Kickstarter has just killed its strictest rules

Last week, we looked at Kickstarter new guidelines which contained some surprising innovations, including a ban on “sexual activities that are not intended to be penetrated or penetrated and are not marketed for sexual gratification.” These rules have now been lifted and the company has reinstated its old guidelines.

The policy changes were primarily driven by requirements from our payment processor, Stripe. Stripe operates under its own rules and regulations separate from Kickstarter’s rules. And even Stripe’s rules are governed by a larger system made up of financial institutions that manage the way money flows around the world.

Kickstarter says it has seen an “increasing number of campaigns” that have accepted but have been “stopped by Stripe’s central costs.” The company also says that it “recommends developers directly with Stripe,” because “we believe in the service and because developers need to see their campaigns.”

After the new rules were issued a week ago, we immediately asked Kickstarter for a response, followed up to find a response, and did not receive a full response until today – when the company directed us to its public site. We asked how the company defined the difference between “sexual quality” and “sexual satisfaction,” and when I pushed Kickstarter today to answer our original question after removing the rules, here’s what we got, from KS’s director of comms Nikki Kria:

Given that we’ve reverted to our old guidelines, the rule you’re referring to no longer applies. I don’t want to explain the language from the instructions we have already returned. This blog post reflects where we are now and is the most accurate representation of where we are.

“Strictly” documents have been successfully managed by payment processors for years, so it’s no surprise that Kickstarter was forced to follow suit. In fact, it and Stripe says businesses can’t sell “pornographic content” designed for “sexual gratification.” The Kickstarter blog site points to those rules as explaining its now-removed rules, and insisting that the latest update doesn’t represent its values ​​— including “f*ck the established spirit of Kickstarter.” (But maybe the establishment is still too strong to say the word “fuck” without confirmation.)

Kickstarter says the community is letting it know “loud and clear” that the new rules were wrong, and that they are “going back to the drawing board.” It also says it “continues to push Stripe to be flexible, transparent, and seamless.” Let’s wait and see if the platform that has helped investors with billions of dollars can stand up against the money movers. Meanwhile, developers on the platform can get fired from Stripe’s rules, even if Kickstarter stands against them.