Jump to content

Kickstarter

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from The Creative Independent)
Kickstarter, PBC
Screenshot
Type of businessDelaware-registered public-benefit corporation
Type of site
Crowdfunding
Headquarters
Founder(s)Perry Chen
Yancey Strickler
Charles Adler
CEOEverette Taylor
IndustryFinancial services
Internet
Net income$1.3 million after tax (2019)[1]: 1
Employees140 (before May 2020 40% staff reduction)[1]: 1
URLwww.kickstarter.com/about
LaunchedApril 28, 2009; 15 years ago (2009-04-28)

Kickstarter, PBC is an American public benefit corporation[2] based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity.[3] The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life".[4] As of February 2023, Kickstarter has received US$7 billion in pledges from 21.7 million backers to fund 233,626 projects, such as films, music, stage shows, comics, journalism, video games, board games, technology, publishing, and food-related projects.[5]

People who back Kickstarter projects are offered tangible rewards or experiences in exchange for their pledges.[6] This model traces its roots to subscription model of arts patronage, in which artists would go directly to their audiences to fund their work.[7]

History

[edit]
Visitors at Kickstarter's Lower East Side, Manhattan offices in 2013

Kickstarter launched on April 28, 2009,[8] by Perry Chen, Yancey Strickler, and Charles Adler. The New York Times called Kickstarter "the people's NEA".[9] Time named it one of the "Best Inventions of 2010"[10] and "Best Websites of 2011".[11] Kickstarter reportedly raised $10 million funding from backers including NYC-based venture firm Union Square Ventures and angel investors such as Jack Dorsey, Zach Klein and Caterina Fake.[12] The company was based at 58 Kent Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn until they transitioned to a fully remote workforce after the COVID-19 pandemic.[13][14]

On February 14, 2013, Kickstarter released an iOS app called Kickstarter for the iPhone.[15] The app was aimed at users who create and back projects and was the first time Kickstarter had an official mobile presence.[16]

Kickstarter HQ library, Brooklyn in 2017

On October 31, 2012, Kickstarter opened projects based in the United Kingdom,[17] followed by projects based in Canada on September 9, 2013,[18] Australia and New Zealand on November 13, 2013,[19] the Netherlands on April 28, 2014, Denmark, Ireland, Norway, and Sweden on September 15, 2014,[20] Germany on April 28, 2015, France and Spain on May 19, 2015,[21] Austria, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg and Switzerland on June 16, 2015, Singapore and Hong Kong on August 30, 2016,[22] Mexico on November 15, 2016, and Japan on September 12, 2017. In July 2017, Strickler announced his resignation.[23]

On April 20, 2020, Kickstarter announced that it was likely going to lay off workers due to the coronavirus pandemic causing the number of active projects to be "about 35% below what it was at this time last year with no clear sign of rebound."[24] The layoff was reported by the union to affect up to 45% of the employees, although Kickstarter has yet to report the scale of the layoff as of May 2, 2020. The union negotiated a settlement for laid off employees including four months of severance pay and up to six months of continued health benefits for anyone who gets laid off, recall rights for a year (so that those laid off can return to job openings), and a release from noncompete agreements for those who accept severance pay.[1][25]

In December 2021, Kickstarter announced they would be moving their platform to blockchain, with the aim of making the tools required for creating a crowdfunding site available to anyone.[26] The pivot came on the back of a $100 million investment from the crypto fund of Andreessen Horowitz. The decision backfired, alienated many users, damaging Kickstarter's reputation.[27]

Model

[edit]

Kickstarter is one of a number of crowdfunding platforms for gathering money from the public, which circumvents traditional avenues of investment.[28][29] Project creators choose a deadline and a minimum funding goal. If the goal is not met by the deadline, no funds are collected (a kind of assurance contract).[30]

The kickstarter platform is open to backers from anywhere in the world and to creators from many countries, including the US, UK,[31] Canada,[32] Australia, New Zealand,[19] The Netherlands, Denmark, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Spain, France, Germany, Austria, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Mexico.

Kickstarter applies a 5% fee on the total amount of the funds raised.[33] Its payments processor applies an additional 3–5% fee.[34] Unlike many forums for fundraising or investment, Kickstarter claims no ownership over the projects and the work they produce. The web pages of projects launched on the site are permanently archived and accessible to the public. After funding is completed, projects and uploaded media cannot be edited or removed from the site.[35]

There is no guarantee that people who post projects on Kickstarter will deliver on their projects, use the money to implement their projects, or that the completed projects will meet backers' expectations. Kickstarter advises backers to use their judgment on supporting a project. They also warn project leaders that they could be liable for legal damages from backers for failure to deliver on promises.[36] Projects might also fail even after a successful fundraising campaign when creators underestimate the total costs required or technical difficulties to be overcome.[37][38]

When asked what made Kickstarter different from other crowdfunding platforms, co-founder Perry Chen said: "I wonder if people really know what the definition of crowdfunding is. Or, if there's even an agreed upon definition of what it is. We haven't actively supported the use of the term because it can provoke more confusion. In our case, we focus on a middle ground between patronage and commerce. People are offering cool stuff and experiences in exchange for the support of their ideas. People are creating these mini-economies around their project ideas. So, you aren't coming to the site to get something for nothing; you are trying to create value for the people who support you. We focus on creative projects—music, film, technology, art, design, food and publishing—and within the category of crowdfunding of the arts, we are probably ten times the size of all the others combined."[39]

