Drum Roll Please: WSA Announces Finalists for Its 13th Annual Industry Achievement Awards

SEATTLE, WA, Jan 02 (MARKET WIRE) --
The WSA, the state's oldest and largest technology trade organization, today
announced the 21 finalists for its 13th annual Industry Achievement Awards
(IAA), which recognizes local companies, agencies and individuals who best
demonstrate innovation and excellence in technology.

The 21 finalists are:

-- Breakthrough Technology of the Year: Next IT, Travelling Wave Inc. and
Zumobi (formerly ZenZui)
-- Business Product of the Year: BioPassword Inc., Tableau Software and
Formotus, Inc.
-- Consumer Product or Service of the Year: Picnik.com, Redfin and Yapta,
Inc.
-- Service Provider of the Year: Slalom Consulting, GrapeCity, Inc. and
Ramp Group
-- Technology Innovator of the Year: Fred Brown, founder, Next IT; Bryan
Mistele, co-founder, president and CEO, Inrix Corporation; and Brian
Roundtree, co-founder and CTO, SNAPin Software
-- Best Use of Technology in the Government, Non-Profit or Education
Sector: eCityGov Alliance, King County District Court and Washington State
Coalition Against Domestic Violence
-- Technology Leader of Tomorrow: Jennifer Chen, eighth grade, Washington
Middle School; William Yip, eighth grade, Washington Middle School; and
Travis Duell, eighth grade, Madison Middle School

This year's IAA event, which attracts more than 1,000 business and
community leaders each year, will take place Feb. 7, 2008 at the Westin Hotel in
Seattle. Suzie Reider, chief marketing officer at YouTube.com, will be the
keynote
speaker.

"We were ecstatic to receive a record number of entries this year for the
IAA," said Ken Myer, president and CEO of the WSA. "Such a response is
indicative of this region's booming tech economy. Plus, I believe our top
finalists have the innovation and drive to dramatically impact this industry."

This year the WSA is also adding a new category to its lineup called the
"Technology Leader of Tomorrow" award, which honors exceptional sixth- to
eighth-grade students participating in the Technology Access Foundation's (TAF)
TechStart program. The winner will be selected through an online voting system
on the WSA's Web site (www.wsa.org) starting Jan. 17, and announced at the
event.

About the WSA

Founded in 1984, WSA is Washington's technology association with over
1,000member companies representing more than 100,000 software, Internet,
telecommunications and technology company employees. The WSA is a catalyst for
industry connections and provides members with key business services. As a voice
for Washington's technology industry, the WSA leads the advocacy of issues
necessary to grow Washington state's impact as a leader in the digital
economy. WSA's global partners are Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, Microsoft,
Regence BlueShield, The Hartford and Wells Fargo Insurance Services. WSA's
funding
partners are AH&T Insurance, Blink Interactive, Inc., Comerica Bank and
RealNetworks.
For more information, please see www.wsa.org.

Contact:
Autumn Monahan
MWW Group for WSA
206-505-8350
Email Contact

Copyright 2008, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

-0-