The closure is believed to be related to wider cost-cutting measures at Twitter. With its own service unable to attract new users, the company has decided to rid itself of the equally encumbered Vine.
Shutting down “the right way”
In October, Twitter said it would be managing the shutdown “the right way,” promising not to delete creators’ Vines or suddenly take its website offline. Vines will remain available to view and download indefinitely on the current website. On January 17, Vine will stop accepting new uploads and the app will cease to function as it currently does.
Contrary to previous speculation, Vine won’t completely disappear. Instead, Vine will become a new app, “Vine Camera,” that allows you to keep creating six-second looping videos. Twitter hopes to keep Vine’s biggest fans on-board, offering a way to create Vine content even when the backend service is gone. Videos made in Vine Camera will be saved to your phone. There will also be an option to upload directly to Twitter.
Twitter said it remains committed to finding out what’s important to creators, answering questions and handling the closure “the right way.” It thanked Vine’s users for their commitment to the app, noting the platform helped to shape a new culture.
“Thank you for the culture that you have helped shape, and for the content you’ll continue to make everywhere,” said Twitter. “You make the world a funnier, weirder, richer, more beautiful place.”
Usurped by mainstream rivals
Bought by Twitter in 2013 for $30 million, Vine initially looked like a promising new social media app. With a unique concept revolving around looping videos of a fixed six-second length, Vine hoped to appeal to young audiences with a desire to share quirky content. The app has changed little since its initial launch though, despite the rise of rival platforms with similar features.
In recent years, it has been usurped by services including Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram. They have trodden the same path of looking for younger fun-looking users interested in video but augmented the experience with extras like filters and masks. Vine has been left behind, becoming caught up in its parent company’s financial difficulties.
In its original October announcement of Vine’s death, Twitter thanked the app’s users for “taking a chance” on the platform “back in the day.” The phrases convey a pessimism towards Vine’s perception, suggesting its parent company views it as stale and lacking any route forward. Its closure marks a rare occurrence in the world of social media, emphasising how big the mainstream apps have become. Although Vine’s camera is still available to those who want it, the service has succumbed with its users to newer, more feature-rich rivals.
