(Left) Karin Fleming, Communications and Administration Officer at EMMA/the Future Media Lab..

In the latest edition of our bi-weekly news roundup (the earlier posts can be read here), Karin Fleming shares the news that caught her eye in the past two weeks. The news round-up is a way for the Future Media Lab. team and members of the Future Media Lab. network to share articles about innovations and developments in the media sector, including references to relevant media policy debates.

Here are Karin’s choices for this week:

1) It’s clear that the push towards mobile has clear implications for brands and publishers, but a study from comScore shows just how important it is for media companies and marketers to jump on the mobile bandwagon. Over 51% of digital media time was spent on mobile apps and 60% was spent on mobile devices, which is an increase of 50% compared to last year. Engagement in social media has also increased by 55% in the last year. Skeptical? Just ask a teenager.

2) GE’s introduction of Pressing, a policy news hub, represents the next step in the evolution of brand advertising. Other brands-turned-publishers include Coca-Cola, Dell, and Adobe. With brands beginning to create content, one has to ask: what are the ethical/social dilemmas posed by news filtered through a corporate lens?

3) EurActiv has published a list of newly-elected with backgrounds in the media including former journalists Giovanni Toti (Italy), Josy Juraristi (Spain), and Jean-Marie Cavada (France), and publisher Giorgos Kyrtsos (Greece).

4) With Krautreporter (Germany) exceeding its €1 million crowdfunding goal it has become the second successful European start-up digital news site, following De Correspondent (Netherlands), to turn to its consumers to commit to funding quality journalism. Read the Future Media Lab.’s “Crowdfunding Guide for Media Professionals” for more information about the possibilities of crowdfunding.

5) Gaming platforms – from Microsoft’s Xbox, Sony’s Playstation to the Nintendo WiiU – are becoming the new platforms to compete for consumers’ attention. With everything connected to the Internet and communities fragmented by devices, content creators need to be careful when it comes to adapting their publication systems to include these platforms.

6) At their annual I/O conference, Google provides a glimpse into their connected universe, where people wear Android watches, watch Android TV, drive an Android Auto, talk on Android phones and read from their Android tablet. With the ubiquitous nature of Google’s services and the seamless transition between each device it sounds like the feed is becoming reality.

7) Remember the article a few weeks ago making its rounds through social media about the mass grave of Irish babies buried in a septic tank? Apparently it wasn’t completely accurate, though this didn’t stop it from being spread far and wide – without being fact-checked. In fact, a worrying survey by the Dutch firm ING showed that 45% of journalists publish as soon as possible, fact-checking only afterwards. This ‘publish first, correct later’ trend is not helping the floundering trust the public has had towards media across the globe.

Read something that you think needs to be shared? Share it with me! [email protected]

To see previous editions of this round-up, please click here.