Media consumption is changing and innovation in the media industry must reach a faster pace to keep up with this change. That’s why major German media brands like Axel Springer, Gruner+Jahr, Der Spiegel, Die ZEIT and the German Press Agency dpa, with the support of the mayor’s office of the city of Hamburg, created the next media accelerator.

next media accelerator is looking for tech startups in the media business, able to present new products, services or innovative business models that will shake the industry.

Do you need some examples of successful companies that could meet the briefing? Think of Twitter, Soundcloud, Flipboard, Infogr.am or Blendle. These are companies that have the purpose of providing you information and entertainment, with a totally new approach.

This new accelerator is financed by dpa and several investors from Germany’s media industry. By participating, startups can receive up to €50k of funding, more than €100k in services, get mentored, access to a broad network of media companies, entrepreneurs and investors and get assistance on raising further capital. We’ve also heard they will also have access to a lot of pizza, Mate and Gin.

The 6-month program takes place at Betahaus in Hamburg and 5 startups will join the second batch, that will gather in February.

Partners like Google News Lab, Facebook, Amazon, IBM, Twitter, TaylorWessing, EY! or HASPA are aboard.

next media accelerator looks for Portuguese startups to solve problems like content delivery, verification and aggregation, valuable for media and ad companies. All of this must be combined with commitment, reliable technological skills and entrepreneurial spirit.

If you have a startup that has a great vision on how we can get informed and entertained in the future, you must apply till January 31st!