On March 31st, 2015, the crowdfunding project tracking and stats website Kickspy shut down. This comes as a major shock to the crowdfunding community who have benefited from the website’s helpful statistics and referrals.
“Shame to see #Kickstarter data service #Kickspy shutting down 🙁 A loss for #gamdev folks needing campaign data.” – Source.
The company’s website indicates that Kickstarter was not a fan of Kickspy. “Kickspy was contacted by Kickstarter and unfortunately it seems Kickstarter isn’t a fan of sites like Kickspy. However, completely independently Kickspy has decided to shut down…”
It is unclear whether the message, which referenced “sites like Kickspy” could indicate other project-tracking websites like these, or websites in general that help crowdfunders research other campaigns and learn about crowdfunding’s successes and failures. There are also news websites in the crowdfunding industry like CrowdfundInsider, which track projects on Kickstarter and Indiegogo.
Considering a whole host of new initiatives like Kickstarter’s ‘Campus’ and SpotLight, the company is taking new strides to take control its image in the media, how backers and creators view the website, and the way its campaigns are represented.
It will be interesting to watch how Kickstarter deals with new services that have sprung up to help crowdfunders from an analytics standpoint, like Krowdster. Will the company embrace them, condemn them, or ignore them? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think!
