Between Lifeboats and Roadmaps: Unleashing the Potential of Innovation Through Collaboration in Public Service Media

Public service media (PSM) organizations are struggling to remain competitive in the current media landscape. Despite budget constraints, increasing competition, and political pressure, PSM organizations are trying to fulfill their public service mission by sticking to their core values while renewing their strategy. In this chapter, we argue that if PSMs are to drive the creation of public value, they should place innovation at the heart of their strategy, in terms of organizational dynamics and content creation and distribution. To this end, we draw on two specific European public service media initiatives that illustrate the transformative capacity of an innovative approach: A European Perspective and Future Media Hubs. We conclude that the distinctive value that public service media offer in terms of innovation lies in their ability to approach disruptive innovation and to engage with other media actors and organizations.