Global agency The Community launches fundi in support of creators and talent; new platform raises up talent + simplifies livestream payments

A new, first-of-its-kind platform, fundi, launches today in support of creators and specialists hard hit by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis designed and developed by cross-cultural creative agency the community.

 

It will offer people a more seamless way to support their favorite livestream content creators, with proceeds going directly to talent, fundamentally shifting digital payment behavior for the future.

Says Christopher Neff, executive director of creative technology and innovation, the community: “COVID-19 created an interesting and dramatic shift in consumer behavior that we believe will endure beyond the pandemic: livestreams became the normal way to take a fitness class, learn a new recipe, and tune into concerts.

“However, when it came to payment, the tech remained lacking. It wasn’t easy for people to pay an instructor without going through multiple sites or unclear steps. We set out to make this process more seamless. We created a platform that will help these talented individuals earn money for sharing their skills online, and made it simple for consumers to pay throughout the experience versus a pay gate upfront. We had to start with existing tech in order to work fast. People need this right now, so speed was everything.”

fundi is the first platform ever to combine real-time payment with livestreaming via an interactive sticker. Viewers can simply click on the fundi sticker, a design present on all livestreams, to send their desired contribution, even if it’s just a dollar at a time. All charges are secure via online payment company Stripe, and fundi leverages Twitch’s open API.

Some of fundi’s unique features include:

– Free access for talent and fans, with easy sign-up and registration.
– No required download. Talent can access the web-based platform by creating a Twitch account. Viewers and donors do not need a Twitch account.
– Unlimited streaming on the platform.

Says Luis Montero, president, the community: “The mission of fundi is closely tied and aligned with that of our agency. During this time, our desire is to help and inspire our communities. Through fundi, we want to help all those talented and creative people in this time of need, while supporting a future wherein livestreaming will continue to play a big part of our lives, during and post-COVID-19. The viewer gets to learn and enjoy something new, and the talent gets rewarded. We see that as a win-win.”

To help spread the word, the community created a series of launch videos which aim to recruit talent to the platform and educate people on how fundi works.

Agency: The Community
Chief Creative Officers: Jose Molla and Joaquin Molla
Exec. Director of Creative Tech and Innovation: Christopher Neff
Chief Creative Officer NY: Frank Cartagena
Senior Designer: Juan Aguilar
Associate Creative Directors: Juarez Rodrigues, Aaron Zimroth, Aaron Willard
Copywriter: Lyndsey Stormer
Art Director: Lina Rode
Sr. Brand Supervisor: Rachel Castro
Sr. Connections Strategist: Jacqueline Hernandez
Studio Manager: Thomas Bolger
Designer: Michelle Caudill
EVP, Head of Integrated Production: Laurie Malaga
Executive Producer: Chris Parke
Director of Business Affairs: Natalie Greenman
Senior Business Affairs Manager: Daphne Papadopulos
Creative People Director: Mariana Sokolowski

Editorial Production Company: The Makers Lab
Senior Post Production Manager: Sharon Campos
Lead Video Editor: Jesse Perez
Lead Animator: Barbara Nozari
Mixer/Audio Engineer: Paolo Urquidi
Producer: Amber Pena
Voice Over: Lyndsey Stormer

Digital Production Agency: Publicis NEXT (Latam)
Managing Director: Jose J. Molina

Music Production Company: JSM Music
CEO/CCO: Joel Simon