Courtesy: WobbleWorks LLC

Most of us are familiar with the mega-funded campaigns that have taken Kickstarter by storm over the past year, most notably Pebble.

Last week, another mega-funded project has quickly risen to join the ranks of these iconic campaigns. That project is 3Doodler. 

3Doodler is described as a pen that allows you to “draw in the air.” It sounds crazy, but the project video (shown below) gives a glimpse into how it works. To explain it simply, it’s a pen that uses a variation of standard 3D printing technology.

The project was launched on February 18 with an initial humble goal of $30K and is already at about $1.9M. Kicktraq shows a projected final funding amount of ~$8M, though the project creators have begun to limit the availability of each reward tier, so it’s likely that, in a similar fashion to what was seen with the Pebble campaign, funding will hit a ceiling.

So if you’re interested in getting your hands on 3Doodler before that happens, go ahead and check out their project now. Otherwise, you’ll be able to find it on TinyLightbulbs later this year.

Courtesy: Mirza Minds

This week we’re focusing on a project that has a mission to share its success: 1:Face Watches on Indiegogo.

These watches, in addition to being beautifully designed and presented, also serve to allow the individuals wearing them to participate in one of six different charities.

The way this works is fairly straightforward. The guys over at Mirza Minds have chosen six charities: One Day’s Wages, Charity:Water, The National Breast Cancer Foundation, The Adventure Project, Keep a Child Alive, and the American Cancer Society, each represented by a different color of watch.

Each watch that’s sold translates into a certain amount of money that is donated to the corresponding charity. The breakdown can be seen below:

Courtesy: Mirza Minds

We think this is a pretty awesome idea, and have backed the project ourselves. Why not head on over to their project page and do the same?

Yesterday evening, Kickstarter announced a set of new project guidelines: 

1) Project creators are required to outline potential risks and challenges they may face throughout their project, and how they are able to overcome them. 

(The following guidelines affect Hardware and Product Design projects)

2) Product simulations are prohibited. Projects cannot simulate events to demonstrate what a product might do in the future, and can only be shown performing actions that they’re able to perform in their current state of development.

3) Product renderings are prohibited. Product images must be photos of the prototype as it currently exists.

4) Multiple quantities of a product as a reward are prohibited. Only one unit of any product can be offered to a backer.

These guidelines have not arrived without significant resistance from the site’s users (we've shown just a few comments in the image above).

Not much criticism has come up regarding the first guideline, as it seems to be a sensible request to ask of creators. But the next three guidelines are sparking controversy.

One of the biggest criticisms being voiced is that these new guidelines are, in a word, ironic. They were announced under the general statement of “Kickstarter is Not a Store”, though, as many individuals have commented on the blog post where they were posted, they will inevitably increase the amount of projects showcasing finished products and decrease the amount of projects showcasing a blossoming idea.

In other words, individuals with great ideas who are lacking the funds to bring them to life will likely struggle even more, as backers will be less likely to invest money in a project consisting of a makeshift prototype that doesn’t give justice to the final design of the product (through the use of images such as renderings). So how can project creators combat this problem? By gathering enough funds to produce a polished product able convey the final concept.

But isn’t that what Kickstarter is for? If a project creator has enough money to bring his product to a near-final/final stage, doesn’t that defeat the purpose of Kickstarter (and this recent announcement), as the creator would essentially be selling a product that already exists?

Finally, the guideline prohibiting the offering of multiple quantities of a product is leading many project creators to question whether or not they will be able to easily reach their campaign goals. By offering multiple quantities, a project can very quickly accrue a large amount of money, due to the presence of higher priced reward levels. Restricting rewards to only one product, however, will lead to higher priced reward levels (with fewer rewards coming from the level), an overall decrease in the amount of pledges to Hardware and Product Design projects, and therefore lower campaign totals.

It will be interesting to see how Kickstarter responds, if at all, to the community’s backlash. What’s clear at this point is that the general response from Kickstarter users, both creators and backers, is that these new guidelines are unwelcome.

And, while Kickstarter has made it clear that they are not a store for crowdfunded products, you can rest assured that TinyLightbulbs certainly is.

What are your thoughts on this announcement? Do you think that these guidelines will benefit or hurt the Kickstarter community? Let us know in the comments below.

Courtesy: Gawker

We occasionally like to take a look at crowdfunding projects that don’t involve a product as the end result. While gadgets and accessories are a large portion of what’s coming from crowdfunding today, there are many other projects that are just as newsworthy.

