Re: [libreplanet-discuss] Solving the prisoner's dilemma in crowdfunding

[Fabio Pesari]

On 02/19/2016 04:41 PM, Adam Van Ymeren wrote:
> Since there are more funders than developers shouldn't you favour
> developers instead?

Developers can rip off funders but funders can't rip off developers
(i.e. do a chargeback) with an escrow, so developers are favored already.

You can even the scale a bit by forcing developers to release their
works under a free license even if they don't earn any money. That might
look unfair, however you should keep in mind that if that happens, it's
because the developers have failed to met the goals they themselves set,
so it's entirely their fault.

> One of the core ideas of crowdfunding is that people would be more
> willing to accept risk because they only fund a small amount in
> conjunction with a lot of other funders.  Alice still receives a large
> amount of funding, but in small increments from many people.
> 
> I don't think putting more risks for Alice not receiving payment is
> going to encourage her to develop more.

There aren't more risks for Alice: the risks are roughly the same,
except nobody can ruin her reputation by calling her a scammer (due to
refunds) and if anything, she can be sure her work will be evaluated
objectively and not by the funders alone, who of course can have
unreasonable expectations.