Projects

[edit]

On June 21, 2012, Kickstarter began publishing statistics on its projects.[40] As of December 4, 2019, there were 469,286 launched projects (3,524 in progress),[41] with a success rate of 37.45% (success rate being how many were successfully funded by reaching their set goal).[clarification needed] The total amount pledged was $4,690,286,673.[42]

The business grew quickly in its early years. In 2010 Kickstarter had 3,910 successful projects and $27,638,318 pledged. The corresponding figures for 2011 were 11,836 successfully funded projects and $99,344,381 pledged; and there were 18,109 successfully funded projects, $610,352 pledged in 2012.[43]

On February 9, 2012, Kickstarter hit a number of milestones. A dock made for the iPhone designed by Casey Hopkins became the first Kickstarter project to exceed one million dollars in pledges. A few hours later, a new adventure game project started by computer game developers, Double Fine Productions, reached the same figure, having been launched less than 24 hours earlier, and finished with over $3 million pledged.[44] This was also the first time Kickstarter raised over a million dollars in pledges in a single day.[45] On August 30, 2014, the "Coolest Cooler", an icebox created by Ryan Grepper, became the most funded Kickstarter project in history, with US$13.28 million in funding, breaking the record previously held by the Pebble smartwatch.[46]

From 2012 to 2013, Wharton professor Ethan Mollick and Jeanne Pi conducted research into what contributes to a project's success or failure on Kickstarter. Some key findings from the analysis were that increasing goal size is negatively associated successfully, projects that are featured on the Kickstarter homepage have an 89% chance of being successful, compared to 30% without, and that for an average $10,000 project, a 30-day project has a 35% chance of success, while a 60-day project has a 29% chance of success, all other things being constant.[47]

The ten largest Kickstarter projects by funds raised are listed below. Among successful projects, most raise between $1,000 and $9,999. These dollar amounts drop to less than half in the Design, Games, and Technology categories. However, the median amount raised for the latter two categories remains in the four-figure range. There is substantial variation in the success rate of projects falling under different categories. Over two thirds of completed dance projects have been successful. In contrast, fewer than 30% of completed fashion projects have reached their goal. Most failing projects fail to achieve 20% of their goals and this trend applies across all categories. Indeed, over 80% of projects that pass the 20% mark reach their goal.[42]

Categories

[edit]

Creators categorize their projects into one of 13 categories and 36 subcategories.[48] They are: Art, Comics, Dance, Design, Fashion, Film and Video, Food, Games, Music, Photography, Publishing, Technology and Theater. Of these categories, Film & Video and Music are the largest categories and have raised the most money. These categories, along with Games, account for over half the money raised.[42] Video games and tabletop games alone account for more than $2 out of every $10 spent on Kickstarter.[49]

Guidelines

[edit]

To maintain its focus as a funding platform for creative projects, Kickstarter has outlined three guidelines for all project creators to follow: creators can fund projects only; projects must fit within one of the site's 13 creative categories; and creators must abide by the site's prohibited uses, which include charity and awareness campaigns. Kickstarter has additional requirements for hardware and product design projects. These include[50][51]

  • Banning the use of photorealistic renderings and simulations demonstrating a product
  • Banning projects for genetically modified organisms.[52]
  • Limiting awards to single items or a "sensible set" of items relevant to the project (e.g., multiple light bulbs for a house)
  • Requiring a physical prototype
  • Requiring a manufacturing plan

The guidelines are designed to reinforce Kickstarter's position that people are backing projects, not placing orders for a product. To underscore the notion that Kickstarter is a place in which creators and audiences make things together, creators across all categories are asked to describe the risks and challenges a project faces in producing it. This educates the public about the project goals and encourages contributions to the community.[53]

Notable projects and creators

[edit]
At $20.3 million, the Pebble Time is the second-largest successful Kickstarter campaign.

Several creative works have gone on to receive critical acclaim and accolades after being funded on Kickstarter. Others, such as the Ouya console, have resulted in commercial failure.[54] The documentary short "Sun Come Up" and documentary short "Incident in New Baghdad" were each nominated for an Academy Award;[55][56] contemporary art projects "EyeWriter" and "Hip-Hop Word Count" were both chosen to exhibit in the Museum of Modern Art in 2011;[57] filmmaker Matt Porterfield was selected to screen his film Putty Hill at the Whitney Biennial In 2012;[58] author Rob Walker's Hypothetical Futures project exhibited at the 13th International Venice Architecture Biennale;[59] musician Amanda Palmer's album Theatre is Evil debuted at No. 10 on the Billboard 200;[60] designer Scott Wilson won a National Design Award from Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum following the success of his TikTok + LunaTik project;[61] the Kickstarter funded GoldieBlox toy gained nationwide distribution in 2013;[62] and approximately 10% of the films accepted into the Sundance, SXSW and Tribeca Film Festivals are projects funded on Kickstarter.[63][64]

The Glowing Plant project was the first and only synthetic biology campaign on Kickstarter.[65]