Earlier this year, a video was uploaded to YouTube by several middle schoolers, showing them harassing Karen Klein, a 68-year-old bus monitor. The video is, to say the least, pretty hard to watch. Once the video had been uploaded, it began to garner a significant amount of attention.

After watching the video, one individual decided to take action. Max Sidorov immediately set up a campaign on Indiegogo with the goal of raising $5,000 to pay for Karen to take a short vacation from her $15K/year job.

What resulted far exceeded Max’s initial expectations.

Individuals from over 80 countries banded together through this crowdfunding campaign and donated a total of over $700,000.

Karen will obviously be taking a little more than just a vacation. And with this newly acquired wealth, Karen has decided to use $100,000 to begin her own anti-bullying foundation. Additionally, she is already planning on a series of speaking dates.

Courtesy: Clip Tree

This week’s project spotlight is showcasing an inventive product that was launched just a few days ago.

The project is Clip Tree. 

The concept behind Clip Tree is very simple, and combined with a great minimalist design and presentation, it quickly caught our attention.

Clip Tree is a sleek valet featuring a variety of different clips that can be attached in order to provide different functions. Some examples of the clips that are available are: hook, bowl, tray, peg, mirror, and more.

As you can see above, the possible uses for Clip Tree are seemingly limitless. It can be used as a coat rack, a key/smartphone tray, or whatever else your imagination can come up with.

If you’d like to take a closer look at Clip Tree and support the project, you can do that here.

The most recent one we found gives some great insight into several aspects of Kickstarter, such as the factors that increase a project’s chance at success, which categories see the highest percentage of successful projects, and more.

Another reason we love this infographic? It referenced a project we were previously unaware of: Motivational Tapes for Cats. Stumbling across that little gem alone makes us happy we found this. 

Courtesy: OnlineBusinessDegree

It’s no secret that there have been several very successful video game projects that have shown up this year on the crowdfunding scene.

If you’ve even remotely been paying attention over the last several months, it’s likely that you’ve come across projects such as Double Fine Adventure, Wasteland 2, Ouya, and most recently, Homestuck (which raised an impressive $500,000 in its first day).

But did you know that the game category on Kickstarter has already brought in a whopping $50 million this year? That’s just this year so far. There’s still 4 months left.

It’s true - gamers of all types have spoken loud and clear and shown the online community that they’re really into independently funded games. While the game category does include products such as board games, it is usually the video games that rake in the ultra funding, as well as much of the attention. 

To give you an idea of just how quickly this category is expanding: In 2009 the game category didn’t even bring in a total of $50,000 on Kickstarter. In 2010, that figure jumped to just over $500,000. In 2011, the total was $3.6 million. 

And now, just 2/3 of the way through 2012, it’s already at $50 million.

If that doesn’t make the established players in the gaming industry just a little nervous, I don’t know what would.

Have you ever participated in or created a crowdfunded game project? Let us know in the comments below.

Courtesy: ThingsWeStart

There’s a new site that launched today with the mission of providing an easy to use interface that will allow users to view current Kickstarter projects based on location.

The site is ThingsWeStart. It’s a very interesting idea, and we have yet to see anything like this until now.

Anyone who’s tried to search for crowdfunding projects knows that it can sometimes be a tedious task if you want to add any sort of filter to the search. Things We Start makes this process a breeze by displaying a realtime map that pinpoints the locations of any projects within your search parameters.

Looking for all design projects in Seattle? No problem. Just select the category of project and zoom into the map to see what projects are getting funded right now in that area.

In addition to searching by location and category, users can also view projects based on funding amount. If you want to see projects that are close to being fully funded, simply select the “Almost There” option, and you’ll be given a list of projects that just need a final push to become successful.

ThingsWeStart is a fun, interactive alternative to the search function on Kickstarter, and we definitely recommend giving it a try. 

Courtesy: BugASalt

Several days ago, we came across a project on Indiegogo that is unlike any other project we’ve seen – BugASalt.

The BugASalt is a miniaturized toy shotgun, which has been designed as an “insect eradication device.”

In short, it functions by shooting a lethal pinch of salt at any unwelcome insects you may have around, taking them down in an instant. The device is most accurate within a range of approximately 3 feet.

When we first saw this project, we were blown away by the creativity of it. If you don’t already have the same reaction as we did, we suggest re-reading the previous few sentences …

It’s a salt shotgun that’s used on insects.

If ever the word “creative” should be applied to a project, this is the time. We love seeing quirky ideas like this come about through crowdfunding, and definitely think that this deserves some recognition.

