Crowdfunding
Digital finance for a new business paradigm
Why The Sky is High
Platform Operations
Specialized niche crowdfunding platforms are a significant component of digital finance. The globally emergent online crowd is a powerful resource of connected individuals who may choose this platform as a shared space for co-financing the advancement of new energy technology research and builds. The aim is to empower and inspire collaborative open-source practices on a practical grassroots level in order to assist in raising the awareness of energy technologies for ecologically sustainable lifestyles.
This crowdfunding platform is a public online venue run as a sole-proprietorship business portal. The portal creator wishes to live and thrive by means of a realistic and practical approach, while adhering to the vision of an ecologically and spiritually sustainable future. The plan is to develop additional crowdfunding platforms, including one for children as well as one for civic landscaping applicable to any city. The portal creator’s income is based on a standard percentage fee from all transactions and successful campaigns raised, as well as any product purchases, donations and subscriptions. Details are available on the Commerce Page. The Business Blog on this website is set to document the developing journey with The Sky is High Crowdfunding.
The core values which form a foundation for this line of work include the sharing of the practice of abundance, transparency, directness, connection, inspiration, invitation and collaboration.
Current crowdfunding campaigns on The Sky is High support the research and development of new, clean, fuel-less power systems for the home. Provided are the means to create campaigns for open-source technologies which advance today’s possibilities with hydro, solar, wind, biomass, geothermal and general nuclear sciences. For the moment, the only two devices which comply significantly with the criteria developed by reputable transnational research groups are the Quantum Energy Generator (FTW) and the Magravs-Power Plasma Generator (KFSSI). Further technologies are expected as these become open-sourced. This platform is not intended for any particular device(s) as it is for the propagation of the open-source energy-technology needs of the people. The criteria is necessary for marking technologies as authentic.
Much of the daily work in this field is focused on distinguishing information from trolling. This is time-consuming, however, it is possible to find practical information as long as there is a strict adherence to conditions of transparency from the source to the receiver. Realistically and historically few people have had the courage to publicly disclose developments in the field of new energy technologies from beyond the existing paradigm. The possibility of such work is reinforced by the current growth of the global grassroots support system and the decades of work of the CSETI organization, its transnational disclosures and operating conditions.
It is generally agreed that crowdfunding in the digital finance sector is a rapidly developing financial service, a people’s tool developing in parallel with the transnational New Energy Technologies movement. The plan is to continue to work in the direction of connecting optimal financial solutions with the needs of open-sourced energy technology builds. To demonstrate the emerging paradigm of open business collaboration we are set to publish all business expenses for The Sky is High.
This company is based in Ottawa, Canada but the work is global and transnational. The company’s mission is to empower people everywhere to co-develop their own solutions to the energy situation.
The upcoming CSETI film “Unacknowledged” (2017) is expected to inspire significant interest in new energy technologies. The Sky is High is set work in parallel to any public crowdfunding needs that may emerge based on the disclosures.
All work pertaining to the disclosure of energy sources from beyond contemporary physics is a challenge. The dissemination of practical scientific information can only proceed at the pace of its understanding by those who wish to collaborate on living the ecologically sustainable lifestyle on this wonderful planet.
This is happening today! The sky is high.
The following section provides some guidelines and conditions of operations for campaigns on The Sky is High. Please read our full “Terms of Use” for details.
Models, Types and Categories
Creating, Pathways and Levels
Fees
Success
The Sky is High has the standard crowdfunding models available to Members. These sometimes have various names which have been compiled below for comparison:
All or Nothing:
An “All or Nothing” Campaign may also be referred to as “fixed-funding”, “pre-order”, “100% Threshold”, or “pre-authorization”. The Campaign Owner receives funds only if the Campaign goal is reached or surpassed. We use Stripe or Paypal to process these transactions and no guest check-out is available. In terms of visibility on our Services, anonymous contributions are available.
Keep it All:
A “Keep it All” Campaign may also be referred to as “flexible-funding”, “order”, “instant payment”, “immediate delivery of funds”, “authorization”. The Campaign Owner receives funds instantly and keeps all funds received. We use all our available Payment Gateways (Paypal, Stripe and Coinbase) to process these transactions. Guest checkout is also available. In terms of visibility on our Services, anonymous contributions are available.