The Oculus Rift began as a 2012 Kickstarter project and became one of the most funded projects at the time. The company was then acquired by Facebook two years later for $2 billion.[66] Peloton Interactive sold its first exercise bike on Kickstarter in 2013 with an early bird price tag of $1,500. It became a public company in 2019 via an initial public offering raising $1.1 billion.[67] Cards Against Humanity originated with a $4,000 Kickstarter campaign in 2010.[68][69]

Top projects by funds raised

[edit]
Ten largest successfully completed Kickstarter projects by total funds pledged (only closed fundings are listed)[70]
Rank Total USD Project name Creator Category % funded Backers Closing date
1 41,754,153 Surprise! Four Secret Novels by Brandon Sanderson Dragonsteel Entertainment Publishing 4,175 185,341 31 March 2022
2 20,338,986 Pebble Time – Awesome Smartwatch, No Compromises[71] Pebble Technology Product design 4,067 78,471 27 March 2015
3 13,285,226 Coolest Cooler: 21st Century Cooler that's Actually Cooler[72] Ryan Grepper Product design 26,570 62,642 30 August 2014
4 12,969,608 Frosthaven[73] Cephalofair Games Tabletop games 2,594 83,193 1 May 2020
5 12,779,843 Pebble 2, Time 2 + All-New Pebble Core[74] Pebble Technology Product design 1,277 66,673 30 June 2016
6 12,393,139 Kingdom Death: Monster 1.5[75] Kingdom Death/Adam Poots Tabletop games 12,393 19,264 7 January 2017
7 12,179,651 EcoFlow DELTA Pro: The Portable Home Battery EcoFlow Hardware 12,180 3,199 13 September 2021
8 12,143,435 Travel Tripod by Peak Design[76] Peak Design Product design 2,429 27,168 13 December 2019
9 11,385,449 Critical Role: The Legend of Vox Machina Animated Special[77][78] Critical Role Productions Film 1,518 88,887 19 April 2019
10 10,266,845 Pebble: E-Paper Watch for iPhone and Android[79] Pebble Technology Product design 10,266 68,929 18 May 2012
Top projects by number of backers
Rank Backers Project name Creator Category Total USD Closing date
1 219,382 Exploding Kittens Exploding Kittens Tabletop games 8,782,571 20 February 2015
2 185,341 Surprise! Four Secret Novels by Brandon Sanderson Dragonsteel Entertainment Publishing 41,754,153 31 March 2022
3 154,926 Fidget Cube Matthew and Mark McLachlan Product design 6,465,690 20 October 2016
4 105,857 Bring Reading Rainbow Back for Every Child, Everywhere! LeVar Burton & Reading Rainbow Web 5,408,916 3 July 2014
5 91,585 The Veronica Mars Movie Project Rob Thomas Film 5,702,153 13 April 2013
6 88,887 Critical Role: The Legend of Vox Machina Animated Special[77][78] Critical Role Productions Film 11,385,449 19 April 2019
7 87,142 Double Fine Adventure Double Fine and 2 Player Productions Film/video games 3,336,371 14 March 2012
8 85,581 Bears vs Babies - A Card Game Exploding Kittens Tabletop games 3,215,679 18 November 2016
9 83,193 Frosthaven Cephalofair Games Tabletop games 12,969,608 1 May 2020
10 81,567 Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game Magpie Games Tabletop games 9,535,317 2 September 2021

Project cancellations

[edit]

Both Kickstarter and project creators have cancelled projects that appeared to have been fraudulent. Questions were raised about the projects in internet communities related to the fields of the projects. The concerns raised were: apparent copying of graphics from other sources; unrealistic performance or price claims; and failure of project sponsors to deliver on prior Kickstarter projects.

Some notable cancelled projects include:

  • Eye3 camera drone helicopter for unrealistic performance promises, photos copied from other commercial products, and failure of creators to deliver on an earlier Kickstarter project.[80]
  • Mythic: The Story of Gods and Men adventure game for copying graphics from other games and unrealistic performance promises; the creator had raised $4,739 on an $80,000 goal before canceling the project.[81]
  • Tech-Sync Power System for failing to provide photos of the prototype and sudden departure of project creator.[82]
  • Tentacle Bento, a card game intended to satirize Japanese school girl tentacle rape comics, after being criticized in the online media for having inappropriate content.[83]
  • Kobe Red, a project for jerky made from Kobe beef, was canceled after raising $120,309. The project was allegedly fraudulent.[84]
  • iFind claimed to be a battery-free item locating tag. Critics of the project raised serious doubts about its viability, focusing on its claimed EM harvesting capability and the lack of a working prototype. Kickstarter suspended funding after $546,852 had been raised.[85]
  • The Skarp Laser Razor was cancelled in 2015 by Kickstarter. It had raised $4 million in pledges, but was cancelled after Kickstarter claimed that Skarp had failed to demonstrate a working prototype.[86]

Controversies

[edit]

Projects

[edit]

Many individual Kickstarter projects caused controversy:

