The MediaMotorEurope programme brings together startups, accelerators and media organisations in one media ecosystem that revolves around making ideas happen to tackle today’s challenges. As one of the partners, VRT brings its experience, expertise and network as an open innovator to the table.
Having founded VRT Sandbox in 2015, VRT today supports startups and scaleups by testing their technologies, boosting their businesses, and providing coaching and funding to scale up. In addition, through the network of the Sandbox Hub, startups are introduced to international media organisations and offered opportunities across Europe, enabling them to grow beyond any physical boundary.
In the beginning, VRT Sandbox was launched as an inhouse accelerator to let startups and scaleups test and scale their innovations on the production floor of a public broadcaster. At the same time, collaborations within VRT Sandbox introduced new technologies and ideas to production teams and realised several exciting projects: from broadcasting radio live from a hot air balloon, creating a crowdsourcing platform to engage a community in a musical television programme, to adjusting a radio programme based on live data. Only recently, VRT Sandbox celebrated its 5th year anniversary with an interactive online format, supported by startup Sceenic.
As part of the H2020 funded MediaRoad project, the next step for VRT Sandbox entailed upscaling its successful approach. As one of the project’s initiatives, the Sandbox Hub was established to replicate the original Sandbox approach of VRT to other media organisations, with the goal to support collaboration and knowledge-sharing among European media organisation and startups. Since its launch in January 2018, a total of 20 European media organisations have joined the Sandbox Hub and countless startups were introduced to the network, well beyond the original scope of the project. Via the MediaMotorEurope project, VRT Sandbox and the Sandbox Hub are now able to provide additional support and coaching to startups and scaleups, while tackling some of today’s media challenges. Through collaboration, they seek to make a difference.
VRT is excited to collaborate within the MediaMotorEurope programme to exchange expertise and opportunities and build a foundation for the future of media together with entrepreneurs, focused on transparency, differentiating experiences and game changing technologies.