The BugASalt is currently in its final days on Indiegogo, and has already raised an impressive $500,000.

Go ahead and check out the project here.

Click here to buy the Padprop

Want to know some of the variables that come into play in deciding which one of those groups a project winds up in?

How about the percentage of projects that end up delivering their rewards within the estimated timeframe?

Have we got just the thing for you.

Below is a very well done infographic put together by AppsBlogger illustrating some interesting Kickstarter numbers you may not have been aware of. It’s definitely worth taking a look at, whether you’re a creator looking to start your own project or just curious about the process itself.

Courtesy: AppsBlogger

Courtesy: Film Finance Awards

Every year, the Film Finance Awards take place, where, according to the official website, “governments organizations, the investment community and individuals working on behalf of and within the film industry and film finance communities will be recognized for their achievements in over twenty categories of investment.”

Yesterday, the Film Finance Awards announced a partnership with the National Crowdfunding Association, or NLCFA. This partnership will ultimately lead to the creation of the Film Crowdfunding Awards, where individuals who have sought funding for the independent film through crowdfunding platforms will be recognized.

Yet another indication of the proliferation of crowdfunding into even more industries. And, after quickly browsing the pages of Kickstarter and Indiegogo projects, it’s easy to see why the area of film is drawing much attention in the crowdfunding context.

David Marlett, Founder and Executive Director of the NLCFA, states, "The film industry is perfect for crowdfunding, and crowdfunding is perfect for it … Besides being a means for financing some or all of a film's budget, crowdfunding provides a brilliantly unique opportunity for 'putting a project up on its virtual feet', to get a sense for the appetite of the crowd (its future audience)."

Marlett adds, “with the advent of investment crowdfunding in 2013, we are about to see an enormous spike in film crowdfunding competition.  The Film Crowdfunding Awards will highlight the cream of those campaigns, and inspire others in perfecting their film crowdfunding campaigns."

This year’s Film Finance Awards are scheduled for December 5, 2012 in Poland, and will follow the traditional format, without recognizing crowdfunding. However, the 2013 Film Finance Awards will mark the beginning of the Film Crowdfunding Awards.

What are your thoughts? Do you think these awards will be able to bring even more focus to crowdfunded films? Will crowdfunded films ever attain such a large piece of the market that they require their own event? Let us know in the comments below.

Courtesy: L7 World

This morning, NPR’s All Things Considered covered the story of Ouya, one of the most recent million dollar projects on Kickstarter. For those of you that have been living under a rock, Ouya is an open-source gaming console that is scheduled to make its debut early next year.

The focus of the story was on what happens when Kickstarter projects don’t go exactly as planed. Which, as a side note, we think is a very odd direction that NPR took for the article, as Ouya was incredibly successful and definitely has the funding to follow through with the initial concept. Nevertheless, the interview did open up the potential for further discussion.

NPR’s Aarti Shahani interviewed the brains behind Ouya, Julie Uhrman, and asked her, among other things, what would happen if she and her team could not deliver on the promise of bringing the console to market. Uhrman suggested that the question be taken to Kickstarter, though she would treat her backers in the “best possible way”.

Kickstarter’s Yancey Strickler answered the same question stating that there has yet to be a case surrounding a failed project where Kickstarter has become involved.

The unfortunate fact is that there are, occasionally, projects that don’t live up to the expectations of the backers. It’s possible that this hasn’t garnered enough attention yet due to the fact that, more often than not, backers are rewarded with the product as promised.

But what happens when a project’s creator doesn’t deliver the product whatsoever? This certainly has occurred a couple times, and may be a topic for discussion in a future blog post, and it presents an interesting situation that may need to be fully addressed as crowdfunding becomes even more mainstream.

If you’d like to read more of NPR’s interview with Julie Uhrman, you can do that here.

Courtesy: Crearri

While browsing through some current crowdfunding campaigns this week, we came across one that quickly caught our attention. We’ve seen several projects involving wallets before, but this one really impressed us – Keylet.

Keylet is designed by Crearri, a team made up of Anthony Hoang and Nhu Truong. It’s their first Kickstarter project, and they have definitely made a very good first impression entering into the crowdfunding scene.

We’re pretty big fans of minimalism, and we feel that the guys behind this product executed the concept excellently. Keylet is a very slim, sleek multifunctional wallet that will make you wish you weren’t carrying around whatever chunk of leather you’re currently using as a wallet. 

