Three UCT students have won the national competition of Pernod Ricard's International Business Game, a competition to create a digital marketing strategy.

Business Science students Tetlanyo Lekalake and Thembeka Setlogile and computer science major Sizwe Ndlovu of the Faculty of Science came out tops. They will be representing Pernod Ricard South Africa at the international finals in Paris in March this year, when they will compete against the world's top marketing students for the lead prize - an internship in Europe at one of Pernod Ricard's holding companies.

Head of marketing in the Faculty of Commerce Dr Gert Human said: "I am especially proud of our students - who managed to fend off very stiff competition from advertising schools - because our degree is not specifically aimed at training advertisers, but is rather a comprehensive business degree."

The students, called the Brandiacs, created an innovative digital application aimed at helping the Absolut Vodka brand remain "the creative visionary among its competitors".

The next series of this competition will be rolled out nationally at the end of this year. Final-year and postgraduate students can keep an eye out for more information on the Spirits of Entrepreneurs website .