CHAPTER 4
Current Market Dynamics
CrowdfundInsider
Crowdfunding has only truly entered the common lexicon within the past few years. However, the concept of crowdfunding has been around for quite some time. The advent of the Internet and the ubiquitous nature of always-connected devices has engendered a new paradigm. This altered environment is one where the power of crowdfunding may manifest the force of a diverse group of individuals to empower a single idea for success.
The advent of the two most popular crowdfunding platforms today—Indiegogo and Kickstarter—have captured the imagination of entrepreneurs and innovators across the United States and around the globe. These two platforms have harnessed technology to create a revolutionary new movement for capital formation.
Indiegogo cofounder and CEO Slava Rubin has frequently mentioned in his presentations how crowdfunding predates the Internet. His favorite example, which is used elsewhere in this book, is one of the Statue of Liberty, which, while donated by our allies, the French, lacked sufficient funding for installing and erecting upon its delivery to the shores of the United States.1
The governor of New York at the time, Grover Cleveland, had decided against using public funding. Other cities such as Boston and San Francisco, seeing a unique and historic opportunity, clamored for the privilege of paying the balance needed to erect the statue. But this is where the crowd was brought to aid in ...
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