The Media Development and Investment Fund (MDIF) today launched Amplify Europe, a program to support the business sustainability of promising independent digital media companies from selected countries in Europe.

It also announced that Amplify Europe is now open for applications from digital media companies from Bulgaria and Romania.

Amplify Europe, which is funded by the Dutch Postcode Lottery and the German Postcode Lottery, will provide selected media with 24 months of mentoring and other forms of assistance to help them increase their management capacity, build audiences and generate sustainable and diverse revenue streams. The first phase of the program is only open to media from Bulgaria and Romania, with support to be extended to media from other select European countries in 2023.

Applicants must be small or medium-sized independent media companies, at least 6 months in existence, with digital at the core of their business. They should have a particular business/ revenue/ transformation project they are planning to work on over the next 12-24 months (or early stages of an existing project), addressing one or more of the following focus areas:

New revenue opportunities: Innovative solutions to revenue challenges that media companies face – opening up new revenue streams to make media organizations more sustainable and independent

Digital native products: New approaches to collecting news and information, and to reporting, storytelling and distribution, that embrace the possibilities of technology and contribute to the viability of news operations.

Reaching communities outside capital/ big-city bubbles: Innovative approaches to reach that empower people outside of major urban areas and those generally underserved by existing news media.

Innovation in distribution: Media technology and tools that help to distribute local and relevant news in a cost-effective and sustainable way.

Successful applicants will receive one-on-one coaching, specialist technical assistance from subject experts, workshops and trainings, networking and community-building, and other bespoke support tailored to the needs of each media company. Targeted grants tied to capacity support will be provided to maximize the effectiveness of interventions.

As media organizations grow, Amplify Europe will also provide a pathway to loan and equity investment and ongoing capacity and venture support through MDIF and its Media Advisory Services technical assistance hub.

Amplify Europe builds on MDIF’s established regional and country-based capacity and innovation support programs in South and Southern Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Myanmar.

The deadline for applications from media in Bulgaria and Romania is November 30, 2022.