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Another Crowd-funded Drone Project Collapses (bbc.com)
An anonymous reader writes: Less than two weeks after we heard about the "robotic dragonfly" project failing, the BBC brings news that an even bigger crowd-funded drone project has given up development as well. The ZANO mini-drone raised a whopping £2.3 million on Kickstarter ($3.5 million), after asking for a mere £125,000 to get off the ground. They were supposed to start delivering drones in June, and a few hundred of them slowly trickled out. In October, they posted a long update detailing their plans for shipping the other ~15,000 drones they had been paid for. Their latest update, posted today, says, "Having explored all options known to us, and after seeking professional advice, we have made the difficult decision to pursue a creditors' voluntary liquidation." This will leave thousands of backers without a drone, despite paying £140 or more apiece.
Excess revenue is a big problem for a crowd funded project.
You might know how to build 200 units and ship them. Get some friends in to a soldering party.
But if you need to build 200,000, you need manufacturing.
Manufacturing require up front investment, employees, time and effort. The payoff is over a longer period as you ship products to market. If you build 200,000 then stop, you're going to make a huge loss, because you spent all that money setting up the manufacturing.
I should use this sig to advertise my book ISBN-13 : 978-1501515132.
it's slightly different, it's a conditional purchase/pre-pay.
i make a pre-payment with the understanding that there's a chance that the venture might completely fail, but also with the understanding that if i don't, collectively i mean, then this item/idea that i find intriguing WILL never materialize.
But if it does succeed, then i am owed this thing that i payed for.
it's a purchase conditioned on them not completely screwing the pooch.