• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, January 13, 2016

The Economisthas joined forces with Murmur, a New York digital media studio, to create a platform that they are describing as a “Tinder for content,” as part of a custom content program for GE, the partners announce Wednesday.

The new feature, called StoryDeck, is designed for mobile devices and allows users to explore new content by asking thought-provoking questions. The user answers with swipes, similar to the popular dating app.

Created exclusively for GE Look Ahead by The Economist Group’s Content Solutions Group in collaboration with Murmur, the mobile Web feature debuts with programs that invite users to contemplate the future and predict developments as they engage with custom content.

The first program, exploring the theme: “Will robots help or hinder our lives?” Users swipe right or left to agree or disagree with statements like “Could your job be replaced by a robot in 10 years?”

After a number of questions, the program allows the user to compare their outcomes with the average results, before being taken to custom content which delves into the subject more in depth.

This is just the latest in a series of innovative advertising formats employed by GE as it seeks to raise its profile with a new generation of consumers. Last fall, it signed on as a launch sponsor for NYT VR, a new virtual reality app from The New York Times created in collaboration with Google and VR studio IM360.

 

GE also entered into an unusual partnership with National Geographic Channel, jointly producing a six-part science and technology series called “Breakthrough,” whose episodes feature A-list directors, actors and narrators.

 

Last but not least, GE also breathed new life into an old staple of the broadcast era, GE Theater. Its new digital incarnation, GE Podcast Theater, produced “The Message,” a serialized, eight-episode science fiction tale incorporating the company’s real-life ultrasound technology.