NewsInFocus is putting DNI Prototype funding to work to rethink the delivery of content. The finish startup is using interactive, gaming techniques to appeal to millennial news habits and engage with young readers in a lasting way.

Younger readers are fickle, getting their news from countless publishers across multiple platforms. Research shows younger readers consume and digest news in smaller, bitesize chunks, often dropping off before the point of completion on a long read. So, the team behind NewsinFocus decided to adapt the format for longform articles and make sure younger readers were getting the full story.

Using the principles of mobile gaming, the team created software that allows journalists to create and publish interactive articles. Readers play through a multimedia story where every choice matters to the outcome, shifting the reader from a passive consumer to an active participant. The team tested their prototypes in Finnish schools to great success. Students said they read much more than usual, finding the format more useful and trustworthy than existing sources.

By using a gaming experience as a means to achieve information, NewsinFocus has their millennial audience hooked. Their next challenge is finding news organisations to use their product. 

Download the full DNI Innovation Fund report 2016-2017 here to read more about our funded projects and key insights from the report.