It has been revealed the Ouya, the Android-based gaming console being proposed on Kickstarter, has been looking for additional funding.
For some reason, this has gotten a few complainers up in arms about the use of the Kickstarter project in order to fund things that have additional sources of revenue. These purists are trying to push for a view where if you go to Kickstarter, only Kickstarter can be used to fund a project. This view has the potential to ruin the power of Kickstarter in the long run, and prevent the creation of numerous projects currently being pushed for funding on the site.
Kickstarter works by providing a target level of funding needed to have a project start. To entice investment, the company or individual offers various incentives to bring in the small donations to a project. For a project like Ouya, it may be at $100, you get the console. But, other projects may offer things like credit in the front of a book, a copy of the book, multiple copies of the book, or whatever. The rewards can be tiered. The key is the level of funding needed. If the level is met, the money is committed and only then. This means the money does not arrive until the limit is reached.
But, other sources of revenue are out there as well, and to try and deny access to these while running a Kickstarter campaign can doom a project. In many cases, initial money needs to be expended before a Kickstarter can even start, as a proof of concept. Ouya had this issue, for example, to prove it could be done. Many bigger investors, and especially larger companies, have other methods other than Kickstarter to fund a project. Kickstarter, if it proves popular like Ouya's and the Pathfinder MMO's have been, can be used to supplement the initial investment and develop an even better project.
Some members of the Lagspike.tv team have made donations to Ouya, and at least one has done so with Pathfinder. The excitement over a product can be shown by Kickstarter, waking up big investors to projects. To try and deny this to a developer could doom many projects currently on Kickstarter if this becomes the bylaws of the site.
Read the article on the debate here: http://www.develop-online.net/features/1671/Kickstarting-Ouya-Was-it-ethical