  • In May 2011, a New York University film student, Matias Shimada, raised $1,726 to make a film, but plagiarized another film. He later apologized to the public.[87][88]
  • In 2012, Amanda Palmer raised $1.2 million on Kickstarter. She was criticized for asking to have musicians play with her for free on tour, after raising such a large sum.[89]
  • In April 2013, filmmaker Zach Braff used Kickstarter to fund his film Wish I Was Here and raised $2 million in three days, citing the success of Rob Thomas' Veronica Mars Kickstarter as his inspiration. Braff received criticism for using the site, saying his celebrity status would draw attention from other creatives who lack celebrity recognition,[90] the same kind of criticism regarding big figures in the gaming industry using Kickstarter. (One example is Richard Garriott, who created a successful $1+ million Kickstarter despite his personal fortune.)[91] Kickstarter disputed these arguments by claiming, according to their metrics, big name projects attract new visitors, who in turn pledge to lesser-known projects.[92][93]
  • In June 2013, there was controversy over the book Above the Game, a guidebook on seducing women. Outlets pointed out that the advice in the book seemed to encourage sexual assault.[94][95][96] Although Kickstarter received a significant alert, they failed to pull the project. The site eventually wrote a letter of apology and placed a blanket ban on "Seduction guides".[97]
  • On November 6, 2013, writer/director Hal Hartley launched a Kickstarter campaign to produce his upcoming film Ned Rifle, seeking a total of $384,000.[98] On November 25, Hartley added a $9,000 reward tier offering the film's distribution rights for seven years in the United States and other countries, making his Kickstarter campaign the first to propose offering film distribution rights.[99] Subsequently, Kickstarter notified Hartley selling distribution rights is a form of investment, which is forbidden by Kickstarter's terms and conditions, forcing Hartley to remove the option.[100]
  • In May 2014, Kickstarter blocked fundraising for a film about late-term abortion provider Kermit Gosnell. Producer Phelim McAleer claimed Kickstarter censored the project because of its graphic content and espousing a "liberal agenda".[101] In June 2014, the project received approval for fundraising from rival site Indiegogo, raising more than $2.3 million.[102]

Patent disputes

[edit]
  • On September 30, 2011, Kickstarter filed a declaratory judgment suit against ArtistShare in an attempt to invalidate U.S. crowd-funding patent US 7885887, "Methods and apparatuses for financing and marketing a creative work".[103] Kickstarter asked that the patent be invalidated, or, at the very least, that the court find that Kickstarter is not liable for infringement.[104] In February 2012, ArtistShare and Fan Funded responded to Kickstarter's complaint by filing a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. They asserted that patent infringement litigation was never threatened, that "ArtistShare merely approached Kickstarter about licensing their platform, including patent rights", and that "rather than responding to ArtistShare's request for a counter-proposal, Kickstarter filed this lawsuit."[105] The judge ruled that the case could go forward. ArtistShare then responded by filing a counterclaim alleging that Kickstarter was indeed infringing its patent.[106] In June 2015, Kickstarter won its lawsuit, with the judge declaring ArtistShare's patent invalid.[107]
  • On November 21, 2012, 3D Systems filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Formlabs and Kickstarter for infringing its 3D printer patent US 5597520, "Simultaneous multiple-layer curing in stereolithography." Formlabs had raised $2.9 million in a Kickstarter campaign to fund its own competitive printer.[108] The company said that Kickstarter caused "irreparable injury and damage" to its business by promoting the Form 1 printer, and taking a 5% cut of pledged funds.[109] A six-month stay was granted by the judge for settlement talks in which Kickstarter did not participate.[110]
  • On January 23, 2015, Alphacap Ventures LLC filed a patent infringement lawsuit against multiple crowdfunding platforms, including Indiegogo, CircleUp, GoFundMe, Kickstarter, Gust, RocketHub & Innovational Funding, for three patents — US 7848976, US 7908208 and US 8433630.[111] According to Bloomberg, Alphacap Ventures provides strategic, operations, and financial advisory services in the United States along with other financial services.[112] Elsewhere, Alphacap Ventures is described as a patent troll.[113][114]

Data breach

[edit]

In February 2014, Kickstarter announced a data breach of almost 5.2 million users' data, including email addresses, usernames and salted SHA-1 hashes of passwords.[115]

Unionizing efforts

[edit]

On March 19, 2019, Kickstarter's staff announced plans to unionize as part of the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU), which would make Kickstarter the only major tech company to have a union.[116][117] Shortly after the announcement, three senior staffers released a memo dissenting against the decision, claiming that it is too extreme and that it would be a "misappropriation of unions for use by privileged workers."[118] According to Kickstarter employees, they wanted to found a union both for enabling collective bargaining for wages and for "giving employees more clout," allowing them to work for goals that they saw in their interest and the public's interest.[25]

In May, Aziz Hasan, then CEO of Kickstarter, announced that the company would require an election for the union rather than voluntarily recognizing it, saying that "our view is that we are better set up to be successful without the framework of a union."[119]

On September 16, the employees filed a complaint against Kickstarter with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) after two employees were terminated. According to the workers, they were fired for unionizing, although the company says it was for "performance issues."[120][121] After these allegations, some Kickstarter creators have started a campaign against Kickstarter to let its employees unionize.[122][123]

