How an Australian entrepreneur stood on the launch pad of a multi-billion dollar company

Shane Yeend describes himself as “just a guy from Adelaide with a whiteboard” – but what it says on that whiteboard could make millions for this Australian entrepreneur.

The way it works is devilishly simple in concept, but technically tricky – a screen-based subscription service gives Gamestar customers access to potentially hundreds of well-known and popular games, from Family Feud to Twister.

Similar to choosing a show on Netflix, you select the game you want to play and the interactivity of the Gamestar engine provides an almost studio experience while playing the game in your living room.

As Yeend tells 9News.com.au, a key component of Gamestar is that a far cheaper monthly subscription could give users thousands of games instead of spending $ 20 on a family Scrabble set.

“We take the board game experience, stream and digitize it, and add the magic of Hollywood in a package that is as easy and accessible as Netflix,” he says.

“So instead of buying a Family Feud board game – which we ship $ 15 million worth of a year – and I read you the cards, Steve Harvey reads the questions to your family in your own living room.”

The company is currently raising funds for the concept that Yeend says is “weeks” away from getting a product to market in time for Christmas.

The concept has already raised more than $ 2.7 million through wefunder, a crowdfunding platform for investors.

The fundraising efforts are supported not least by the US comedian and Family Feud presenter Steve Harvey, who is one of the shareholders of Gamestar and an important spokesman for the company.

According to Yeend, the concept not only uses new technology but creates an entirely new category of entertainment known as streaming games on demand, or SGOD.

“We’re at the crossroads of something really new. DVDs went to Netflix, music went to Spotify, books went to Audible and nobody went into that category of games, ”says Yeend.

“I think we have this king hit and now we just have to deliver.”

He knows critics who say the business will only add to mankind’s current obsession with screen time, arguing that Gamestar does the exact opposite of what most shows and games do.

“It’s completely different than having your child glued to their Playstation 5. Because in this scenario, it’s just them in front of a screen. But Gamestar is simply the television that controls the interaction between people,” says Yeend.

“It’s about using the device for exactly the opposite of what people are currently using. And that gets people to communicate. “

While Yeend is cautiously optimistic about the prediction of success, the scope of the premise is potentially huge.

Netflix currently has 209 million paid memberships. Amazon Prime also has 200 million, Disney + 116 million subscribers and Spotify 144 million subscribers.

Use only a fraction of these users to play interactive games and you are in a billion dollar business.

“If only two or three percent of Netflix’s 200 million users bought our service for an extra $ 3 to have their own game night – be it playing Paw Patrol with the kids or hosting an adult game night with them Guys who play beer pong – it’s huge business, ”says Yeend.

Yeend says in a perfect world, before the COVID-19 pandemic, Gamestar would have been ready and in the market to capitalize on the dramatic increase in hours spent at home.

Even so, he believes social games won’t go away – they just change devices.

“Board games were on fire even before COVID, growing 17 percent year over year. And it’s driven by the urgent need for social interaction,” says Yeend.

“They say you can take people out to dinner, but you can’t make them talk. Board games bring people together in a unique way. Games don’t go away. “