Movere.me – Move Me

Movere is set to launch tomorrow (March 1 2011). A crowdfunding platform for Brazilians deeply in the vein of Kickstarter.

Movere works just as Kickstarter does, it sets up a page for you per project, details the projects goals, sets a target amount that needs funding, streams a video of the project by the project fundees, and offers rewards to the supporters should the project goal reach it’s full funding.

A copycat Kickstarter? Yes. But Movere is for Brazilians. It’s existence highlights an oft FAQ’ed issue in the Kickstarter system – in that to begin a Kickstarter project you must have a US bank account and residential address. Something not so easy to attain should you not reside in the US itself.

So Movere copy and pastes the successful Kickstarter model. Should they copy it well or, if they decide to enable international projects, copy it better – it certainly opens itself up to the possibility of surpassing the original.

But all signs point to Movere keeping itself solely for the Brazilian market, with an emphasis on enabling a developing economy. Which poses an interesting thought. Yes, Kickstarter has proved an interesting model in funding (crowdfunding) but it has done so in a developed economy. How will Movere change the funding model in a country where access to loans/investment opportunity is not as readily available. Will it see the same range of projects that Kickstarter has seen? Graphic novels, iPhone gizmos, Indie Films. Or shall we see something more like your Uncle’s mobile phone reseller business up as a common project page? Could the crowdfunding model follow the success of microfinance within an economy such as in the state of Brazil?

Supporter Wall

We’re on a crowdfunding spree at Ideasspotter! But really, crowdfunding is very much a model worth blogging about. If you haven’t been reading, crowdfunding is the collective cooperation of a network to raise funds to enable a project.

We have recently blogged about online campaigners of this cause, Movere.me and Kickstarter, and here’s another innovative approach to add to the list – Supporter Wall. Supporter Wall is an interface embedded into any site, as ‘supporters’ pledge donations, their image and associated link goes up on said ‘wall’ and you pocket the cash.

Capitalising on a long-standing common human desire to feel a part of a visible community (particularly think about those cafe walls with polaroids of it’s regulars) Supporter Wall also is sure to credit it’s alongside inspiration, the successful Million Dollar Homepage.

But unlike Kickstarter or Movere.me, Supporter Wall isn’t about raising money for only a worthy ‘project’, there are no time limits and no need for an end goal. Supporter Wall wants to leave it’s interface open to interpretation, encouraging a wide range of uses – simply a way to help raise money for your bills, or to help a cause, raise money for a campaign, musician support…

With more ‘curated’ experiences under the platforms of those such as Kickstarter or Movere.me, Supporter Wall could be one to watch, just to see how it’s users widely interpret it’s form.

Viewdle – An Augmented World

Give and Give

A network of reciprocity. GiftFlow is a community where you give things away and ask for things you need in return, though without the expectation of any immediate ‘payback’. Reimagining how communities can share and work together, GiftFlow looks to create a “giant network” of not only individuals but organisations, businesses and governments. A Not for Profit venture, GiftFlow is an ambitious effort to share resources to build a better world, without the need for money. On GiftFlow, you list everything you have to give away, that book you’ve read ten times, the carpet in your garage, an hour every Wednesday afternoon. As well as a list of things you need, six 2B pencils, a hamburger on Tuesdays, a cat. The lists get fed onto the network, where it matches up to other individual’s lists of wants and needs. And the flow begins. As your items get taken they go up to a build an online profile, ‘Joe has given 328 items, Lamp, Wallet…’. Same goes for the list your recieve ‘Microsoft has recieved 12 items, Keyboard, 24 Hectares of Land…’. A profile that directly reflects physical actions you’ve taken as opposed to what kitten video you ‘Liked’. A social profile of generosity. GiftFlow uses the dynamics of a visible social network to tie over any freeloaders and give those who take action a definitive online reputation. Founded by Hans Schoenburg, a student of economic anthropology, GiftFlow looks to provide a platform to support the ‘gift economy‘ – a society where goods and services are (ideally) circulated without an explicit agreement of immediate or future reward. Hans was inspired by the culture of the people of Mali, where giving is seen as “a string connecting families, friends and neighbours in a web of mutual support.” He saw the dynamics of an online social network and how it could weave this web into our own online culture.

Eat With Me

An Australian start-up feeding the eating experience. Eat With Me is an online platform that brings together strangers looking for a good meal with new people. Members set up a meal profile by choosing it’s location (park, market, restaurant, home…), set the menu theme (gluten free, kosher, meat fest…), and invite friends or members along. The meal profile goes up on the network and Eat With Me members can hop on the profiles that pique their interest. Events have themes (like ‘German Speak Easy’) and list items that will be provided, and those that are needed. The Eat With Me team look to “offer new ways to connect with people through sharing food and eating together”. A group-date for foodies experience. Though currently offered across international locations, it’s major hub of use is located in it’s home country, Australia. There have long been open dinner clubs, where those interested in exploring food amass in groups of restaurant explorations. Or community gatherings, specialised groups gathered around items of interest. Both usually organised through traditional media, community newspapers and public boards. But the leverage of an online network marrying these angles facilitates a wider reach. And in an increasingly networked world, the themes emerging are given opportunities to deeply specialise with lesser cost to numbers or restrictions of a location. Eat With Me also poses some intriguing possibilities other than the food-centric or social-centric experience. It suggests a new method of food consumption, the online-offline casual dinner club. And also gathers data that exposes or highlights the needs of a community based on the themes and foods addressed.