On September 28, Kickstarter confirmed that it would not recognise the unionisation effort. In a statement addressed to project creators, the CEO stated that unionisation would turn workplace relations "inherently adversarial" and that it "doesn't reflect who we are as a company." Additionally, the CEO confirmed that Kickstarter stood by its decision to fire the two employees and would be pursuing legal action to fight their claims.[124] The statement immediately resulted in criticism and calls for boycotts from creators who had previously used the platform,[125] while writer Neil Gaiman tweeted that he would be unlikely to post support for or links to new Kickstarter campaigns "as long as they are anti-union."[126]

Kickstarter employees continued to file complaints to the NLRB, which forced Kickstarter to allow its employees a formal vote on unionization. The vote was held on the morning of February 18, 2020, with 46 voting in favor of joining the OPEIU and 37 voting against.[127] The CEO at the time, Aziz Hasan, said after the vote, "We support and respect this decision, and we are proud of the fair and democratic process that got us here."[128] With this, the OPEIU will now work with the union effort, Kickstarter United, to bargain with Kickstarter management for a contract.[129]

As of May 2, 2020, 60% of the workforce was part of the union.[1]

Blockchain

[edit]

On December 8, 2021, Kickstarter announced a plan to develop a decentralized protocol on blockchain platform Celo to build an open source and blockchain-based crowdfunding infrastructure and then move its own website to that system.[130] The announcement prompted backlash from creators and backers on Twitter, many of whom pledged to abandon Kickstarter if the move went forward.[131][132] On December 15, a week later, Kickstarter responded to the controversy in a blog post that clarified the company's position but did not indicate a change of plans.[132]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Lyons, Kim (2020-05-02). "Kickstarter union reaches agreement with management for laid-off workers". The Verge. Archived from the original on 2020-05-02. Retrieved 2020-05-03. Kickstarter United, the union that represents 60 percent of the company's 140 employees, said the agreement includes four months of severance pay for all laid-off employees, a release from any non-compete agreements for anyone who accepts severance, and recall rights for one year. The company will continue healthcare coverage for any laid-off employees for up to six months, depending on salary.
  2. ^ Isaac, Mike (September 21, 2015). "Kickstarter Focuses Its Mission on Altruism Over Profit". The New York Times.
  3. ^ "Kickstarter crowdfunding site officially launches in Canada". The Canadian Press. 10 September 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  4. ^ Gannes, Liz (May 29, 2010). "Kickstarter: We Don't Have Anything Against Celebrity Projects". All Things D.
  5. ^ "Kickstarter Official Stats". Kickstarter. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  6. ^ Walker, Rob (5 August 2011). "The Trivialities and Transcendence of Kickstarter". The New York Times Magazine.
  7. ^ Garber, Megan (29 June 2013). "Kickstarters of Yore: Mozart, Lady Liberty, Alexander Pope". The Atlantic.
  8. ^ Wauters, Robin (April 29, 2009). "Kickstarter Launches Another Social Fundraising Platform".
  9. ^ Walker, Rob (August 5, 2011). "The Trivialities and Transcendence of Kickstarter". The New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  10. ^ Snyder, Steven James (November 11, 2010). "The 50 Best Inventions of 2010". TIME. Archived from the original on November 14, 2010. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  11. ^ McCracken, Harry (August 16, 2011). "The 50 Best Websites of 2011". TIME. Archived from the original on September 23, 2011. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  12. ^ Kafka, Peter. "Kickstarter Fesses Up: The Crowdsourced Funding Start-Up Has Funding, Too". All Things D. Dow Jones & Company Inc. Retrieved February 7, 2012.
  13. ^ Anderson, Nicole (May 26, 2015). "Kickstarter Headquarters". The Architect's Newspaper. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  14. ^ Delaney, Kevin J. (March 27, 2022). "As Kickstarter Launches a 4-Day Workweek, Its CEO Steps Down". Time.
  15. ^ "Kickstarter for iPhone for iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation), iPod touch (5th generation) and iPad on the iTunes App Store". iTunes. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  16. ^ Dredge, Stuart (January 14, 2013). "Kickstarter? There's now an official iPhone app for that". The Guardian. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  17. ^ Perry Chen; Yancey Strickler; Charles Adler. "Kickstarter in the UK » The Kickstarter Blog — Kickstarter". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  18. ^ "Kickstarter in Canada! » The Kickstarter Blog — Kickstarter", Kickstarter.com, September 9, 2013, retrieved 2013-09-18
  19. ^ a b Starr, Michelle. "Kickstarter officially opens in Australia and New Zealand". CNET. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
  20. ^ Woods, Ben (15 September 2014). "Kickstarter opens up to projects from Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Ireland".
  21. ^ Cortes, Iker (19 May 2015). "Kickstarter llega a España". EL CORREO.
  22. ^ Ho, Victoria (31 August 2016). "Kickstarter opens in Asia, starting in Hong Kong and Singapore". Mashable. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  23. ^ Dickey, Megan Rose (27 July 2017). "Kickstarter co-founder and CEO Yancey Strickler will step down this year". Techcrunch. Retrieved 2017-07-27.
