How Emmy® Award Competitions handled 570% more users with Laravel

May, 8 2025

Developers at Crowd Favorite used Laravel to modernize the Emmy® Awards system and unlock the scalability the Emmys needed to grow 10x in just two years. 

The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS), the organization behind the Emmy Awards, needed to update its outdated technology. Facing challenges with systems that couldn’t handle the growing complexity of Emmy competitions, NATAS partnered with Crowd Favorite to create Orthicon, a custom competition management platform built on Laravel. The solution transformed how Emmy competitions are managed—making processes more efficient, scalable, and user-friendly.

“With Orthicon, we didn’t just replace an outdated system–we built an innovative engine. Using Laravel, we created a unified platform that empowers NATAS to run multiple Emmy competitions with greater control, less risk, and the flexibility to evolve as their needs change.” - Karim Marucchi, CEO of Crowd Favorite.

The Challenge: NATAS’ Old System Couldn’t Scale

Since 1955, NATAS has celebrated excellence in television with awards like the Daytime, Sports, News & Documentary, and Children’s & Family Emmys. But as these competitions grew in scale and complexity, their legacy systems couldn’t keep up. 

The previous setup was designed for single competitions, requiring redundant workflows and multiple logins across separate instances. NATAS staff were bogged down by manual reconciliation, payment tracking, and reporting. Judges and participants faced inconsistent, often clunky experiences. And with events like the Sports Emmys processing over 10,000 submissions annually, the strain was obvious. 

NATAS didn’t just need a system refresh–they needed a total reinvention. 

The Solution: Orthicon by Crowd Favorite, Built on Laravel

To meet the challenge, Crowd Favorite developed Orthicon: a scalable, multi-tenant platform built on Laravel that modernized the competition management process.

“Laravel gave us the tools to break free from the limitations of a legacy, one-size-fits-all system. We built Orthicon as a modular, multi-tenant application with isolated competition logic, layered permissions, and automated workflows–making it possible to support dozens of Emmy competitions with varying rules, timelines, and reporting needs. It’s clean, adaptable, and fully integrated with NATAS’s broader ecosystem.” - Adam Buckeridge, Director of Client Delivery at Crowd Favorite.

Laravel delivered: 

  1. Flexibility. Modular architecture enabled a tailored platform that fit Emmy competitions precisely.
  2. Scalability. The system now supports 7,000+ users and 16,500+ entries per cycle—with plenty of room to grow.
  3. Reliability. Laravel’s ecosystem allows for efficient, on-time development without cutting corners.

Key Features of Orthicon:

Orthicon introduced new functionality, including: 

Impact: Transforming Emmy Competitions

Orthicon’s debut during the 2022 Children’s & Family Emmy Awards proved its value right out of the gate. 

This growth transformed operations across the board: 

A New Standard for Competition Management

Orthicon didn’t just fix problems—it redefined how NATAS operates. Thanks to Laravel and the team at Crowd Favorite, the Emmy Awards now run on a platform that’s as prestigious, flexible, and forward-thinking as the honors themselves.

Build Your Vision with Laravel

Laravel’s flexibility powered Orthicon’s success, enabling Crowd Favorite to create a scalable, user-friendly platform for the Emmy Awards. Discover what Laravel can do for your next big idea.

Stack used to build Orthicon:


By Sam

Marketing at Laravel

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