Hi Pierce — Yeah, I definitely can’t fault companies for using KS as a product-launch platform. 5% distribution cost is a steal. And if the ‘market’ is clamoring for KS to be a pre-order platform vs a reward-based crowdfunding one, then who am I to say that it shouldn’t be this way.

What concerns me is Kickstarter’s long term brand identity if this path continues and KS doesn’t acknowledge it. If they promote themselves as a platform for “bringing creative ideas to life”, but many of their campaigns are just pre-launches, there’s a disconnect between who they think they are and what people see them as.

And when those two are not in sync, companies have trouble figuring out their messaging, their product enhancements, and their target audience, which can limit growth. For instance, take that early adopter that loved following creators along their path and getting something nobody else knew about; he/she may not like the more transactional aspect of a pre-order, and stop using KS.

One thing that is interesting is KS’s recent drop in Alexa rankings. I have no idea what is causing it, but it’s pretty stark, dropping from ~400 global rank in Jan to 536 today.

Also — congrats on the success of TarDisk!