Kickstarter updates terms to address creators who fail to deliver on their projects

[Rafy]

 

Over the past year, we’ve been working to make sure every part of the Kickstarter system is clear and straightforward. We’ve done everything from improving our rules and community guidelines to creating a real-talk Trust & Safety page that explains how we work with our community to keep Kickstarter healthy. And today, we’re updating our Terms of Use. The updated terms go into effect for all projects launched on or after October 19, 2014.

 

So what’s different? To begin with, we simplified the language, subtracted lots of legal jargon, and made the terms as straightforward and to-the-point as we could. We encourage you to read the full update here.

We also added a detailed outline of what’s expected from everyone involved in a project. For the overwhelming majority of projects, it’s pretty simple: creators finish the work they planned, backers are happy, and nobody sweats the details. But there are exceptions. Sometimes problems come up, projects don’t go according to plan, and people wind up in the dark about what’s supposed to happen next. So we’re spelling it out — what’s expected from backers, what’s expected from creators, and what needs to happen if a project runs into trouble.

 

You can read that section of the terms right here. This update reflects the best practices we’ve seen from our community to get the best possible outcomes from challenging situations. Incorporating them into these terms is a small but important part of building a healthy, trusted environment where people work together to bring creative projects to life.

 

The excerpt from the TOS:

 

 

If a creator is unable to complete their project and fulfill rewards, they’ve failed to live up to the basic obligations of this agreement. To right this, they must make every reasonable effort to find another way of bringing the project to the best possible conclusion for backers. A creator in this position has only remedied the situation and met their obligations to backers if:

• they post an update that explains what work has been done, how funds were used, and what prevents them from finishing the project as planned;
• they work diligently and in good faith to bring the project to the best possible conclusion in a timeframe that’s communicated to backers;
• they’re able to demonstrate that they’ve used funds appropriately and made every reasonable effort to complete the project as promised;
• they’ve been honest, and have made no material misrepresentations in their communication to backers; and
• they offer to return any remaining funds to backers who have not received their reward (in proportion to the amounts pledged), or else explain how those funds will be used to complete the project in some alternate form.

The creator is solely responsible for fulfilling the promises made in their project. If they’re unable to satisfy the terms of this agreement, they may be subject to legal action by backers.

 

Sources:

• https://www.kickstarter.com/blog/an-update-to-our-terms-of-use
• https://www.kickstarter.com/terms-of-use#section4

 

About damn time! Did so many people that backed failed projects needed to get burned for this to be implemented. Well, at least now it's there...

[beebskadoo]

This is too little too late for a lot of backers.

[Lord Pantaloons]

This is too little too late for a lot of backers.

^^far too late for a lot of people unfortunately, and I think if there wasn't so much press about the projects that don't get finished KS would just leave it like it was.

[Sharif]

^Still better than nothing