[Shoue]

This model is already proven to work via Kickstarter, Gofundme, and Patreon. Users already have interest in investing in ideas that _don't even allow them to retain ownership_, like Star Citizen -- it's still a copyrighted piece of work despite taking a ton of money from users to fund their game.

[nradov]

That is hardly the same model. You are describing donations, not investments. Reliance on donations doesn't seem like a sustainable business model for running a huge worldwide enterprise. Eventually you run out of suckers with money to fall for the scam.

[adventured]

Unless you're Wikimedia that is.

[nradov]

Very little of Wikipedia Foundation's donations come from individual users.

https://wikimediafoundation.org/support/benefactors/#section...