We are delighted to announce that VYRE client Diageo PLC has just been announced as a finalist in the British Computer Society Award (BCS Awards). Diageo (and VYRE as the technology partner) has been shortlisted in the category Project Excellence - Information Security and Data Management with its Brand Asset Management portal SmartBrand.

Leading global premium drinks business Diageo has almost 200 brands across 180 countries globally. Keeping hence a tight rein on brands and associated costs is of utmost importance. Diageo recognized this challenge by launching a BAM programme  - one of the largest, most complex ever undertaken. In partnership with VYRE, Diageo developed SmartBrand.

The purpose of the project was to deliver a robust, sophisticated BAM library for usage / IP rights management and a complete creative marketing tool enabling: online marketing approvals, POS and value-added packaging design and production, knowledge sharing, and providing a distribution / usage rights tool for agencies.

The SmartBrand portal has dramatically changed the way Diageo works internally and with its partners. The company has also seen an impressive ROI of 1:5 so far, which is expected to increase to 1:10 by the end of 2008.

Established in 1957, the British Computer Society (BCS) is the leading body for those working in IT. The BCS IT Industry Awards, supported by Intellect and NCC, are the leading hallmark of success amongst practitioners today.  The cross industry awards form a central element to the BCS' professionalism in IT initiative and recognise, promote and acclaim excellence, professionalism, innovation and the outstanding achievements to which individuals and groups contribute.

David Clarke, BCS chief executive says: "In the current economic situation it is rewarding to see that IT is continuing to lead through innovation and deliver real business benefits.  These projects reflect the fact that technology is an integral and expected part of everyday life and is at the heart of literally every business - even farming."

The finalists in the Information Security & Data Management Project Award category are as follows:

• Distributed Management Systems Ltd - "CASQUE-ESRAS" CASQUE Extensible Secure Remote Access Solution
• IDBS - The E-Workbook Suite
• McKesson - McKesson Electronic Staff Record (ESR)
• BP International Ltd - BP Video Library
• Arrk Group - Mobile Stop & Search - Reducing the bureaucracy and improving productivity in UK policing.
• Xenos Europe / NAV (formerly Trydeetaten) - Norwegian e-Health Infrastructure based on XML
• SquirrelSave / Memset - SquirrelSave
• Diageo PLC and VYRE Ltd as the technology provider - Diageo SmartBrand Brand Asset Management Portal
• Bailey Teswaine - Bailey Teswaine delivers £500,000 state-of-the-art networking infrastructure for St Pancras International Station
• MessageLabs - MessageLabs Policy Based Encryption (PBE) Service