This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/01/world/europe/a-crowdfunding-campaign-tries-to-save-greece.html
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| A Crowdfunding Campaign Tries to Save Greece | A Crowdfunding Campaign Tries to Save Greece |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Greece was on the edge of a deadline to pay 1.5 billion euros (about $1.75 billion) back to the International Monetary Fund, and a crowdfunding campaign called Greek Bailout Fund wanted to help. | Greece was on the edge of a deadline to pay 1.5 billion euros (about $1.75 billion) back to the International Monetary Fund, and a crowdfunding campaign called Greek Bailout Fund wanted to help. |
| The campaign, set up on the fund-raising website Indiegogo, had raised more than €487,000 by early Wednesday — not an insignificant amount of money, but also not even 1 percent of the campaign’s goal, with six days to go. | |
| The campaign was started by an Indiegogo user named Thom Feeney, who identifies himself as a 29-year-old working in a shoe shop in Britain. | The campaign was started by an Indiegogo user named Thom Feeney, who identifies himself as a 29-year-old working in a shoe shop in Britain. |
| “Let’s just get Greece sorted,” Mr. Feeney wrote on the campaign page. “All this dithering over Greece is getting boring.” | “Let’s just get Greece sorted,” Mr. Feeney wrote on the campaign page. “All this dithering over Greece is getting boring.” |
| Crowdfunding, or raising money online from many individuals who each give small amounts, has financed a number of high-profile projects in recent years. Some campaigns seem to be intentionally wacky — like the one in 2011 that raised $67,000 to pay for a RoboCop statue in Detroit — while others seek to make the world a better place. | Crowdfunding, or raising money online from many individuals who each give small amounts, has financed a number of high-profile projects in recent years. Some campaigns seem to be intentionally wacky — like the one in 2011 that raised $67,000 to pay for a RoboCop statue in Detroit — while others seek to make the world a better place. |
| But a crowdfunding campaign to bail out a country seems to be a first, according to Anindya Ghose, a professor of information technology and marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business, who has been researching crowdfunding for the past six years. | But a crowdfunding campaign to bail out a country seems to be a first, according to Anindya Ghose, a professor of information technology and marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business, who has been researching crowdfunding for the past six years. |
| “It’s very unique,” Mr. Ghose wrote in an email. | “It’s very unique,” Mr. Ghose wrote in an email. |
| In at least one way, though, the campaign and the reaction to the crisis in Greece fit into what Mr. Ghose has seen in his research: Altruism is a key motivating factor inspiring people to donate. | In at least one way, though, the campaign and the reaction to the crisis in Greece fit into what Mr. Ghose has seen in his research: Altruism is a key motivating factor inspiring people to donate. |
| “It’s hard to put a price on that kind of support,” Mr. Ghose said. “It’s priceless.” | “It’s hard to put a price on that kind of support,” Mr. Ghose said. “It’s priceless.” |
| Gifts of different sizes to the Indiegogo fund yield different rewards for the donor. A €10 donation gets a bottle of ouzo, while a donation of a million euros buys “a lot of gratitude from the citizens of Europe.” | Gifts of different sizes to the Indiegogo fund yield different rewards for the donor. A €10 donation gets a bottle of ouzo, while a donation of a million euros buys “a lot of gratitude from the citizens of Europe.” |
| Supporters are using the hashtag #crowdfundgreece to spread the word on Twitter. | Supporters are using the hashtag #crowdfundgreece to spread the word on Twitter. |
| One poster, @edrex, said: “Crowdfund the Greek bailout. If it fails, you get your money back. If it works, you’re a part of history. No-brainer” | One poster, @edrex, said: “Crowdfund the Greek bailout. If it fails, you get your money back. If it works, you’re a part of history. No-brainer” |
| Some pondered whether the campaign would raise the €1.5 billion. “Every time I refresh the page, the numbers are up. Is this going to work?” @LisaFreiburg posted. | |
| The expert opinion: Absolutely not. And even if it did, the €1.5 billion that was due Tuesday is a tiny fraction of Greece’s total debt, which Reuters estimated at €242.8 billion. Another payment, €3.5 billion to the European Central Bank, is due in July. | |
| “Unfortunately, it does not have much teeth,” Mr. Ghose said. “Even if it goes viral, there is just no way this campaign can lead to a meaningful amount that will truly bail out the government.” | “Unfortunately, it does not have much teeth,” Mr. Ghose said. “Even if it goes viral, there is just no way this campaign can lead to a meaningful amount that will truly bail out the government.” |
| No harm in trying, though. | No harm in trying, though. |