incubator

Last year BBC Worldwide launched, BBC Labs a mentoring scheme, for digital media startups. Following the success of the current program which comes to a close next month a second program has been announced for 2013.

To kick-start this fantastic opportunity,there is an induction session to be held on March 5th from 6-8pm at Wayra's London Academy. Giving applicants the chance to meet hear from the Labs team.

If you want to participate, you can reserve a place at the induction session on March 5, or you can just go ahead and submit an application. The deadline for submissions is midnight (GMT) on April 4, 2013.

The team behind the North East's successful incubator, Difference Engine are back with a new accelerator fund, ignite100, backed with funds of £1m.

Jon Bradford, founder of Difference Engine, which includes Digital Mission alumni Screenreach amongst the companies is supported, returns as Executive Director with Paul Smith, a North-East based entrepreneur running the programme. He said,

"Difference Engine was the first major acceleration bootcamp programme in Europe. ignite100 redefines acceleration programmes again and will be first acceleration programme in Europe to offer up to £100k per team."

The deal?

There were lots of highlights to this year's Digital Mission to New York, but one that stands out for me was the visit to the NYU:poly Incubator @ 160 Varick Street.

This initiative was announced by New York's Mayor, Michael Bloomberg, in February of this year, so it's still in its early days, although you wouldn't know it from looking around.

As the Digital Mission companies were given a tour by Micah Kotch, Operations Director and general making-things-happen guy there, the first thing that struck me was the scale of the facility: 16,500-square-foot, a whole floor of the Varick Street building, with over 20 companies, and even more associated indirectly with the incubator. There is everything a start-up business could want, including a receptionist, meeting rooms, mail facilities and so on.