  24. ^ Carman, Ashley (2020-04-20). "Kickstarter plans layoffs after new projects on the site drop off by 35 percent". The Verge. Archived from the original on 2020-04-20. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
  25. ^ a b Covert, Bryce (2020-05-27). "How Kickstarter Employees Formed a Union". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Archived from the original on 2020-05-28. Retrieved 2020-05-30.
  26. ^ "Kickstarter plans to move its crowdfunding platform to the blockchain – TechCrunch". Techcrunch.com. 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
  27. ^ Schwartz, Leo; Mathews, Jessica (2024-03-11). "The untold story of Kickstarter's crypto Hail Mary—and the secret $100 million a16z-led investment to save its fading brand". Fortune. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  28. ^ Villano, Matt (March 14, 2010). "Small Donations in Large Numbers, With Online Help". The New York Times.
  29. ^ Gould, Emily. "Start me up". Technology Review. MIT. Archived from the original on January 17, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  30. ^ Musgrove, Mike (March 7, 2010). "At Play: Kickstarter is a Web site for the starving artist". The Washington Post.
  31. ^ "Kickstarter starts welcoming UK creators with projects launching Oct. 31". GigaOM. October 10, 2012. Archived from the original on October 6, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2012.
  32. ^ Kickstarter Allowing Canada-Based Projects Beginning This Summer. TechCrunch (2013-06-27). Retrieved on 2013-09-21.
  33. ^ "Creators – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  34. ^ "Creators – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  35. ^ "Help Center — Kickstarter". kickstarter.com.
  36. ^ "Kickstarter FAQ If I am unable to complete my project as listed, what should I do?". kickstarter.com.
  37. ^ "Adrianne Jeffries, "Jellyfish Tanks, Funded 54 Times Over on Kickstarter, Turn Out to Be Jellyfish Death Traps UPDATED", BetaBeat, March 15, 2012". Betabeat. 15 March 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  38. ^ "Kevin Stout, "Kickstarter, Pros and Cons", 148Apps.biz, April 23, 2012". Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  39. ^ Davison, Hallie. "THE Q&A: PERRY CHEN, KICKSTARTER". More Intelligent Life. The Economist. Archived from the original on 28 May 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2015.
  40. ^ Strickler, Yancey. "Kickstarter Stats".
  41. ^ "Kickstarter Stats". Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  42. ^ a b c "Kickstarter Stats". Kickstarter. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  43. ^ "2011: The Stats", February 11, 2015, Kickstarter.com, accessed February 11, 2015.
  44. ^ "Double Fine Kickstarter hits 3 million, drive closing on Ustream", Joystiq, March 13, 2012, Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  45. ^ Carl Franzen "Crowd-Funding Website Kickstarter Has Double Million Dollar Day Archived 2012-02-14 at the Wayback Machine", TPM, February 10, 2012, Retrieved February 11, 2012
  46. ^ Bogart, Nicole. "'Coolest Cooler' beats Pebble to become top Kickstarter project". Global News.
  47. ^ Mollick, Ethan R. (June 26, 2013). "The Dynamics of Crowdfunding: An Exploratory Study". Journal of Business Venturing. 29 (1): 1–16. doi:10.2139/ssrn.2088298. S2CID 53612446. SSRN 2088298.
  48. ^ "Discover – Kickstarter". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  49. ^ "What Is Kickstarter For? Video Games". Airbrite. November 13, 2013. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014.
  50. ^ "Eric Blattberg, "Kickstarter Bans Project Renderings, Adds 'Risks and Challenges' Section, Crowdsourcing.org 21 September 2012". www.crowdsourcing.org. Archived from the original on 17 October 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  51. ^ "Mark Milian, "After Raising Money on Kickstarter, Side Project Lands Another $3 million", Bloomberg Tech Deals, 6 September 2012". Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  52. ^ "Cha, Ariana Eunjung, "Glowing plants spark environmental debate" The Seattle Times 5 October 2013". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 20 October 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  53. ^ "Kickstarter Is Not a Store". Kickstarter.
  54. ^ "The stillborn revolution: Ouya fails to sell, developer seeks buyout - ExtremeTech". 2 September 2014.
  55. ^ "The Love Story Behind Oscar Nominee Sun Come Up". NPR. February 26, 2011.
  56. ^ Montgomery, David (February 21, 2012). "Incident in New Baghdad: What Happened in Iraq?". The Washington Post.
  57. ^ "Talk to Me – MoMA". MoMA.org. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
  58. ^ "Matt Porterfield". whitney.org. Archived from the original on June 18, 2012. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
  59. ^ Titunik, Vera (May 15, 2012). "Real Designs For Fake Buildings Are Going to Venice". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 21, 2012.
  60. ^ Caulfield, Keith (September 19, 2012). "Dave Matthews Band Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200". Billboard.
  61. ^ "National Design Awards". CooperHewitt.org. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
  62. ^ Taylor, Colleen (2 July 2013). "GoldieBlox, The Toy That Aims To Get Girls Hooked On Engineering, Is Coming To A Toys 'R' Us Near You". TechCrunch. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  63. ^ Carr, David (January 30, 2012). "At Sundance, Kickstarter Resembled a Movie Studio, but Without the Egos". The New York Times.
