Phil Simon (the Startup Success Podcast #104) is doing some very sophisticated customer discovery: Give this interview with him a read. While I am sure that Phil’s book is going to make a good read, the mechanism he’s using (Kickstarter) is a story in and by itself.

Screw traditional publishers.

Instead, give people a way to invest in specific content creation, and get in return extras that enhance the experience.

Very cool model, but Kickstarter, why stop there?

What about adding to this get big or go home funding model an investment model?

Say Fred the author is willing in to put up 40% of the post sale revenue for 18 months as equity that can be bought. He estimates, based on what else he has done, that that will be conservatively $10k. He will sell it for $5K, if enough people join the pool and pledge to buy.

Fred’s investors may lose their investment – it’s speculative. His investors decide if they want to place a bet that may lose, break even, make money or maybe lots of money.

Now, I have no idea how all those U.S. securities laws that since the Great Depression protected investors from conman financial types after the last time Wall St. raped Main Street work. Or for that matter, how the same laws got their polarity reversed so they protected the conman financial types when they raped Main Street again a few years back. Maybe it has to be some sort index fund arrangement where you invest in one fund, then divvy out your money in the fund to content you think will pay off.

Sounds like a startup to me. Sounds like just the kind of startup funding mechanism that would work. While somebody makes a few hundred million executing this idea, I’m looking forward to Phil’s new book – and I’m glad he’s not waiting for hidebound traditional publishers to allow it to happen.