Mobius · Project

Immersive Cross-Media Book Experiences That Turn Readers Into Co-Creators

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Imagine picking up a book and instead of just reading text, you also hear a soundtrack, see visuals, and can even step into the story through VR — all created with input from actual readers. That's what Mobius built: a new kind of "book" that blends text, audio, images, and immersive installations into one experience. They also figured out the legal and business side — how publishers can fairly work with fans who contribute creative content, without anyone getting ripped off on intellectual property. The whole thing was tested with 2,500 people across Europe, from readers to publishing professionals.

By the numbers

2,500

User groups involved in large-scale piloting

EUR 4,942,460

EU contribution to project development

Consortium partners across 6 countries

Several hundred thousand

Prosumer online works and interactions analyzed

Total project deliverables produced

SMEs in the consortium

The business problem

What needed solving

The European book publishing industry — the largest cultural industry in Europe — is losing ground to interactive, audio, and immersive media formats. Publishers lack the tools to create cross-media book experiences and have no proven business models for working with reader-contributors (prosumers) without IP conflicts. Without adapting, traditional publishers risk becoming irrelevant in an increasingly digital and participatory media landscape.

The solution

What was built

The project delivered three concrete innovations: (1) a Prosumer Intelligence Toolkit that analyzes several hundred thousand online works to understand audience behavior; (2) IP-compliant business models for publisher-prosumer collaboration; and (3) the Möbius Book — a cross-media, interactive, immersive book format with functional and final prototypes, complete with two finished demo books (Fantasy and The Influence of Blue) including text, visuals, soundtracks, and VR adaptations.

Audience

Who needs this

Book publishers expanding into immersive and interactive formatsAudiobook and podcast platforms seeking richer media experiencesMedia technology companies building cross-platform content toolsCultural institutions and libraries modernizing their digital offeringsContent rights management companies handling user-generated contributions

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Book Publishing

enterprise

Target: Mid-to-large book publishers looking to diversify beyond print and e-books

If you are a book publisher watching audiobook and immersive media eat into your traditional market — this project developed a cross-media book platform that combines text, visuals, soundtracks, and VR into a single product. It was tested with 2,500 user groups and comes with ready-made business models for fair IP management when readers contribute content. Partners Bookabook, IN2, and MVB are already planning commercialization through a Möbius marketplace.

Media & Entertainment Technology

mid-size

Target: Media tech companies building immersive content platforms

If you are a media technology company developing immersive experiences and need publishing-specific tools — this project created functional prototypes for rendering books across different devices and VR installations. The platform handles metadata for multiple rendering setups, meaning one piece of content adapts to phones, desktops, and immersive installations automatically. The consortium included 5 industry partners across 6 countries who validated the technology.

Audiobook & Podcast Platforms

any

Target: Audio content platforms expanding into enriched media

If you are an audiobook or podcast platform looking to offer richer experiences beyond plain audio — this project built tools that integrate soundtracks and audio layers with text and visuals into a single interactive format. The prosumer intelligence toolkit analyzes several hundred thousand online works and interactions to understand what audiences actually want. This was piloted at events like the Frankfurt Book Fair and Mobile World Congress.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to license or adopt the Möbius platform?

The project does not publish specific licensing fees. However, partners Bookabook, IN2, and MVB planned commercialization through a Möbius marketplace, suggesting a platform/marketplace pricing model rather than one-time licensing. Contact the consortium through SciTransfer for current commercial terms.

Can this scale to a full publishing catalogue, not just two demo books?

The platform was designed with scalable metadata handling for different rendering setups (devices and installations). While the demo included two complete Möbius books (Fantasy and The Influence of Blue), the underlying modules and toolkit were built as reusable components. Large-scale piloting with 2,500 user groups tested the system beyond just the demo titles.

Who owns the intellectual property and how is content from readers handled?

IP management was a core deliverable of this project. They developed prosumer business models grounded in thorough analysis of IP law, specifically designed for fair and sustainable content ecosystems. This means there are ready-made legal templates for handling reader-contributed content.

How mature is the technology — is this research or something we can deploy?

This was an Innovation Action (not basic research), and the team delivered both a functional prototype and a final prototype incorporating user feedback. The Möbius books were completed with text, visuals, soundtracks, and metadata for multiple rendering setups. Commercialization plans through a marketplace were already in progress at project end.

Does this work with our existing publishing systems and formats?

Based on available project data, the Möbius book format includes metadata for different rendering setups across devices and installations, suggesting interoperability was considered. The consortium included technology partners like Eurecat (coordinator) and research organizations alongside publishers, which typically ensures technical integration standards. Specific format compatibility details would need to be confirmed with the consortium.

What evidence is there that readers actually want immersive books?

The project ran co-creation workshops and large-scale piloting activities with 2,500 relevant user groups including prosumers and publishing professionals. A dataset of several hundred thousand prosumer online works and interactions was analyzed to ground the design in real audience behavior, not assumptions.

Is there regulatory risk around reader-generated content in published works?

The project specifically addressed this by conducting thorough analysis of IP law and developing prosumer business models designed for a fair and sustainable ecosystem. This legal groundwork is one of the three key innovations, meaning regulatory compliance was built in from the start rather than bolted on later.

Consortium

Who built it

The Mobius consortium brings together 13 partners from 6 European countries (Belgium, Germany, Spain, Finland, Italy, Poland), with a strong commercial orientation: 5 industry partners and 4 SMEs make up the majority, giving a 38% industry ratio. The coordinator is Fundacio Eurecat, a major Spanish research and technology center. With 2 universities and 2 research organizations providing the scientific backbone, and named commercial partners (Bookabook, IN2, MVB) committed to marketplace exploitation, this is a consortium built for taking results to market — not just publishing papers. The geographic spread across major European publishing markets (Germany, Italy, Spain) is particularly relevant for anyone looking to deploy across the continent.

FUNDACIO EURECATCoordinator · ES
KRAKOWSKI PARK TECHNOLOGICZNY SP ZOOthirdparty · PL
FUNDACIO BARCELONA MOBILE WORLD CAPITAL FOUNDATIONparticipant · ES
LAUREA-AMMATTIKORKEAKOULU OYthirdparty · FI
EUROPEAN NETWORK OF LIVING LABS IVZWparticipant · BE
INTERUNIVERSITAIR MICRO-ELECTRONICA CENTRUMparticipant · BE
DEN INSTITUTEparticipant · BE
KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVENparticipant · BE
IN2 DIGITAL INNOVATIONS GMBHparticipant · DE

How to reach the team

Fundacio Eurecat (ES) — contact through SciTransfer for a warm introduction to the project coordinator and commercial partners

Order a report on this consortium See FUNDACIO EURECAT profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore licensing the Möbius platform or connecting with the publishing technology partners? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the right people in the consortium.

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