Type of business | Public-benefit corporation |
---|---|
Type of site
|
Crowdfunding |
Headquarters | Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
Founder(s) |
Perry Chen Yancey Strickler Charles Adler |
Website | www |
Alexa rank | 449 (July 2016) |
Launched | April 28, 2009 |
Kickstarter is an American public-benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company’s stated mission is to help bring creative projects to life. Kickstarter has reportedly received more than $1.9 billion in pledges from 9.4 million backers to fund 257,000 creative projects, such as films, music, stage shows, comics, journalism, video games, technology and food-related projects.
People who back Kickstarter projects are offered tangible rewards and one of a kind experiences in exchange for their pledges. This model traces its roots to subscription model of arts patronage, where artists would go directly to their audiences to fund their work.
Kickstarter launched on April 28, 2009, by Perry Chen, Yancey Strickler, and Charles Adler.The New York Times called Kickstarter "the people's NEA".Time named it one of the "Best Inventions of 2010" and "Best Websites of 2011". 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. The company is based in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn.
Andy Baio served as the site's CTO until November 2010, when he joined Expert Labs. Lance Ivy has been Lead Developer since the website launched. On February 14, 2013, Kickstarter released an iOS app called Kickstarter for the iPhone. The app is aimed at users who create and back projects and is the first time Kickstarter has had an official mobile presence.