MoneyLab: conference, bazaar, workshops & film program

By INC Team, March 13, 2014

Meanwhile, at the INC & MoneyLab headquarters: We are preparing the conference, but also the complementary events. Here’s what we have in store for you: Friday, March 21: Four crowdfunding workshops Organizer: Teach2fish Time slots: 1. Crowdfunding workshop for beginners: 09:30-10:30 2. Crowdfunding workshop for advanced: 11:15-12:15 3. Crowdfunding workshop for beginners: 14:00-15:00 4. Crowdfunding workshop [...]

Investment crowdfunding for film

By INC Team, March 6, 2014

While the long-established Kickstarter recently reached a record-breaking 1 billion $ in pledges, new crowdfunding platforms are just launching. A particularly interesting one is Passion First Funding Portal, addressing the film industry. What’s particular about it? It’s the first crowdfunding platform designed after the 2012 newly-voted regulation JOBS Act (Jumpstart Our Business Startup Act) in [...]

Introducing MoneyLab speakers: Brett Scott on open source finance

By INC Team, January 23, 2014

Financial democracy requires bypassing large unaccountable institutions and reconnecting people to the reality of their money — by producing it ourselves. Brett Scott is a strong advocate of a participatory culture that would question and redesign current financial systems. He has an academic background in social and economic research and works as a consultant in alternative finance [...]

Crowdfunding: Determinants of Success and Failure

By INC Team, January 20, 2014

With popular crowdfunding platforms reporting millions of euros raised in just one year’s time, crowdfunding success might seem to come easy. Yet more than half of projects submitted on Kickstarter, one of the most prominent crowdfunding platforms, fail (Kickstarter stats). Why? Those who have crowdfunded know that to successfully raise the set amount of money is a [...]

Upcoming event: New Industries Conference by HMVK Dortmund

By INC Team, January 6, 2014

A growing number of inquiries are being made worldwide into the deeper roots of the financial crisis, as well as the the implications of technological developments in financial mechanisms for both the creative industry and society at large. This is the case with the New Industries Conference: Money and Debt in the Post-Industrial World , a four-day event [...]

Media narratives on Bitcoin: common arguments against the crypto-currency

By INC Team, December 19, 2013

Follow-up to the previous post on “7 Common arguments in favor of Bitcoins” in diverse media discourses, this post is dedicated to the other side of the (bit)coin: 7 most common arguments against it. 1. Bitcoins are not serious money as they have no legal tender Bitcoin’s disruptive and independent model does raise valid questions in [...]

Media narratives on Bitcoin: 7 common arguments in favor of the crypto-currency

By INC Team, December 13, 2013

Over the past two years, Bitcoin is actively debated in diverse narratives and journalistic outlets. Beyond the usual description of Bitcoin most seem to agree on – that is, a crypto-currency, with which users can transact (pseudo) anonymously in a decentralized, P2P network at zero or low fees – perspectives on Bitcoin’s functionality and feasibility are [...]

(Hidden) Transaction Systems of Free Culture and Free Culture Entrepreneurs

By INC Team, December 2, 2013

A round table report by Robert Van Boeschoten On Friday 29th of November at the Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam a diverse group of people came together to discuss the hidden transaction systems of free culture. How are interactions shaped between participants in the production and circulation of free culture? What kind of transactions take place there? And [...]

MoneyLab blog is live!

By INC Team, November 29, 2013

A month ago we officially announced the launch of MoneyLab: Coining Alternatives. What is MoneyLab? The Institute of Network Culture‘s latest project considers digital experiments with revenue models, payment systems and currencies against the backdrop of the ongoing global economic decline. It aims to critically explore, map and probe the politics, inner-workings and governance of these alternative digital-economic forms. [...]

More than currency: the importance of Bitcoin as a technology and financial model