We did a startup that used the same model in stopping online procrastination: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2268710, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuc0_ZMQ4P8 and our competitor in productivity space blogged about us :http://blog.beeminder.com/timecarrot/. My experience is that, it is really hard to build a business model around behavioral economics, be it weight loss, quitting smoking, or anything else. Based on the data I have seen, people who will think they need commitment device are also sophisticated enough to know that they might fail, hence won't signup. In the end, you always end up serving significantly smaller number of consumers than you have initially assumed.
Show HN: Sink or Ship - ship your project in time, or else...
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Re: Show HN: Sink or Ship - ship your project in time, or else...
#42For these types of sites that offer negative reinforcement by donating to the charity of choice, I wonder how much a stronger an incentive it would be to donate to a cause the user is against rather than one of their choosing (e.g., donate to the presidential candidate you don't support).
Re: Show HN: Sink or Ship - ship your project in time, or else...
#43I would increase the first amount exponentially for each change, also make first amount adjustable..
Re: Show HN: Sink or Ship - ship your project in time, or else...
#44There's no way I'd pledge to pay a significant enough amount of money to motivate me to some random people who hacked together a fairly simple app. On the other hand, I would consider pledging the money to a charity, and giving a small cut to service that facilitates it.
Although it's oriented to individuals, not companies or groups, Stickk.com sounds a bit like what you're looking for.