[SatNews] At an awards ceremony held on the first day of the SATCON Conference and Exhibition in New York City, the Third Annual Vision Awards were announced.

Pictured: David Geleman (center), CEO of Advantech Wireless, which received the Most Promising Company of the Year Award. On the left is Dan Freyer, Principal of Adwavez Marketing and on the right is Elisabeth Tweedie, President of Definitive Direction, both members of the Vision Awards Board of Judges.

The Third Annual Vision Awards were presented by Satellite Markets and Research, Application Technology Strategy LLC and SATCON and sponsored by Crystal Solutions. Winners were revealed in three categories:

• Gary Hatch, Co-founder and CEO of ATCi Communications, won the Visionary Executive of the Year
• Integrasys’ Satmotion Pocket won the Innovative Product of the Year
• Advantech Wireless won the Most Promising Company of the Year

Nominations for these Third Annual Vision Awards were open to the public. Companies, products and individuals that received the most nominations were selected to be one of finalists for the award, from which the Board of Judges comprising leading industry analysts and consultants selected the winner. Among the finalists honored during the ceremony included Andy Start, President of Inmarsat Global Government; for the Visionary Executive of the Year;  Newtec’s Mx-DMA technology and ScheduAll’s Portal for the Innovative Product of the Year.

In his speech honoring the awardees, Crystal Solutions CEO Roger Franklin said that their company shares the spirit of innovation and visionary thinking that the finalists of the Vision Awards represent. The awards are given annually during the SATCON exhibition. The criteria for winners include:

• Visionary Executive of the Year—Awarded to an outstanding senior executive of a satellite company that demonstrated a keen sense of mission for his company and a forward-looking vision of where his company and the industry is heading.
• Most Promising Company of the Year—Awarded to a company that has experienced growth in the markets they serve and demonstrated long-term viability of their enterprise.
• Most Innovative Product or Service of the Year—Awarded to a product or service launched during the year that makes a substantial improvement to existing technology or performs a vital service.