Media Viability Accelerator (MVA)

Summary

In 2024, Internews committed to launch the Media Viability Accelerator (MVA) to support independent media outlets. With a focus on low-resource communities, the MVA intends to impact 2,000 media outlets, tens of thousands of journalists, and hundreds of millions of people over the next two years. Independent media is also challenged by rising authoritarianism around the world, leading to a decline in press freedom for approximately 85% of the world population over the past five years. Shifting media business models have caused countless outlets to close, hindering efforts to provide communities with trustworthy information and hold power to account. The MVA will create a demand-driven marketplace to propel media viability and offer new tools for the financial viability of media outlets globally, as well as offer grants to independent outlets all in one place. The MVA will help to inform citizens and enable their participation in vibrant democracies around the globe.

Approach

Internews commits to launching the Media Viability Accelerator (MVA) to reinvigorate the independent media sector. Support for building the platform has already been generously provided by USAID and Microsoft. Internews’ commitment is to conduct even more ambitious outreach to ensure that it benefits over 2,000 outlets around the world, and to launch MVA Solutions – a demand-driven marketplace for products and services aimed at media viability.
This online platform (www.mva.net) will provide new tools for the financial viability of media outlets using analysis, innovation, and cross-sector collaboration. In one place, the platform presents and benchmarks key indicators of media performance such as distribution channel optimization, content output, audience engagement, and much more. It currently provides insights and data visualizations for media outlets’ websites and three social media platforms (Instagram, YouTube and Facebook) with more to come.
With insights from the MVA platform and funding to put those insights into action, independent media will have two of the most important tools they need to chart a course towards greater viability.
In addition to the partnership and support from Microsoft ($853,540 in-kind) and USAID ($7,762,025 to date) , Internews has partnered with other media support organizations such as Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) , Free Press Unlimited (FPU) , IREX, SembraMedia, and Thomson Reuters Foundation (TRF) that help us share the MVA with independent media outlets all over the world.
To date, 260 users have signed up to the platform in the soft launch stage. Leveraging visibility gained through a high-profile feature at CGI, Internews seeks to sign up more than 2,000 outlets and draw attention to a new Solutions Marketplace.

Action Plan

In September of 2024, Internews will announce the public launch of the Media Viability Accelerator (MVA) , and throw the doors wide open to independent media that wish to use it and corporate partners that want to support it. By September 2025, Internews seeks to add 1,000 new users – representing tens-of-thousands of journalists – to the platform and another 1,000 by 2026. Media outlets will find a platform that is constantly evolving to meet their needs and that will offer exciting new functionality.
Among the planned improvements, Internews will add more languages, more data tracking options, and a marketplace of services for media to easily access assistance to improve their viability. Internews will also create an engaged community of learning around viability issues, and support hundreds of organizations with grants that will help them adapt and thrive.
Each new user to the platform adds more data, insight and relevancy to the platform. And each of these thousands of users will find the knowledge, services and support they need to expand their audience, their revenue, and their prospects for a viable future. That way, these media can continue to play their vital role in holding power to account and ensuring that informed citizens are able to participate in vibrant democracy.

Background

Around the world, independent media face extinction, with many political and market forces working against the ability of media to remain financially viable. Media business models have changed profoundly in recent decades as digital technology platforms capture most of the world’s advertising and subscription revenues.

Market fragmentation and rapidly changing means of sharing information further complicate the situation. Simply put, fact-based, independent media that holds power to account is being outcompeted.

Amid these obstacles, independent media is also challenged by rising authoritarianism around the world. Approximately 85% of the world population experienced a decline in press freedom over the past five years. According to Freedom House’s 2023 Freedom in the World report, the number of countries and territories that received a zero rating for media freedom more than doubled between 2005 and 2022. Independent media outlets are vulnerable to being outspent, captured, discredited, harmed, threatened, sued, blocked, and taken down.

Progress Update

Partnership Opportunities

Internews seeks the following to help fuel the Media Viability Accelerator (MVA) ‘s success: 1) visibility on the CGI stage and in press coverage to attract excitement and new partners; 2) media outlets sign-up to the MVA, learn from it, and share what they learned with others; 3) media and tech companies sign up to the MVA to help promote its usefulness and security; 4) media support organizations integrate the MVA into their programming, share it with their partners, and offer their services through the platform; 5) solution providers, including not-for-profits, technology companies and other businesses, create integrations for the MVA that can further enhance its utility to independent media; 6) donors provide additional funding for development of the platform and/or for support directly to independent media that use the platform., The Media Viability Accelerator (MVA) Forward program supports independent media outlets around the world to compete more effectively for audiences and revenues, through direct support and funding, as well as partnership and collaboration with a range of media support organizations. The Annual Program Statement outlines the different ways to engage.
MVA Forward will make up to 50 grants of $25,000 per year to independent media to ensure that those organizations can survive and even thrive amidst the economic and political threats they currently face. There is also funding (up to 10 grants per year of up to $150,000) for media support organizations to integrate the MVA into their programs and expand access to the MVA, and for Solution Providers (up to five grants per year of up to $50,000) to develop new integrations into MVA Solutions.