Yota takes Golden Lion

YotaPhone, the world’s first dual screen smartphone with an LCD screen on one side and an EPD on the other, has been awarded the Golden Lion award in the Innovation category at this year’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

The jury, which was headed by the renowned advertising professional David Droga (of the Droga5 advertising network), said YotaPhone is an innovative product offering a full range of unique possibilities. It is a device that makes communicating with a smartphone more natural, emotional and enjoyable. It is also a platform that lets companies interact with their customers and advertise and promote their products and services in a completely new way.

‚”It is truly an honor to receive this recognition from the professional community of creative and innovation experts,‚” said Vlad Martynov, CEO of Russia-based Yota Devices, the company behind YotaPhone. ‚”This award underscores that YotaPhone is not just another smartphone, but a whole new way users can use their devices: a way to make this interaction more human. Putting the user first is our main principle.‚”

A total of 270 companies competed for the award, of which just 25 made it into the short list. YotaPhone was up against innovations from Google, Coca-Cola, Nike, Adidas and MasterCard, among others. The jury, headed by David Droga, also comprised professionals from BBDO, Facebook, Google Creative Lab, Intel, Microsoft, 37 Degrees, McCann Worldwide, Microsoft and Porto Digital.

Unveiled in December 2012, YotaPhone was immediately named the Best of CES at the international show in Las Vegas by the influential professional publications CNet and PC Mag, as well as being recognized with a number of awards at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February this year.

YotaPhone is the first Android phone with two screens ‚Äî a high-resolution liquid crystal display (LCD) on one side and an electronic paper display (EPD) on the other. YotaPhone allows users to stream information such as messages, notifications and social network updates to the electronic paper display. To access this information, users don’t even need to touch the phone. The EPD also means that any information shown there can be saved and will continue to be displayed even if the phone’s battery completely runs out. This could be useful for boarding passes, maps and a host of other situations. YotaPhone will be available for sale in Q4 2013 first in Russia and then in international markets.

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