The wallet is made from stainless steel (always a great material for a sleek, modern look) and features a simple money clip to hold your cash/cards. What sets the Keylet apart from the crowd, however, is that it is designed to hold two keys that swivel out from the body of the wallet.

That’s right, no more having to worry about jingling, bulky keys on a keyring anymore. The Keylet includes two keys, which can be easily be cut at a local hardware store. If you carry around more than two keys, these guys have a solution for you as well in the Key Caddy, a similar device that holds additional keys and matches the aesthetics of the Keylet.

If we’ve piqued your interest, go ahead and check out the Keylet now. 

This morning, we came across as a fantastic infographic from OpenSite that demonstrates just how powerful the Internet can be. When individuals come together and form a community on one or multiple platforms, such as those seen in crowdfunding, the magnitude of influence that may result is incredible.

Check out the infographic below.

For the second installment of our “Why Crowdfunding” series, we didn’t have to think for very long before we came up with another great reason crowdfunding is so infectious.

Reason #2: Crowdfunding provides almost immediate consumer feedback for inventors, often times before manufacturing of the product has even begun.

When inventors decide to take their ideas to a crowdfunding platform, they are essentially testing the waters of the target market before diving in head first.

As is often the case in crowdfunding projects, chances are there was (relatively) minimal investment and risk on the part of the inventor leading up to the project launch. If the product is a dud, while it is very disappointing to have a failed project, the inventor can move forward without having to figure out how to cope with significant losses.

However, if the product is received positively, then the inventor knows there is genuine interest in the product and its chances in the target market are very good. As the inventor has gathered an audience of interested consumers, they can then provide crucial feedback regarding what they like about the product and what can be improved. And, as mentioned earlier, this typically comes before the inventor has begun manufacturing the product, which allows for adjustments to be made before the product fully develops and becomes a reality.

This feedback is the kind of stuff people could easily end up forking over big bucks for in any other scenario. But in crowdfunding, it’s built right into the entire experience.

More feedback = tweaking of products = higher quality products = happier consumers. Sounds pretty good to us.

Courtesy: Kickstarter

While running a successful crowdfunding campaign can be an incredibly exciting and rewarding experience, things don’t always go as planned.

What happens when you’ve prepared your idea, set your goal, launched the campaign and then … nothing happens? One creative individual shared his lessons learned when he experienced just that.

After Nelson de Witt successfully steered two Kickstarter campaigns to their happy endings, he decided to try his hand at a third. His campaign involved a photojournalism project with the aim of producing a book made up of his street photography.

Unfortunately, the third time was definitely not the charm in Nelson’s case. The response that he had hoped for never came. Instead, he was met with a disappointing lack of pledges and overall buzz surrounding his project. This led him to cancel it shortly after it was launched.

But Nelson’s less than ideal experience allowed him an opportunity to reflect on the different components of what can distinguish a successful campaign from one that doesn’t meet its goal.

Among some of these takeaways are: prepare a prototype before launching, know what stage your project is in before launching, and seek feedback from other parties before launching. A common theme here is to do your homework before launching, and not after. Very sound advice that may potentially save headaches down the road. 

In the end, though the outcome was not what was expected, Nelson was able to assess his unsuccessful campaign, gain insights from it, and pass those insights on to others. We think that’s a pretty cool way to deal with the situation.

Courtesy: KillerSites

As we’ve observed through recent blog posts, the crowdfunding industry is certainly expanding its reach into increasingly more areas. With the arrival of platforms that focus on crowdfunding projects other than the production of physical products, it’s hard to ignore the many applications that are becoming available through this phenomenon.

Having said that, we came across an article this morning that proposes just the opposite – that the primary focus in crowdfunding is perhaps shifting further away from projects such as documentaries, and further towards the realm of bringing products, like those found here at TinyLightbulbs, to market.

I thought that was an interesting idea, and would tend to agree to some extent. What I’d say is possibly more accurate is that there is an overall expansion of crowdfunding applications in terms of the different platforms that are beginning to develop, but the platforms that have existed at the forefront of the industry are beginning to experience higher traffic from “product-centered projects”.

What are your thoughts? Is crowdfunding becoming more about bringing products to fruition or are the primary uses continuing to grow? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Courtesy: idrawcomics.net

Earlier this week, Matt Marrocco, a designer from Chicago, launched his second project: I DRAW COMICS Sketchbook & Reference Guide. If the project name sounds familiar to you, you may have seen this one already this week, or perhaps you came across Matt’s original project from last year (I DRAW CARS).