In our Terms, we refer to those raising funds as “Campaign Owners” and to their fundraising campaigns as “Campaigns.” We refer to those contributing funds as “Contributors”, their supportive backing action as “Contributing” and the funds which are contributed as “Pledges.” Campaign Owners can offer perks or gifts in the form of tangible items or intangible services (collectively, “Rewards”) to Contributors. Campaign Owners, Contributors and other guest visitors using the Services are referred to collectively as “Users”, (“You”, “Your”).
Available:
For technological Criteria please see section 7 of our Terms and the section titled, “Understanding Success” on our Resources page.
Our campaign creation process is simple. Register on our platform and create campaigns for free. If the Campaign complies with our review then we can offer approval within 24 hours and launch your campaign at that time. If your Campaign is declined by us, we may provide feedback to make it happen. The campaigns must be measurable, achievable, realistic and clear in the sense of communication.
All campaigns are in US Dollar funds ($ USD) and processed with various corresponding payment gateways according to the selection and needs of our Users and Members.
Upon registry a User becomes a Member and is admitted into a level 1 membership as a “Founder”. For all levels, the available services and features are visible in the Member’s Profile dashboard and organized for distinct accessability in the Profile menu. To launch a Campaign, a new Member must complete the following process:
– Opt-in by selecting “Become a Creator” within their Profile.
– Reload the Profile dashboard.
– Create a Campaign and wait for Campaign Approval.
– Connect their own preferred Payment Gateways to their Profile on The Sky is High from within the Profile dashboard.
– Once the Campaign Owner is verified and has connected their Profile with a Payment Gateway, and if the Campaign is approved, the Campaign Owner may start collecting funds from Contributors.
In our crowdfunding niche, the selected technology has to comply with the various conditions listed in section 7 of our Terms of Use. The project creator needs to be working on a phase of development that is identifyable by members of the selected open-source community.
The First Campaign must have a maximum Campaign Amount Goal of $500 USD. A Campaign Owner’s clearance for larger Campaigns is enabled with a proven track record of one successful Campaign. Once a Campaign Owner has documented a high standard of work with this crowdfunded amount, they can begin with greater amounts. This lowers the many risks of potentially inappropriate New Energy Campaigns. When the public sees that a Campaign Owner has a proven track record and is making progress, there is a higher chance of funding for further development. Thus, in order to crowdfund anything over $500 USD, a Campaign Owner must provide documentation of work within their campaign, most often in the form of updates. The incremental funding amounts are as follows: $500 – 5000 – 50,000 – 500,000 USD.
“Founder” (Level 1 Membership) Features:
– Free Registration
– Basic $500 Campaign Limit
– Assortment of Top Public Documents
– Introductory Product Selection
– Sky High Credit Availability
In order to upgrade to the next “Builder” Level, the Founder must have 1 Successful Campaign with a minimum of $450 raised.
“Builder” (Level 2 Membership) Features:
– All “Founder” Level Features
– Extended $5000 Campaign Limit
– Sky High Product Affiliation
– Extended Product Selection
In order to upgrade to the next “Fellow” Level, the Builder must have a positive track record of 3 Campaigns of at least $250 raised in each, and one of the following: Subscription (Weekly or Monthly or Yearly), Sky High 250 Credit Pack ($100 value), or a minimum $50 Donation to The Sky is High.
“Fellow” (Level 3 Membership) Features:
– All “Builder” Level Features
– Advanced $50,000 Campaign Limit
– No Platform Fees (Waived)
– Advanced Campaign Categories
These must be relevant to New Energy Technologies in some way: “Any Open-Source Technology” (ie. FabFi), and “Any Open-Source Ecologically Sustainable Project” (ie. rocket mass heaters).
– Sky High VIP Services
– Advanced Product Selection
In order to upgrade to the top “Sky High” Level, the Fellow must have a successful campaign creation track record with build phase credibility, a demonstration of the awareness of the issues surrounding New Energy Technologies, a collaborative and co-creative spirit on The Sky is High.