  64. ^ Watercutter, Angela (March 9, 2012). "When SXSW Money Crunch Hits, Kickstarter Comes to the Rescue". Wired.
  65. ^ Schwartz, Ariel. "One of the most controversial Kickstarter campaigns in history is dead — here's the product that actually got made". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  66. ^ "Oculus Rift: From $2.4 million Kickstarter to $2 billion sale". 28 March 2014.
  67. ^ Metcalf, Tom; Verhage, Julie (September 15, 2019). "Peloton founder goes from Kickstarter to a $450 million fortune". Bloomberg News – via The Detroit News.
  68. ^ Souppouris, Aaron (May 18, 2013). "How the $4,000 'Cards Against Humanity' Kickstarter became a multi-million dollar business". The Verge.
  69. ^ Basak, Sonali; Porter, Kiel (July 27, 2021). "Cards Against Humanity Is Exploring a Possible Sale". Bloomberg News.
  70. ^ "Discover >> Most Funded - Kickstarter". kickstarter.com. 31 March 2022.
  71. ^ "Pebble Time - Awesome Smartwatch, No Compromises". Kickstarter. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  72. ^ "COOLEST COOLER: 21st Century Cooler that's Actually Cooler". Kickstarter. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  73. ^ "Frosthaven". Kickstarter. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  74. ^ "Pebble 2, Time 2 + All-New Pebble Core". Kickstarter. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  75. ^ "Kingdom Death: Monster 1.5". Kickstarer. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
  76. ^ "Travel Tripod by Peak Design". Kickstarter. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  77. ^ a b "Critical Role: The Legend of Vox Machina Animated Special". Kickstarter. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  78. ^ a b Whitten, Sarah (2019-04-19). "'Dungeons and Dragons' Kickstarter breaks record with $11.3 million campaign". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
  79. ^ "Pebble: E-Paper Watch for iPhone and Android". Kickstarter. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  80. ^ "Evan Ackerman "Update:Eye3 Drone Officially Too Good to be True", IEEE Spectrum January 31, 2012". 31 January 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  81. ^ Adrianne Jeffries. "This Is What a Kickstarter Scam Looks Like". Betabeat.
  82. ^ "Adrian Jeffries, "When Kickstarter Goes Wrong: Were 419 Backers Almost Taken for a $27,637 Ride?", BetaBeat, September 15, 2011". Betabeat. 15 September 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  83. ^ Kirk Hamilton (17 May 2012). "Creator of 'Satirical' Tentacle-Rape Game Apologizes". Kotaku. Gawker Media.
  84. ^ "Pepitone, Julianne, "Kickstarter pulls plug on scam minutes before $120,000 heist", CNN Money, 17 June 2013". CNNMoney. 17 June 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  85. ^ "Lester Haines "Kickstarter unplugs iFind miracle battery-free locator", The Register June 27, 2014". The Register. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  86. ^ Vincent, James. (13 October 2015). "$4 million laser razor campaign banned from Kickstarter is already on Indiegogo", The Verge. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  87. ^ Tanzer, Myles (May 9, 2011). "NYU Tisch Student Makes Plagiarized Film To Win Festival Prize After Raising $1,700 On Kickstarter · NYU Local". NYU Local. Retrieved June 23, 2011.
  88. ^ Sam Biddle (9 May 2011). "NYU Film Student Plagiarizes His Way to Kickstarter Fame". Gizmodo.
  89. ^ Clover, Joshua. "The Amanda Palmer Kickstarter Scandal". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2013-06-03.
  90. ^ Amos Barshad. "Thanks to Kickstarter, Zach Braff Finally Has Millions of Dollars".
  91. ^ Steven Bogos (2013-03-12). "The Escapist : News : Richard Garriott Explains Why He Needs a $1 Million Kickstarter". Escapistmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-03. Retrieved 2013-06-03.
  92. ^ · 35 comments (2012-03-29). "Blockbuster Effects » The Kickstarter Blog — Kickstarter". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved 2013-06-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  93. ^ Best Inventions of 2010 (2013-05-09). "Who is Kickstarter for? » The Kickstarter Blog — Kickstarter". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved 2013-06-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  94. ^ Dunn, Gaby (24 June 2013). "Reddit pick-up artist issues mea culpa after Kickstarter controversy". Daily Dot. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  95. ^ Baker, Katie J.M (19 June 2013). "Redditor's PUA Kickstarter Project Recommends Sexual Assault". Jezebel. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  96. ^ Dredge, Stuart (21 June 2013). "Kickstarter bans 'seduction guides' after Above The Game controversy". Guardian. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  97. ^ Ha, Anthony (21 June 2013). "Kickstarter Says It Was Wrong About 'Above The Game' Campaign, Bans Future 'Seduction Guides'". Techcrunch. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  98. ^ "NED RIFLE by Hal Hartley". Kickstarter. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  99. ^ Bernstein, Paula (November 25, 2013). "Hal Hartley Explains Why He is Offering Distribution Rights to 'Ned Rifle' as Kickstarter Backer Reward". Indiewire. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  100. ^ Saperstein, Pat (November 25, 2013). "Updated: Hal Hartley Can't Offer Distribution Rights as Kickstarter Reward". Variety. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  101. ^ Bond, Paul (May 2014). "Filmmaker Accuses Kickstarter of Censoring 'Gosnell' Abortion Movie". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