This unique project follows in the footsteps of the I DRAW CARS Sketchbook & Reference Guide but, as you have most likely gathered, with a focus on comics instead. The book is packed full of useful tips on how to create each element of a comic, including body proportions, heads, storytelling, and even the page layout.

In addition to his love of sketching, Matt brings an impressive amount of experience to this project as he has teamed up with several artists, such as Ryan Stegman, an artist for Marvel.

So whether you’re an avid comic book geek or just a fan of sketching, we recommend you head on over to Kickstarter and take a look at I DRAW COMICS. And while you’re at it, you can pick up a copy of I DRAW CARS here at TinyLightbulbs.

Courtesy: lakecountyil.gov

Until recently, if you described an Internet experience that involved ordinary individuals getting involved online with farming, you’d most likely think that the subject at hand was Farmville.

Thankfully, that’s not what today’s blog post is about (you’re welcome).

Instead, there’s a new crowdfunding platform that’s cropping up (forgive me, I had to) as we speak that is trying to break into new crowdfunding territory. The site is Fquare, and it basically follows the same format as existing crowdfunding sites, but with a focus in real estate.

From what I gather, it looks as though Fquare will allow individuals to invest in property, such as farmland, by the square foot. In the context of farmland, this would play out as a group of investors purchasing land from an individual farmer and then leasing it back to the farmer at a low interest rate.

Fquare doesn’t look to be limited solely to the trading of farmlands, however, and also appears to facilitate this process with other types of properties as well. As Fquare has just recently launched, its usefulness remains to be seen, but it certainly has piqued our interest.

What do you think of the concept of crowdfunding land? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: Fortune 

Did you know that here at TinyLightbulbs we take a portion of our revenue and pump it directly back into crowdfunding projects?  Yep, it’s something that we pride ourselves in, and one of the ways that we feel we provide an awesome pre- and post-crowdfunding experience.

When TinyLightbulbs was born, we initially built it around the idea that we would take care of the “What comes next?” question many inventors have after running a successful crowdfunding campaign. And while this is a very large part of what we do, it’s certainly not the only thing.

We love the fact that we can offer a great experience both before and after a crowdfunding campaign has ended, and supporting projects that are still taking place is one way we feel we can contribute more to the crowdfunding community.

At this point, we are currently funding approximately three projects a week, but as we continue to grow, that number will too.

So we want to thank all of our customers, as well as the inventors of the products on TinyLightbulbs, for the growing support you have shown us. We have some very exciting news in the coming weeks and months that we can’t wait to share with you, and hope you are excited about what’s coming up next as well.

Courtesy: Bloomberg

Just days ago, the FSA (Financial Services Authority), a regulator of financial services in the UK, issued a statement to the public regarding what they believe the dangers of crowdfunding to be. In the statement, the FSA warns that crowdfunding websites may be better suited for experienced investors, rather than everyday individuals wanting to invest their money in what they perceive to be a great idea.

The statement applies more so to crowdfunding platforms dealing with equity based crowdfunding (i.e. instead of backers pledging a dollar amount in return for a perk or reward such as a physical product, backers receive shares in the company itself).

They reason that evaluating the potential of a startup is a process that involves a high amount of skill, and should not be taken lightly. If the startup takes longer than expected to become profitable, the investors may not see a return on their investment for quite some time. And that’s if the startup does eventually succeed, as it is possible that the startup may fail and produce no rewards for those involved.

The FSA statement goes on to explain that risks exist also in the fact that crowdfunding platforms may potentially mishandle or mixup the money received from both clients and investors, leading to a host of problems when accounting for who owns what in each company.

We personally believe that, as with most new ideas in any business, there is inherent risk involved in crowdfunding. HOWEVER – from our experiences, the risks involved are more often than not far outweighed by the outcome of the project.

Our advice would be to do your research when you come across a project you’d like to be a part of. If it’s a traditional “rewards based” project, evaluate whether or not you think the team behind the project can deliver the reward you hope to receive out of backing the project. And (especially as more equity based crowdfunding opportunities become available) always take time to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the startup involved.

So what are your thoughts on the FSA’s warnings? Do you think there’s some truth and logic to them, or do you believe they’re unreasonable? Let us know in the comments below. 

*For more information on the FSA’s recent statement:

FSA's Official Statement

Reuters 

Apparently, Inman’s first taste of crowdfunding brought him back for more. Just days ago, Inman launched his second crowdfunding project on Indiegogo.