“Sky High” (Level 4 Membership) Features:
– All “Fellow” Level Features, a role in the vision of the platform and more.
– (Not yet available as of the publication date of these Terms)
We say, “Practice small and learn to go big, learn the power of crowdfunding along the way. “ The sky is high.
Creating an account on The Sky is High is free. Creating a Campaign is free. If a Campaign Owner creates a Campaign that receives contributions or is successfully funded, we and our Payment Gateways collect fees. Our Payment Gateway’s fees may vary slightly based on the registered Campaign Owner’s jurisdiction. See the Fees section on our [ Commerce ] page for more details.
If using Bitcoin as a funding currency for a Campaign, no fees are deducted at any time by either the Payment Gateway (Coinbase), or The Sky is High.
For a “Keep it All” Campaign, the 5% platform fee is charged per each Contribution transaction. If using Stripe, the Campaign Owner is deducted the 2-4% merchant services fee per each Contribution transaction. If using Paypal, the Platform Owner is deducted the 2-4% merchant services fee per each Contribution transaction.
For “All or Nothing” Campaigns, fees are only charged if the Campaign reaches its goal. The Sky is High charges 5% of the campaign amount ($50 for every $1000 successfully raised). Payment Gateways charge between 2-4% of the final campaign amount ($20-$40 for every $1000 successfully raised).
The Campaign Owner may also have to pay local taxes on the final campaign amount. For 10% taxes this would be $100 for every $1000 successfully raised.
The Campaign Owner may also have to pay local banking fees such as currency conversions and transfers. This may be $10 for every $1000 successfully raised.
The Campaign Owner collects the amount raised minus the fees mentioned above. In this example, $200 is taken for fees and taxes for every $1000 successfully raised. Due to such fees it is a good idea to plan a 20% higher campaign amount than the actual needed funds.
The Sky is High does not charge processing fees for Campaigns on the Site other than the above mentioned standard 5% for “Keep it All” transactions or the standard 5% for successful “All or Nothing” Campaigns.
We will not collect any fees without giving you a chance to review and accept them. If our fees ever change, we’ll announce that on our Site. Some funds pledged by Contributors are collected by Payment Gateways (the percentage fees). Each Payment Gateway is its own company, and The Sky is High isn’t responsible for the performance of Payment Gateways (such as Paypal, Coinbase, Stripe, etc.).
The Campaign Owner is responsible for paying any additional fees or taxes associated with their use of The Sky is High as their crowdfunding venue for open-sourced New Energy Technologies.
We’ll charge our fees before putting funds in your account. The Sky is High and its Payment Gateways will subtract fees before transmitting the proceeds of a campaign.
Some pledges can’t be collected, which might reduce the amount of funding you get. Because some payments can’t be collected — for instance, when a Contributor’s credit card expires before funding ends, and they don’t provide updated information — we can’t guarantee that the amount of funding you receive will be exactly equal to the full amount pledged minus fees.
The Sky is High does not, at any time, receive or hold any monies intended for Campaign Owners. All funds are collected for Campaign Owners by our payment gateways. The Sky is High is not responsible for the performance or fairness of its payment gateway service providers, and The Sky is High is not responsible for any payment gateway fees. Given the occasional failures of some credit cards, The Sky is High cannot guarantee the full receipt of the funding target.
The primary focus of Services at The Sky is High are the crowdfunding Campaigns. Once a Member submits a Campaign it is held for review until the Member and Campaign is verified to comply with our Terms and Policy. We review the Campaign within 24 hours. We may also conduct general IP checks and manual sanctions watchlist scanning of individual data. Once approved, the Campaign is launched and thus it becomes visible to other Users. At that point Users and Members may Contribute to the Campaign.
The Campaign Owner may direct the capturing of funds for their Campaign by authenticating their selected payment gateway in their profile settings. All of the Payment Gateways and Crowdfunding Models used by The Sky is High may also be used by registered Members. The chosen crowdfunding model will decide on the type of processing of funds by the Payment Gateway. This is described in greater detail in section 1d.