Alexa Skills Kit > Get Deeper > Alexa Flash Briefing and News Skills
Make it easy for customers to get your latest news, headlines, and other short audio and text as part of their daily routines. With Alexa, customers can set up a daily flash briefing—a quick overview of news and other content such as comedy, interviews, and lists. You can build an Alexa skill to deliver your content via flash briefing, or envision your own experience for sharing news and other content with customers.
Flash Briefing Skill API
You can use the Flash Briefing Skill API to make your regularly updated audio clips and text feeds available on Alexa. Customers can get your latest information by simply saying, “Alexa, what’s my flash briefing?”
Custom Skill API
With the Custom Skill API, you can create your own in-depth experience to deliver your content. Customers can open your custom skill to access your live audio streams, explore in-depth and archived content, and more.
Flash Briefing Blueprint
Instead of building a skill, you can use Alexa Skill Blueprints to directly upload your content to Alexa. The flash briefing blueprint is the easiest way to deliver a basic experience.
Ready to build? Explore documentation to learn more about building flash briefing and news skills for Alexa, then start building your skill with the Alexa Skills Kit.
Want to build a flash briefing skill without coding?
Is there a difference between a flash briefing created using Alexa Skill Blueprints or the Flash Briefing Skill API?
Regardless of whether you use the Flash Briefing Skill API or the flash briefing blueprint, customers will be able to access your content simply by asking, “Alexa, what’s my flash briefing?” However, while the customer experience is the same, there are differences in skill development and management. Specifically, the API allows for more than one audio feed to be managed within one flash briefing skill, and provides analytics in the developer console that you can use to understand customer usage. The blueprint enables you to upload audio and text directly to Alexa rather than using a separate internet feed that you provide.
How do I get started with the Flash Briefing Skill API?
Start by reading the Flash Briefing Skill API documentation, which details how to configure your content for flash briefing as a new skill.
What's the difference between the “Flash Briefing Skill” and “Custom Skill” skill types?
With custom skills, you build a voice interaction model to handle customer requests. With the Flash Briefing Skill API, this is not needed. Instead, once customers enable your flash briefing skill, they simply say “Alexa, what’s my flash briefing?”
Would I ever create both a flash briefing skill and a custom skill?
Yes. If you want to add additional supported utterances or go beyond reading or playing content, you can also create a custom skill. However, content from a custom skill cannot be provided as a part of a customer’s flash briefing.
