Irish launch for Kickstarter funding community
With more than $1bn (€771m) pledged to almost 70,000 funding projects over the last five years, Kickstarter is coming to Irish shores on the back of significant success to date.
While Irish users have been able to launch funding campaigns on the site up to now, the process is about to become substantially easier from today, according to Kickstarter spokesperson, Julie Wood.
“Right now if you live in Ireland, you can only launch if you can find a business partner in one of the six countries in which the service is currently available; it’s actually not that easy but people have managed to do it,” said Ms Wood.
Fewer than 100 Irish people have launched on the site since it was set up in 2009, including the makers of the The Good Reactor documentary — filmmakers Frankie Fenton and Des Kelleher.
The website is aimed particularly at people with creative ideas who may have previously struggled to get access to funding.
Users build a project page outlining their idea, set the monetary target they wish to raise, offer rewards to potential backers and, hopefully, let the cash roll in.
If the target isn’t reached however, the project is null and void and all the money raised returned to the backers.
Of the 175,000 campaigns launched on the site, 40% have been successful.
