Zynga.org will invest $1 million in educational game studios

Zynga's non-profit arm has announced it will invest $1 million into educational game developers in partnership with the NewSchools Venture Fund. It is hoped the fund will help entrepreneurs create new interactive education projects.

Gi.biz reports that the fund will take a similar form to accelerator programs, in which funded developers will be given work spaces at Zynga's San Francisco HQ, where they will create educational games.

Successful studios are also free to openly volunteer ideas and their methods with Zynga if they choose. The program will open this summer and the first round of studios include Kidaptive, LocoMotiveLabs, Motion Math and Edmodo.

Ken Weber, Executive Director of Zynga.org said, "We're excited about the learning potential of games. We're honoured to collaborate with NewSchools, a proven leader in the education technology space, on this accelerator. We want to help entrepreneurs create high quality, scalable learning games that will enhance learning experiences for all 21st century students."

Meanwhile, a report has found that Facebook game revenues are up 12% while Zynga's are down 37%. Get our full coverage here.