The development of any product requires financial resources and unfortunately, many educational institutions do not always have the finances to put towards the funding of the development of mobile device applications. Instead, the developer may decide to recoup finances invested into the development of the application by charging for downloads. In the end, it is the student who pays for the application; it is no longer free for student use.
Brightcookie developed PortfolioUP, a FREE image and video uploader for Mahara ePortfolio users. It has proven to be a popular mobile app with a number of existing devoted users who would love to see the functionality of it further developed. Brightcookie is committed to keeping the next version free for student use.
To fund the development of ExperienceUP, the new and enhanced version of PortfolioUP, Brightcookie decided to venture into its first crowdfunding campaign.
What is crowdfunding?
Crowdfunding is the practice of raising funds for a project or venture through large number of people (hopefully a crowd) pledging monetary contributions, typically via the internet.
There are primarily two types of crowdfunding
- Reward-based crowdfunding:
- Equity-based crowdfunding
Brightcookie’s crowdfunding campaign is a reward-based campaign. This is where the entrepreneur pre-sells a product or service to launch a business concept or product without incurring a debt. It has been used for a wide range of purposes, including motion picture promotion, free software development, inventions development, scientific research, and civic projects.
By raising funds through this method, the app can remain a FREE application for students, enhancing their learning experience at no expense to the student.
What is ExperienceUP?
ExperienceUP will enable students to create and/or upload compressed video, audio and image files and journal entries from their mobile devices and to upload them directly into their Mahara ePortfolio, a WordPress site and/or ExperienceAPI Learning Record Store.
Additional features of ExperienceUP will include geo-coding, QR code support, tagging, multi-language support, and the development of Android and Windows phone versions.
A full explanation of ExperienceUP can be found in the video.
How can you help?
If you are passionate about education and technology and students having enriched learning experiences at no extra cost to them, then your support through crowdfunding for the development of ExperienceUP is invaluable.
More information about this project, the support you can offer and the rewards you will get can be found at http://www.pozible.com/experienceup.
More information about PortfolioUP (version 2.2).
