Crowd funding began as a way to support the arts on the Internet. Artists could go online to pitch a new album, for example, in the hope that thousands would give small amounts. But now it's expanded to entrepreneurs, and the rules aren't quite as clear.

On Kickstarter, the largest crowd-funding site, a handful of entrepreneurs have raised millions of dollars more than they'd expected, by selling the concept of products they have yet to make. But financial backers have no clear way of getting a refund if the young businesses fail to deliver.

To read the original article: When A Kickstarter Campaign Fails, Does Anyone Get The Money Back? : All Tech Considered : NPR