The Irish Times Content Studio has been awarded Best Sales Initiative at the annual Media Awards. The Content Studio is a commercial-editorial unit that was created 12 months ago to develop The Irish Times native content partnerships.

Recognised for its innovative approach to creating content as part of brand partnerships, the judges acknowledged the unit’s approach to clearly labelling content as sponsored, creating measurable reader engagement and for setting a benchmark in how this new business sector has developed in Ireland.

The Media Awards is an annual event that is open to media suppliers and owners, media buying and planning agencies and advertising sales houses operating in all areas of the media including print, digital, outdoor, TV, radio and cinema.

Content Studio has also been nominated for two global media awards by INMA, the international news media association at its annual awards in New York next month.