On Monday (September 15th), Kickstarter’s CEO Yancey Strickler announced that the crowdfunding giant has opened its platform to Scandinavia and Ireland.
The platform’s team wrote, “We’re so excited to announce that Kickstarter is now available to creators in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Ireland — four countries with amazing cultural histories and creative populations. From to LEGO to Röyksopp to The Seventh Seal to James Joyce, these countries have contributed some amazing stuff to our world. We can’t wait to see what’s next!
Starting now, people in Scandinavia and Ireland can start building their projects here. On October 21, those projects can be launched to the public. We’ll send an email that day letting everyone know when exactly they can click the launch button.”
According to the Independent, Irish campaign organizers have begun building their own online pitches and will be able to accept funding on October 21st. All money raised will be denominated in euros but investors are not limited to Ireland; funding can come from anywhere in the world.
Strickler noted, “The Irish cultural scene has always been incredibly vibrant,a nd we can’t wait to see what amazing, ingenious and unique ideas will now be part of the Kickstarter universe.”
While Irish organizers are already able to launch campaigns on the platform, Kickstarter’s spokesperson, Julie Wood, revealed that the new process will be much easier. “Right now if you live in Ireland, you can only launch if you can find a business partner in one of the six countries in which the service is currently available; it’s actually not that easy but people have managed to do it.
Although it will be allowing projects from the country, a spokesperson from Kickstarter stated that it would not be employing staff in Ireland following its launch. Currently, the platform is accessible in ten countries: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Ireland, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, UK and U.S.