  102. ^ "Gosnell Movie". Indiegogo. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
  103. ^ Jan Wolfe (19 February 2013). "Jan Wolfe, "ArtistShare Can't Show Kickstarter Infringes Crowd-Funding Patent" The AM Law Litigation Daily, 19 February 2013". Litigation Daily. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  104. ^ Sarah Jacobsson Purewal (October 5, 2011). "Kickstarter Faces Patent Suit Over Funding Idea". PCWorld. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
  105. ^ Eriq Gardner (February 16, 2012). "Hollywood Docket: Comedy Club Documentary Lawsuit; Michael Jordan vs. 1st Amendment". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 23, 2012.
  106. ^ Jeffries, Adrianne (14 May 2012). "Kickstarter Wins Small Victory in Patent Lawsuit With 2000-Era Crowdfunding Site". BetaBeat. The New York Observer. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  107. ^ "Kickstarter Wins Crowdfunding Patent Lawsuit Against ArtistShare". Crowdfund Insider. 29 June 2015.
  108. ^ "Joseph Flaherty, "3D Systems Sues Formlabs and Kickstarter for Patent Infringement" Wired, 21 November 2012". WIRED. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  109. ^ ""Kickstarter Sued: Formlabs 3D Printer Accused Of Patent Breach" Huffington Post, 21 November 2012". The Huffington Post UK. 22 November 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  110. ^ "3D Systems gets 6-month stay for settlement talks over patent lawsuit". Archived from the original on 2015-02-12. Retrieved 2015-01-30.
  111. ^ "Details Emerge on Patent Lawsuit Against Multiple Crowdfunding Platforms". Crowdfund Insider. 2015-01-29. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  112. ^ "Details Emerge on Patent Lawsuit Against Multiple Crowdfunding Platforms". Bloomberg News. 27 May 2023.
  113. ^ "Patent troll targets crowdfunding startups — Innovation Act could stop that". VentureBeat. 2015-02-11. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  114. ^ "Alice Decision Saves Crowdfunding From Patent Troll". Electronic Frontier Foundation. 2017-10-05. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  115. ^ "Kickstarter hacked, user data stolen". Cnet. 15 February 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
  116. ^ Stephen, Bijan (2019-03-19). "Kickstarter's staff is unionizing". The Verge. Vox Media. Archived from the original on 2019-08-24. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  117. ^ Perry, Tekla S. (2019-05-06). "Kickstarter Workers Kick Off a Union Organizing Drive; NPM Allegedly Fires Engineers for Organizing Efforts". IEEE Spectrum. Archived from the original on 2019-05-06. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  118. ^ Menegus, Bryan (2019-03-21). "Kickstarter Union Opposed by Senior Employees: Leaked Memo". Gizmodo. Archived from the original on 2019-09-15. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  119. ^ Stephen, Bijan (2019-05-15). "Kickstarter will not voluntarily recognize its employee union". The Verge. Archived from the original on 2019-09-15. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  120. ^ Gurley, Lauren Kaori (2019-09-18). "Workers Accuse Kickstarter of Union-Busting in Federal Complaint". Vice. Archived from the original on 2019-09-22. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  121. ^ Davis, Vincy (2019-09-18). "Kickstarter's union-busting triggers the need of unions in tech". Packt Hub. Archived from the original on 2019-09-27. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  122. ^ Jamieson, Dave (2019-09-14). "Kickstarter's Union Opposition Puts Users In A Bind: 'It's Toxic Now'". HuffPost. Archived from the original on 2019-09-24. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  123. ^ Hall, Charlie (2019-09-16). "Kickstarter under fire from creators over labor dispute". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2019-09-18. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
  124. ^ Robinson, Nathan J. (2019-09-28). "Kickstarter To Workers And Project Creators: Drop Dead". Current Affairs. Archived from the original on 2019-09-29. Retrieved 2019-09-29.
  125. ^ Wieland, Rob (1 October 2019). "Can Small Businesses Navigate Tabletop Industry Turbulence?". Forbes. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
  126. ^ Neil Gaiman [@neilhimself] (29 September 2019). "To clarify, I'm not calling for a boycott of @Kickstarter. I'm saying that, in good conscience, I'm very unlikely to post support for or links to Kickstarters here, as long as they are anti-union. That's a personal view" (Tweet). Retrieved 1 October 2019 – via Twitter.
  127. ^ Jamieson, Dave (18 February 2020). "Kickstarter Workers Vote To Unionize". HuffPost. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  128. ^ Hall, Charlie (18 February 2020). "Kickstarter employees vote to unionize, relieving tension among game developers". Polygon. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  129. ^ Perry, Alex (18 February 2020). "Kickstarter employees vote to unionize in historic first for tech industry". Mashable. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  130. ^ Davalos, Jackie (8 December 2021). "Kickstarter Will Move Its Crowdfunding Platform to Blockchain". Bloomberg. Bloomberg. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  131. ^ MacDonald, Heidi (9 December 2021). "Kickstarter's switch to crypto platform alarms creators". The Beat. Superlime Media LLC. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  132. ^ a b Morse, Jack (16 December 2021). "Kickstarter said it's moving to the blockchain, and creators are pissed". Mashable. Mashable, Inc. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
[edit]