Lightster Revenue (2024)

Lightster generated approximately $7,000 per month in net revenue as of March 2023, which Avelar confirmed is the company's retained cut after paying users. Gross session volume on the platform runs to roughly $14,000 per month, with users receiving $1 per session minute and Lightster keeping the remaining $1 per minute from the $2-per-minute charge billed to companies. On an annualized basis, the trailing net revenue run rate implies approximately $84,000 per year.

Lightster had 12 active companies initiating paid sessions as of March 2023, including Noble, a Toronto-based company. Avelar noted that a few additional companies had enrolled but had not yet fully initiated paying sessions. The platform also had approximately 6,000 individual users across more than 1,000 communities at the same date.

Pricing operates on a pay-per-use basis at $2 per minute of video session, with users receiving $1 per minute and Lightster retaining $1 per minute. Average session length is approximately 30 minutes. Average project budget ranges from $600 to $1,200 per project. Lightster also offers two subscription plans: a $50 per month plan that includes unlimited private communities and perk creation features, and a $200 per month plan that includes 150 session minutes along with the premium features. Users can join the platform for free without a paid plan.

Lightster earns revenue through two mechanisms. The primary model is pay-per-use: companies pay $2 per session minute, users receive $1 per minute, and Lightster retains $1 per minute. At an average session length of 30 minutes, a single session generates $60 in gross volume and $30 in net revenue for Lightster. Average project budgets range from $600 to $1,200, implying between 300 and 600 session minutes per project at the $2-per-minute rate.

The secondary model is subscription-based, launched approximately one to two months before the March 2023 interview. Plan one is priced at $50 per month and includes unlimited private communities and perk customization. Plan two is priced at $200 per month and includes 150 session minutes plus the premium feature set. With 12 paying companies and average contract values of approximately $600 per project, implied revenue per active customer is roughly $600 on a project basis. The platform's average revenue per user across all 6,000 registered users is approximately $2, reflecting the large free user base relative to the paying company count.

Gross margin, churn, LTV, CAC, burn rate, and profitability were not discussed in the interview.

Lightster operates with a team of four people as of March 2023. Sal Avelar leads marketing and growth. His co-founder oversees product development and overall operations. Two additional team members work in product development. The company is fully bootstrapped and has not disclosed plans to expand headcount.