> I see kickstarter projects as an investment, and thus I want to see a (potential) return.
They are pretty explicitly not an investment, though, and the site is quite clear about that. I don't think an equity model would serve them well in most of the markets they're working in, either; it would attract a different audience that they aren't targeting. Kickstarter is modeled off some successful crowdfunding efforts in the arts from the early 2000s, like Trent Reznor's and Radiohead's, and aims to connect fans, not investors, with people undertaking projects.
Would it really be an improvement if, instead of getting a limited-edition box set and maybe access to preview chats/etc., fans got an equity stake in Reznor's label in return for crowdfunding his next album? Do the thousands of fans who kicked in for his last crowdfunding drive even know what equity is and what to do with it? That seems like adding a huge amount of complication for something few fans actually want.
They are pretty explicitly not an investment, though, and the site is quite clear about that. I don't think an equity model would serve them well in most of the markets they're working in, either; it would attract a different audience that they aren't targeting. Kickstarter is modeled off some successful crowdfunding efforts in the arts from the early 2000s, like Trent Reznor's and Radiohead's, and aims to connect fans, not investors, with people undertaking projects.
Would it really be an improvement if, instead of getting a limited-edition box set and maybe access to preview chats/etc., fans got an equity stake in Reznor's label in return for crowdfunding his next album? Do the thousands of fans who kicked in for his last crowdfunding drive even know what equity is and what to do with it? That seems like adding a huge amount of complication for something few fans actually want.