Courtesy: Indiegogo

This time around, though, the project was not spurred on by ridiculous legal action taken against him. Instead, it was Inman’s admiration of inventor Nikola Tesla that led him to begin raising funds. 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Nikola Tesla, I highly recommend checking out this brilliant comic on TheOatmeal.com (I promise, even though it’s highly educational it’s very entertaining as well).

Now that you’re better acquainted with the story behind Tesla, you may be wondering how this has anything to do with crowdfunding. Tesla’s laboratory, Wardenclyffe, along with the land it sits on, is currently up for sale and is in danger of being demolished if purchased by some of the potential bidders. In order to preserve the property, a nonprofit group is trying to raise enough funds to be able to afford the lofty price tag: $1.6 million. It has been discovered that the state of New York has offered to match whatever funds are raised by the nonprofit group up to $850,000. While the $1.6 million will be enough to purchase the property, the group hopes to be able to raise funds beyond that point in order to establish an official Nikola Tesla Museum on the premises. 

Hearing this, Inman began the campaign on Indiegogo with the goal of raising the $850,000. Not even a week into the campaign, and he has already brought in over $700,000. Impressive, to say the least, and another great example of how effective crowdfunding can be. So what do you think of this campaign? Any plans to participate in it? Let us know in the comments below.

As the crowdfunding industry has become increasingly mainstream in recent months, we’ve been tempted to look at what it is exactly that makes the entire concept of crowdfunding so appealing. We sat down this morning and looked over some of our favorite crowdfunded projects here at TinyLightbulbs and began making a list of what we believe are the awesome qualities in and surrounding each one. After just a few minutes, it quickly became apparent that this list would be pretty lengthy and make for a massive blog post. 

So instead of squeezing in all of our reasons why we think crowdfunding is so infectious, we’ll be starting an ongoing list of short and sweet points, beginning with this:

Reason #1: It’s revolutionary. What we’re seeing with crowdfunding would not have been possible even ten years ago.  

Now, we know that calling crowdfunding “revolutionary” makes us sound like we’re the keynote speakers introducing the latest Apple product. We might as well throw a “magical” in there somewhere too. However, revolutionary seems to be a fitting description of the industry.

In order for crowdfunding to function properly, it is a necessity that a large social aspect is in play. Without the help of numerous vocal individuals wanting an idea to succeed, crowdfunding would, frankly, fall flat on its face. Would the current levels of excitement and sharing of these ideas have been possible on the Internet a decade ago? Not likely, at least not to the same degree. It can easily be argued that the social channels that are available to us today are key in furthering the reach of these ideas, and therefore key to the success of crowdfunding itself.

In other words, we believe we’re witnessing the development of an industry that has truly only been possible in the last few years, and that’s pretty exciting to be a part of.

As so many crowdfunded and indie projects involve a significant amount of risk-taking, I thought it would be quite appropriate to share. While the infographic is titled The Best Times in Your Life to Start a Business, it can easily be applied in the context of creating a new product, if a full-fledged business isn't what you're looking for. If you have a killer idea but have been sitting on it because "now's not the time," check this out below.

Courtesy: Funders and Founders

If you look hard enough, you'll always find a reason not to move forward with an idea.

Have any firsthand experiences with either dragging your feet or diving in head first? Let us know in the comments below.

Click here to buy the AirClip

A year ago, Inman wrote numerous blog posts claiming that FunnyJunk was stealing his artwork and not giving him credit. This resulted in a legal slap from FunnyJunk’s attorney, claiming that Inman needed to pay them $20,000 for damages, otherwise they would sue for defamation. Instead of sending the money, Inman decided to raise the $20,000 on Indiegogo.com.

The caveat, however, was that FunnyJunk wouldn’t see a penny of it. Instead, all the money raised would go to the American Cancer Society and the National Wildlife Federation. By the end of the funding period, Inman had received more than he could have imagined: $220,024. He donated the money to the promised charities. FunnyJunk has also named Indiegogo on the complaint along with The National Wildlife Federation and The American Cancer Society.

In a statement by Indiegogo, “As the largest crowdfunding platform operating in nearly 200 countries, Indiegogo exists to provide crowd-funding opportunities worldwide, and a frivolous lawsuit doesn’t change Indiegogo’s commitments to this creative and popular campaign.” For now we will have to wait and see what comes out of this.

To see the unique crowdfunding campaign for yourself, visit: http://www.indiegogo.com/bearlovegood

Sources: TheOatmeal.com, Washington Post

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We had a chance to sit down with the Clip and review it. Check out our video and then get one of your own on TinyLightbulbs

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