The official Austrian contribution to the summit promoted awareness of the importance of high-quality digital content on the part of heads of state, government officials, managers of multinational corporations and representatives of NGOs. More than 500 delighted guests attended the World Summit Award Gala on opening night of the UN World Summit on the Information Society.

The Ars Electronica Futurelab came away with a prize in the e-Entertainment category for “Gulliver’s World,” an innovative “multimedia theater.” More than 500 guests were on hand to honor the 40 teams singled out for recognition at the WSA 2005. The winners in a total of eight categories received their awards from heads of state and government representatives from Armenia, Austria, Bahrain, Croatia, the Dominican Republic, Latvia, Mozambique and Senegal as well as UNESCO General Director Koïchiro Matsuura and designated UNIDO General Director Kandeh Yumkella.