The NRJ awards of France picks winners in the field of popular music on the basis of a public vote held on the NRJ website. The 'Hot N Cold' star collected the trophy which was supposed to be handed to Rihanna for her hit "Disturbia", the ‘Contactmusic’ reported.
At the end of the show, host Nikos Aliagas admitted that a blunder had been made due to a mistake in counting the public's vote.
However, Perry did not go back empty handed as she won the best international album award for her debut album "One of the Boys."
Other winners included Britney Spears, who won the award for best female artist, and Enrique Iglesias who took home the prize for the best international male singer. The Pussycat Dolls won the award for the best international group.
Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin, Duffy, Akon and Seal performed at the show that took place in Cannes.
