Best Application Or Service

Get Satisfaction
Google Reader (winner)
Minted
Meebo
MySpace Music (runner-up)
Yelp

Best Technology Innovation/Achievement

Facebook Connect (runner-up)
Google Friend Connect
Google Chrome
Windows Live Mesh (winner)
Swype
Yahoo BOSS

Best Design

Animoto (runner-up)
Cooliris (winner)
Friendfeed
Infectious
Lala
Sliderocket

Best Bootstrapped Startup

BackType
GitHub (winner)
Socialcast
StatSheet
12seconds.tv (runner-up)

Most Likely To Make The World A Better Place

Akoha
Causes
CO2Stats
GoodGuide (winner)
Kiva (runner-up)
Better Place

Best Enterprise Startup
Amazon Web Services (winner)
Force.com
Google App Engine (runner-up)
Yammer
Zoho

Best International Startup

eBuddy (winner)
Fotonauts
OpenX
Vente-privee
Wuala (runner-up)

Best Clean Tech Startup

Better Place (runner-up)
Boston Power
ElectraDrive
Laurus Energy
Project Frog (winner)

Best New Gadget/Device

Android G1 (runner-up)
Ausus EEE 1000 Series
Flip MinoHD
iPhone 3G (winner)
SlingCatcher

Best Time Sink Site/Application

Mob Wars
iBowl
Tap Tap Revenge (winner)
Zivity
Texas Hold Em (runner-up)

Best Mobile Startup

ChaCha (runner-up)
Evernote (winner)
Posterous
Qik Skyfire
Truphone

Best Mobile Application

Google Mobile Application (runner-up)
imeem mobile (winner)
Pandora Radio
rolando
ShopSavvy
Ocarina

Best Startup Founder

Linda Avery and Anne Wojcicki (23andMe)
Michael Birch and Xochi Birch (Bebo)
Robert Kalin (Etsy)
Evan Williams, Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone (Twitter ) (winner)
Paul Buchheit, Jim Norris, Sanjeev Singh, Bret Taylor (FriendFeed ) (runner-up)

Best Startup CEO

Tony Hsieh (Zappos)
Jason Kilar (Hulu) (runner-up)
Elon Musk (SpaceX)
Andy Rubin (Android)
Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) (winner)

Best New Startup Of 2008
Dropbox (runner-up)
FriendFeed (winner)
GoodGuide
Tapulous
Topsin Media
Yammer

Best Overall Startup In 2008

Amazon Web Services
Facebook (winner)
Android
hulu
Twitter (runner-up)

This year’s Crunchies would not be possible without the generous support of our sponsors. Thank you to: ceremony and after-party co-hosts: Microsoft, MySpace and Founders Fund; award benefactors: CRV and Mayfield; streaming partner, Ustream; after-party game-room partner, Garage Games; ticketing partner, Amiando; photo host, PicApps; hosting partner, Media Temple; wine partner, Cannonball wines; and event patron, Institutional Venture Partners. Please contact heather@techcrunch.com or jlogo@earthlink.net if you’re interested to learn more about creative (and very reasonably priced) sponsorship opportunities.

The awards ceremony will be held at the Herbst Theater in San Francisco at 7:30 pm, Friday January 9. We’ve commissioned the Richter Scales to launch a new song at the ceremony, and there will be other surprises to keep the event lively.

We’re expanding the reception this year to the beautiful rotunda of City Hall, directly across the street from the theater. Big thank you to MySpace, who is co-hosting the after-party and bringing a celebrity DJ for us. There will be an open bar and finger-food served from 9 pm - midnight. We’re also hosting a game room with a mix of online and traditional games to enjoy.

Additional details on GigaOm, VentureBeat and SiliconAlleyInsider.

Thank You Sponsors
Thank you to the following companies who quickly stepped up to help sponsor the 2008 Crunchies Awards: Amiando, Charles River Ventures, Mayfield, Microsoft BizSpark, MySpace, Media Temple and UStream.

If you would like to add your name to that list and be part of something special, contact jlogo at earthlink.net or heather at techcrunch.com. There are many creative ways to show your support and help us recognize innovation and entrepreneurship in tech.

Look for finalist voting to launch later this week. We’ll give you a bit of advance warning here when we’re close. Thanks for your patience.

Check back here Monday morning, December 15th, for the announcing of selected nominees, as well as a chance to vote for them.

And if you’d like to help make this year’s Crunchies, sponsors of all shapes and sizes appreciated. Please contact Jeanne Logozzo or Heather Harde if want to participate in the awards ceremony or reception to follow.

Sure the economy is kicking the crap out of us, so it seems especially important that we take time to celebrate the best tech accomplishments of the year and remember what went right in 2008.

The Crunchies, our sometimes kitschy and irreverent awards ceremony, is back for v2. Join GigaOm, VentureBeat and Silicon Alley Insider, and TechCrunch as co-hosts and masters in ceremonies on Friday January 9, 2009 at 7:30 pm the Herbst Theater in San Francisco.

Starting today, you can nominate your favorite companies and products for consideration in fifteen different award categories. Our focus is start-ups, but big companies and products can be considered as well. Self nominations are welcome. Grab a badge here and get your community to support you for finalist consideration. Nominations are open through December 10, 2008 midnight pst.

The Crunchies co-hosts will choose five finalists per award category based on the submitted nominations and the company accomplishments made in 2008. Popular voting will open on December 15 and run through January 5, 2009 midnight pst. The full rules are here.

Just like last year, don’t come expecting a highly produced Oscars ceremony. But that doesn’t mean it won’t be extremely entertaining. We have a number of special surprises, and we promise a great evening with the community to celebrate our technology and tenacity together.

As ever, we need the help of sponsors to make the evening possible. Sponsors of all shapes and sizes appreciated. Please contact Jeanne Logozzo or Heather Harde if want to participate in the awards ceremony or reception to follow.

Make someone’s year. Nominate a company for a Crunchie today.

[Photography provided by Brian Solis and Zivity]