NTB’s Mediabank Wins European News Agency Award

The European Alliance for News Agencies (EANA) presents the award annually to highlight craftsmanship, innovation, and creativity among European news agencies. This year, the award went to NTB.

The photo workflow system, used by 80 percent of media outlets in Norway, now also serves clients in Sweden and Finland.

“This award recognizes NTB and our clients in the Nordic region, who together have developed world-class media technology. NTB Mediabank has become a central part of the news flow for Norwegian media. Without it, you lose the race for breaking news. I am incredibly proud of our team, led by Product Manager Tor Richardsen, who through this recognition receive well-deserved international acclaim,” says Editor-in-Chief and CEO Tina Mari Flem.

The award was established twenty years ago by EANA’s General Assembly. Alexandru Giboi, Secretary General of EANA, congratulates NTB:

“It is reassuring, in these challenging times for European news agencies, to see so many strong nominations for this award. NTB Mediabank stood out this year. The project meets all the award criteria: it is innovative, supports fast journalistic reporting, is scalable, and has been a financial success. I am pleased to congratulate the NTB team and look forward to their presentation at the General Assembly in Athens,” Giboi says.

A Unique System

Tor Richardsen, Product Manager for Mediabank, has been involved since its inception. A former photographer, he understood exactly what kind of tool was needed.

“Mediabank is a photo workflow system designed for photographers, developed together with photographers. In breaking news, every second counts—from when a picture leaves the camera to when it appears online. We’ve succeeded in creating something our clients truly value, and that makes a real difference. It has been a challenging, but immensely rewarding journey,” Richardsen says.

He will now present the solution to all European news agencies:

“This is incredibly exciting and an honor. This award also shows the potential of what we’ve built. We have the opportunity to make an international mark with Norwegian-developed technology, and we won’t let that chance pass. We never rest,” he adds.

The Idea of the “Image Hotel”

News Editor and Acting Visual Editor Christina Dorthellinger has led NTB Visual for eight years.

“When I joined NTB, the idea of developing what was then called an ‘image hotel’ had been floating around for a long time. Over the years, the work on this visual photo workflow system has built on our strong expertise in imagery and imaging technology. Much has changed since the days when salespeople carried suitcases selling negatives to newspapers, to today’s solution where NTB delivers technology that transports images in seconds directly from the camera,” she says.

“I am proud that we have developed technology that benefits both our clients and our editorial operations.”

The award comes with a prize of 1,000 Swiss francs. NTB will present the project during EANA’s General Assembly on 26 September in Athens.