In memory of Ernst Willner, one of the co-founders of the event, this prize is awarded on an annual basis. Ernst Willner was the director-general of ORF’s regional studio of Carinthia. In 2008, it was the Austrian Clemens J. Setz who received the prize worth 7,000 Euros.

The 7,000 € Ernst Willner Prize is sponsored by numerous publishing houses from many European countries. In this year the award went to Austria: the second author nominated by Daniela Strigl, Clemens J. Setz, won the prize. Strigl said that she had voted for a "highly cryptical" story about weighing up and re-weighing" which showed what excessive meat consumption can do to men.

The Willner-Prize was presented by the ORF Regional Director Willy Haslitzer.

• Luftschacht
• Btb, Knaus, Luchterhand, DVA
• Merlin
• Diogenes
• Zsolnay & Deuticke
• AntjeKunstmann
• S. Fischer
• Carl Hanser
• Bilgerverlag
• Hermagoras
• C.H. Beck
• Suhrkamp
• Berlin Verlag
• DTV
• Georg von Holtzbrinck
• Droschl
• Piper