Hub-and-spoke,
by design.
9Bit Studios is structured so founders never give up what they built. Each member retains their own entity and IP; the studio provides the publishing and platform infrastructure none of them could build alone. This page is the public-facing explanation of how that works.
The architecture
One hub. Three spokes. Many products.
Why this structure exists
The problem with solo and the problem with merger
A solo founder — no matter how talented — faces structural barriers: limited credibility in enterprise contexts, ineligibility for team-required accelerator programs, and a ceiling on parallel function. A traditional merger solves some of that, but at the cost of forcing each founder to surrender their own IP.
The hub-and-spoke model resolves the tradeoff. Three founders with complementary expertise share publishing infrastructure and brand equity through a joint entity, while each retains full ownership of their personal creative work.
Operating frameworks
What governs the framework
1. IP ownership is non-negotiable
Every founder retains 100% ownership of their personal IP. The studio receives a publishing license — terminable, scoped, and revertible. No founder is ever asked to assign IP to participate.
2. Revenue follows the IP
The IP owner receives the lion's share of any title's revenue (75% of net). The studio's 25% platform fee compensates the shared infrastructure that makes publishing possible.
3. Platform value is shared by equity
The platform fee from every title distributes to all members per equity share. Every member benefits from every release, regardless of whose IP shipped that quarter.
4. Build labor and equity stay separate
When one member builds for another's IP, the build fee compensates the labor. Equity reflects long-term contribution and ownership. The two never get mixed up — keeping the structure clean and audit-ready.
A worked example
Revenue flow for a member product
For each $100 of net revenue earned by a member product (after Apple's cut):
IP owner receives directly as the licensor of the title
9Bit Studios platform services fee
The $25 distributes per member equity (55 / 25 / 20)
Net effect: the IP owner of any given title receives both their 75% IP share and their equity slice of the 25% platform fee. For a 20% equity holder, that's roughly 80% of total net revenue on their own titles — and a 20% slice of the platform fee on every other member's titles.
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