Media Innovation and Partnerships Support (MIPS) activity

USAID Serbia intends to launch a four year activity, entitled Media Innovation and Partnerships Support (MIPS), starting in late 2017.  The purpose of the MIPS activity is to catalyze financial sustainability, innovation, networking and partnerships in the Serbian media sector. MIPS will achieve this purpose by means of three objectives: 

• facilitating innovation in online and mobile content offerings, 
• catalyzing growth in media partnerships and networks to increase efficiencies and provide economies of scale, and 
• developing media organizations’ business development and management skills and strategies.

To address these objectives, USAID will seek proposals from Serbian organizations interested in bringing together a wide range of Serbian media organizations (including but not limited to online media, traditional media, civil society groups and others producing professional news content for the Serbian population) interested in testing new approaches to digital and mobile publishing and advertising; developing new partnerships and networks that will enable regional and local media to increase efficiencies and gain economies of scale, and employing new and emerging approaches to address the management and financial challenges facing the media sector.  While an award will only be made to one implementing partner, USAID will encourage proposals that include partnerships between media support organizations, civil society, and/or the private sector. 

Proposals may include the provision of financial resources through sub-grants, public private partnerships or other sub-financing and/or co-financing modalities with media outlets, networks and associations to achieve activity outcomes; however, support to individual media outlets for content production, major equipment purchases, and similar activities is not envisaged.