Publishers in India, Australasia and Singapore have shown they are among the best in the world, prominent among 117 finalists in the INMA Global Media Awards competition announced today.

The finalists include News Corp Australia's metro mastheads, Fairfax Media and APN titles in Australia; Fairfax and NZME. in New Zealand; and Singapore's Straits Times.

Indian publishers also rate prominently in the list, among them the Times of India, Dainik Jagran, the Hindustan Times and Dainik Bhaskar.

Australia's 13 nominations places it ahead of Canada with 12, India and Brazil with nine finalists each, UK and Norway with eight, and New Zealand with seven finalists. The US received 19 finalist nominations. Of the 13 Australian nominations, News Corp Australia received 10 nominations, APN News & Media received two and Fairfax Media received one. Fairfax Media also received five nominations for its New Zealand publications, with APN News & Media's NZME receiving two nominations.

The 40 first-place winners, regional winners, and the international 'best in show' will be revealed at the Global Media Awards Dinner at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London on May 24, the final day of the 86th Annual INMA World Congress.

Winners in the 20 categories will be awarded during the INMA World Congress in London (May 22-24).

The finalists include News Corp Australia's metro mastheads, Fairfax Media titles in Australia, Singapore's Straits Times, and the Times of India and Dainik Bhaskar in India

The competition received 699 entries from 264 media companies in 40 countries. Six activities key to commercial and brand success are recognised: energising brands; creating new products; growing, engaging, and monetising audiences; growing advertising revenue; developing customer insights; and instilling innovation.

It was judged in February by an international panel of 41 executives from 19 countries representing stakeholders in the media industry.

INMA executive director and chief executive Earl Wilkinson says the best place for media companies to look for ideas and inspiration is internationally: "And what we see in the finalists for this year's Global Media Awards are aspirational brand stories connecting with audiences, delivering value for advertisers, and making a commitment to innovation."

Finalists are (Group 1- regional/local brands; Group 2-global/national brands):

Category 1: Best Brand Awareness Campaign

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Advertiser, The Courier-Mail, The Daily Telegraph, and Herald Sun, Australia, "News Corp Australia Project Icon"

-Gazeta do Povo, Curitiba, Brazil, "A Brand-New Newspaper"

-The Oklahoman, United States, "The Oklahoman Brand Campaign"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Aftonbladet/Svenska Dagbladet/Schibsted, Stockholm, Sweden, "Yellow Boats"

-VG, Oslo, Norway, "VG's 70th Anniversary"

-The Wall Street Journal, New York, United States, "WSJ Make Time"

Category 2: Best Public Relations or Community Service Campaign

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-London Evening Standard, United Kingdom, "The Estate We're In"

-Mumbai Mirror, India, "Mumbai Heroes"

-The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, United States, "Emotion Revolution"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Gazeta Wyborcza, Warsaw, Poland, "City Labs - How Gazeta Wyborcza Changed Polish Cities"

-The Independent, London, United Kingdom, "#Refugeeswelcome - Independent Online and Print"

-El Tiempo, Bogotá, Colombia, "No Time to Keep Quiet"

Category 3: Best Use of an Event to Build a News Brand

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Arizona Republic, Phoenix, United States, "The Arizona Storytellers Project"

-Correio, Salvador, Brazil, "Afro Fashion Day Salvador"

-Herald Sun, South Bank, Australia, "Herald Sun 25th Anniversary"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-The Globe and Mail, Toronto, Canada, "The Globe and Mail Federal Leaders' Debate on the Economy"

-The Times & The Sunday Times, London, United Kingdom, "Build the News"

-Times of India, New Delhi, India, "TOI Green Drive"

Category 4: Best New Print Product

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Advertiser, Adelaide, Australia, "The Advertiser Real Estate Magazine"

-Gazeta do Povo, Curitiba, Brazil, "A Brand-New Newspaper"

-Publimetro, Mexico, "IGN Mexico"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-The Economist, London, United Kingdom, "The World If from The Economist"

-The Wall Street Journal, New York, United States, "WSJ One Journal"

-Die Welt, Berlin, Germany, "Blau"

Category 5: Best Use of Mobile

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Isolezwe, Durban, South Africa, "Isolezwe Asidlale Mobile Campaign"

-Newsday, Melville, United States, "Newsday Mobile App"

-Toronto Star, Canada, "Toronto Star Touch"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-AsiaOne, Singapore, "AsiaOne Mobile Apps for iOS and Android"

-Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany: "FAZ DerTAG"

-Helsingin Sanomat, Helsinki, Finland, "Nyt Chat App - Media Is Talking to You"

Category 6: Best Use of Video

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Advertiser, The Courier-Mail, The Daily Telegraph, and Herald Sun, Australia, "News Corp Australia Project Icon"

-Newsday, Melville, United States, "Newsday Multimedia"

-Waikato Times/Stuff.co.nz, Wellington, New Zealand, "All In"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Aftonbladet, Stockholm, Sweden, "Aftonbladet Perspektiv"

-El Tiempo, Bogotá, Colombia, "Time to Fly"

-VG, Oslo, Norway, "VG's 70th Anniversary"

Category 7: Best Launch of a Brand or Product to Create An Audience Segment

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Gazeta do Povo, Curitiba, Brazil, "Enkontra.com"

-North-West Evening Mail, Barrow-in-Furness, United Kingdom, "Choose South Cumbria"

-Toronto Star, Canada, "Toronto Star Touch Launch"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-il Giornale.it, Milan, Italy, "Crowdfunding for War Reporting"

-Metro International, Santiago, Chile, "IGN"

-The New Zealand Herald, Auckland, New Zealand, "WatchMe"

Category 8: Best Idea to Encourage Print Readership or Engagement

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Cape Argus, Cape Town, South Africa, "Student Co-Edited Edition"

-Gazeta do Povo, Curitiba, Brazil, "The Club Of People Who Don´t Know Boredom"

-Mumbai Mirror, India, "Mumbai Mirror Girls Soccer League"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Aftenposten, Oslo, Norway, "Not Just Another Diva!"

-Dainik Jagran, New Delhi, India, "Creating a Newspaper For the Future, By the Future"

-Gazeta Wyborcza, Warsaw, Poland, "Travelling Museum of Polish History"

Category 9: Best Idea to Grow Digital Readership or Engagement

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Correio, Salvador, Brazil, "The Silence of the Innocents"

-Gannett Network of Local Publications, McLean, United States, "Insider Program"

-Winnipeg Free Press, Canada, "Revamped E-Mail Marketing"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-El Espectador - Comunican, Bogotá, Colombia, "Vote In Good Conscience"

-Financial Times, New York, United States, "Financial Times Engagement Metric"

-Politiken, Copenhagen, Denmark, "How to Get Users to Register"

Category 10: Best Use of Social Media

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Austin American-Statesman, United States, "Creating Viral Interest in 'Big J' Journalism"

-NewsLocal, Surry Hills, Australia, "#SnapSydney"

-Vanguardia, Saltillo, México, "#Soy Noticia (I Am News)"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Independent Media South Africa, Durban, South Africa, "Mojo (Mobile Journalism)"

-Times of India, New Delhi, India, "The Great Indian"

-VG, Oslo, Norway, "Bieber Coverage on Snapchat"

Category 11: Best New Paid Content or Subscription Initiative

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Advertiser, The Courier-Mail, The Daily Telegraph, and Herald Sun, Australia, "News Corp Australia Tablet Value Bundle"

-Winnipeg Free Press, Canada, "The New Winnipegfreepress.com"

-Zero Hora, Porto Alegre, Brazil, "Zero Hora Tablet + Digital Newspaper"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Jyllands-Posten, Copenhagen, Denmark, "Finans"

-My Weekly & My Little Weekly, Paris, France, "French Newspaper Weekly Paid English Supplement"

-Svenska Dagbladet, Stockholm, Sweden, "The Pyramid"

Category 12: Best Idea to Grow Advertising Sales or Retain Advertising Clients

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Fairfax Media, Auckland, New Zealand, "Melbourne Cup Incentive Programme"

-La Voz del Interior, Pajas Blancas, Argentina, "Branded Space: Growth and Retention"

-Zero Hora, Porto Alegre, Brazil, "Destemperados"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Helsingin Sanomat, Helsinki, Finland, "Helsingin Sanomat Multi-Channel Front-Page Ad"

-Hindustan Times, New Delhi, India, "Friday Jam Season 2"

-The New Zealand Herald, Auckland, New Zealand, "NZME Advertising Challenge"

Category 13: Best Marketing Solution for an Advertising Client

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Daily Mercury, Brisbane, Australia, "Brand Extra - Flight Centre Travel Extra"

-Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, United States, "Frontier Communications"

-The Des Moines Register, United States, "YMCA of Greater Des Moines - Summer Campaign"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-The Australian, Surry Hills, Australia, "GE"

-The Irish Times, Dublin, Ireland, "The AIB Start-Up Academy"

-News.com.au, Brisbane, Australia, "Storyful Endeavours Prove Tasty"

Category 14: Best Execution of Print Advertising

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Courrier Picard, Paris, France, "Pedometer Inprint"

-The Daily Telegraph, Surry Hills, Australia, "It's a Wrap"

-The Oklahoman, United States, "The Oklahoman Sports Campaign"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Daily Mirror, London, United Kingdom, "Sky 1 Apocalyptic Takeover of The Mirror"

-Dainik Bhaskar, Bhopal, India, "One Tree One Life"

-The Straits Times, Singapore, "The Interactive Newspapers"

Category 15: Best Execution of Native Advertising

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Daily Mercury, Brisbane, Australia, "Brand Extra - Flight Centre Travel Extra"

-Montreal Gazette, Canada, "Montreal Gazette/Concordia University: Rethinking Montreal"

-Vancouver Sun, Calgary Herald, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, National Post, Canada, "Postmedia/Aeroplan: Behind the Moment"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Fairfax Media, Pyrmont, Australia, "South Australia Tourism Commission"

-The Irish Times, Dublin, Ireland, "Kenco Coffee V Gangs"

-Quartz, New York, United States, "Davos and Bank of America"

Category 16: Best Use of Data Analytics

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Courier-Journal, Louisville, United States, "Kentucky Kingdom for CRM Analysis"

-Fairfax Media, Sydney, Australia, "Imagine the Experience, Travel Now"

-Winnipeg Free Press, Canada, "Winnipegfreepress.com Data Collection and Data Use"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Aftenposten, Oslo, Norway, "Churn Prediction Model"

-The Independent/i/London Evening Standard, United Kingdom, "How Data Analytics Transformed ESI Media's Digital Sales Strategy"

-VG, Oslo, Norway, "Conversion Helper: the Tool to Boost Subscriptions"

Category 17: Best Use of Consumer Research

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun, Surry Hills, Australia, "There´s No Place Like Home"

-Fairfax Media, Auckland, New Zealand, "Communities Refresh"

-Gazeta do Povo, Curitiba, Brazil, "Turn Comments Into Insights"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-The Economist, New York, United States, "The Economist Group Millennials Research"

-U.K. Newspapers - Newsworks, London, United Kingdom, "How People Buy"

-The Wall Street Journal, New York, United States, "WSJ Customer Knowledge Program"

Category 18: Best New Corporate Innovation Initiative

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-The Dallas Morning News, United States, "GuideLive.com"

-Toronto Star, Canada, "Toronto Star Touch Launch"

Judges awarded only two finalists in this group

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Dainik Bhaskar, Bhopal, India, "No Negative Monday"

-Fairfax Media, Auckland, New Zealand, "News Rewired - Writing Our Next Chapter"

-Storyful, Dublin, Ireland, "Innovating Everywhere"

Category 19: Best New Concept to Incubate Products or Ideas

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Calgary Herald and Edmonton Journal, Canada, "Capital Ideas"

Judges awarded only one finalist in this group

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Dainik Bhaskar, Bhopal, India, "Annadaan"

-The Straits Times, Singapore, "The Straits Times Innovation Lab"

-El Tiempo, Bogotá, Colombia, "The Multimedia Journalism School of El Tiempo"

Category 20: Best Idea or Innovation to Create New Profit Centers

Group 1: Regional/Local Brands

-Edmonton Journal, Canada, "Edmonton Journal & Everywear"

-Honolulu Star-Advertiser, United States, "Oahu Media Group (OMG)"

-Toronto Star, Canada, "Your Money Matters! Financial Literacy Program for Teens"

Group 2: Global/National Brands

-Aftenposten, Oslo, Norway, "Loyalty Program: From an Anti-Churn Tool to a Profit Generator"

-Aftenposten, Oslo, Norway, "How to Build the Brand Through Brand Extensions and Achieve Great Profits"

-Russmedia Digital, Schwarzach, Austria, "Russmedia Solutions"

GXpress Magazine is a media partner of the 86th Annual INMA World Congress

On our homepage: The Victoria & Albert Museum, where the awards dinner will be held