Ouya opens $1m fund to boost Kickstarter projects

Ouya is set to open a new $1 million fund to help boost successful Kickstarter projects.

The ‘Free the Games Fund’ will back developers bringing their games exclusively to its Android console, and will match donations of successfully crowdfunded projects on Kickstarter from $50,000 up to $250,000.

The initiative will begin from August 9th 2013, and will run until August 10th 2014, and will only apply to campaigns launched during this timeframe.

Games must raise a minimum of $50,000 through Kickstarter to be eligible. Ouya exclusivity is also required for a period of at least six months.

The developer who garners the most money through crowdfunding during this period will also receive an extra $100,000 from the company.

“There are two reasons why Ouya is on retail store shelves today: we had an innovative idea to build an affordable and open game console for the television, and we found fans who supported our idea and provided the funds to make it happen,” said Ouya CEO Julie Uhrman.

“Since then, we’ve seen dozens of great games launch on Kickstarter, and now we are in the enviable position of being able to give back and secure the best, exclusive games for Ouya.”

Ouya itself took to Kickstarter last year, and smashed crowdfunding records at the time by raising $8.5 million. The console recently went on sale in the US, Canada and UK.

For more information on the Free the Games Fund, visit the official website.