APAC, LatAm, North America, M&M Global, Cause Campaign), serving media agencies, brands, media owners, and adtech firms via per-entry fees, sponsorships, and AI-assisted entry tools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Media Industry Awards

NAICS

Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries (711)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Awards Ceremonies & Recognition Events (MPAGAHAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Professional & Association Conferences (MPAGAGAB)

Keywords

• Media campaign awards
• Advertising industry awards
• Marketing recognition programs
• Media industry benchmarks
• Creative agency awards

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Awards Entry Fees: Entry fees charged to agencies, brands, media owners, and adtech companies for submitting campaigns to awards programs. Tiered pricing with early-bird, standard, and extended deadline rates. Fees range from approximately £349-£625 or $475-£599 depending on program and timing.
2. Partnership Opportunities: Partnership packages including Jury Dinner (£12,000-£15,000), Session Partner (£5,000), Category Partner (using partner's marketing platforms), Judging Lunch Partner (£5,000 plus food costs), Judging Drinks Partner (£5,000), and Ceremony Venue Partner (venue space and hospitality).
3. Duplicate Trophy Sales: Sale of duplicate trophies to winners. Pricing: Grand Prix £599, Gold £599, Silver £549, Bronze £499 (all plus shipping). Engraving available for additional customization.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Festival of Media operates a portfolio of regional and global awards programs that recognize excellence in media campaigns across the advertising industry. Its core offerings include FOM Global, FOM Latin America, FOM Asia-Pacific, FOM North America, M&M Global, and FOM Cause Campaign awards, accepting paid entries from agencies, brands, and media owners worldwide. The business also sells duplicate trophies through a dedicated Trophy Shop and offers partnership/sponsorship opportunities tied to each awards ceremony.

Product overview

Festival of Media is a portfolio of six media campaign awards programs plus supporting AI-powered tools and services. The core offering consists of regional and global awards programs: FOM Global Awards (flagship global program), FOM Latin America Awards, FOM Asia-Pacific Awards, FOM North America Awards, M&M Global Awards (34-year-old sector-focused program), and FOM Cause Campaign Awards. Supporting the awards are AI Entry Navigator and AI Entry Writer tools that help entrants identify optimal categories and draft submissions. The Trophy Shop provides duplicate trophy ordering. Submissions are received from advertisers, media agencies, media owners, adtech companies, and media consultants. Winners earn RECMA and WARC points that identify leading media agencies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FOM Global Awards: Global awards programme celebrating the best media campaigns worldwide.
• FOM Asia-Pacific Awards
• FOM Latin America Awards
• FOM North America Awards
• M&M Global Awards
• FOM Cause Campaign Awards

Products and services

• FOM Global Awards Flagship global awards program celebrating the world's best media campaigns across categories such as effectiveness, content, technology, and creativity. Open to agencies, advertisers/brands, media owners, and adtech companies submitting media-led campaigns.
• FOM Latin America Awards Regional awards program recognizing standout media campaigns created by agencies, brands, and media owners operating across Latin American markets.
• FOM Asia-Pacific Awards Regional awards program honoring media campaigns developed and executed across the Asia-Pacific region, open to agencies, brands, and media owners.
• FOM North America Awards Regional awards program celebrating media campaigns executed in the United States and broader North American market, accepting entries from agencies, brands, and media owners.
• M&M Global Awards Global awards program focused on international media campaigns and strategic media thinking, open to agencies, advertisers, media owners, and adtech firms.
• FOM Cause Campaign Awards Awards program recognizing media campaigns that deliver measurable social impact, open to non-profits, agencies, brands, and media owners running cause-driven campaigns.
• Trophy Shop Online service allowing past winners, agencies, and brands to order duplicate trophies from Festival of Media and M&M Global awards for office display or client presentation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Winners earn RECMA and WARC points which identify the leading media agencies
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers30 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• IAA UK ChaptercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with IAA UK Chapter for the Best International Media Campaign Created in the UK category. IAA members receive a complimentary entry code for this category upon contacting the association.
• Appetite CreativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Appetite Creative for the Best Use of Packaging &/ or Connected Packaging as a Media Channel category. Jointly curated category recognizing innovative packaging in media campaigns.
• The Media Leader AwardsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with The Media Leader Awards for leadership categories within M&M Global Awards. Recognition of outstanding senior and emerging leaders in media.

Scale indicators10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Cannes Lions: Premier global creative and media awards festival run by Ascential. Direct competitor for media-agency marketing budgets and trophy mindshare, though Cannes Lions is broader (creative + media) and operates at much larger scale.
• D&AD: Long-established UK-based creative awards organization with a pencil-grading system. Competes for agency recognition budget and overlaps with Festival of Media's media-campaign categories at the higher prestige tier.
• The One Show: Major US-anchored creative awards run by The One Club for Creativity. Competes for agency submission budget and overlaps with media-campaign categories, often considered alongside Cannes Lions and D&AD as a top-tier creative award.
• Clio Awards: Major global creative awards with multiple programs including Clio Entertainment, Clio Health, and Clio Music. Competitor for creative and media-marketing agency budgets at the upper tier.
• Webby Awards: International awards organization honoring excellence on the internet, run by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. Overlaps with digital media campaign recognition and a similar entry-fee-based model.

Direct peers

• Effie Awards: Global awards program honoring marketing effectiveness, with regional programs and entry-based judging. Closest direct competitor in the media-and-marketing effectiveness category, with similar multi-region portfolio structure.
• The Drum Awards: Multi-category marketing and media awards run by The Drum. Direct competitor in the UK and European media-awards space with overlapping categories for media campaigns and agencies.
• Digiday Awards: Digital media and advertising industry awards program. Comparable in targeting media-agency and brand-marketing buyers, with a stronger digital-publishing and adtech focus.
• Advertising Week: Global events and awards platform for the advertising and media industry, with multiple regional editions. Comparable in combining conferences, awards, and industry recognition into a single integrated platform.
• WARC Awards: Awards program for marketing effectiveness operated by WARC. Direct competitor in recognizing media and campaign effectiveness, and notable because WARC points also feature in Festival of Media's winner recognition.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FestivalOfMedia
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TheFestivalofMedia
• Facebookfacebook.com/thefestivalofmedia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/festival-of-media
• Instagraminstagram.com/festivalofmedia/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Festival of Media