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Sony Is Launching A Crowdfunding Platform For Internal, Owned Projects
Sony is stepping fully into the world of crowdfunding, according to a new announcement from the company. Beginning today, the company is offering two internal concepts via the e-commerce segment of the new First Flight platform and one via the crowdfunding portion.
The projects on offer include the MESH: Smart DIY kit that allows people to create simple machines through use of smartphone app-based visual logic. The other is the FES Watch, an e-paper watch that can change style. The initial First Flight crowdfunding campaign is for the Huis Remote Controller, an e-paper remote control that can be customized to control a variety of devices.
"Sony's innovation is ingrained in the company's founding spirit of `doing what has never been done before,’” writes Sony president and CEO Kazuo Hirai. “Nothing embodies this spirit more than passionate entrepreneurs who give shape to their ground-breaking ideas and introduce them to the world, without fear of failure. The First Flight platform and other Seed Acceleration Program initiatives accelerate and optimize this process. Sony itself originated as a start-up, and through the Seed Acceleration Program we are challenging ourselves to return to our entrepreneurial roots. At Sony we will continue to explore ways of delivering new, emotionally compelling experiences and enhanced customer value."
The First Flight platform is currently limited to Japan and has been piloted with three technology projects. We’ve reached out to Sony to find out more about the program, the potential for global launch, and whether the games division would ever be considered for inclusion in this.
Sony recently helped kick off Ys Net’s Shenmue III Kickstarter campaign on its stage at E3. It was later revealed that the publisher agreed to help fund the project if it met its funding goal, though neither Sony nor Ys Net have offered specifics about that arrangement.
[Source: Sony via GamesIndustry.biz]
Our Take
I bristle at the idea of a major corporation, even one suffering from recent financial troubles, turning to the public to help back its ideas without a potential for return on that investment. As an e-commerce platform requiring a minimum threshold for manufacturing and shipment, First Flight makes a lot of sense as a means to test the market. As a crowdfunding platform, it seems like an abdication of corporate responsibility that says, “We don’t really know what our consumers want.” I would be extremely disappointed if Sony went any further down this road with gaming, as the Shenmue III situation has already left too many questions due to obfuscation of the funding relationship.
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