In shocking news Thursday, Twitter announced that they would be discontinuing their video-sharing service Vine, which they've owned since its launch in 2012. In a statement on Medium, the company said, "Today, we are sharing the news that in the coming months we’ll be discontinuing the mobile app." Though no reason was given for the decision to shut the service down, we do know, thanks to the Medium post, that the app will be discontinued but the website will remain live, so old Vines will still be accessible should anyone be searching for them. But, with the website staying live, one has to wonder: Does that mean users can still upload new Vines through the website?
Well, unfortunately for any avid Vine users, this will likely not be the case. Though the company did state on Medium that the site would remain live and that users would be notified if this plan changes — " We value you, your Vines, and are going to do this the right way. You’ll be able to access and download your Vines. We’ll be keeping the website online because we think it’s important to still be able to watch all the incredible Vines that have been made. You will be notified before we make any changes to the app or website," — discontinuing the service means discontinuing the ability to upload new content. It's effectively going to be rendered a relic of the early 2010s, available to be looked at, but not touched.
There is some good news, though. Until the app is discontinued, users can still upload new Vines to the site — sure, it's for a very limited time, but it's still something. Silver lining?
In a statement to Bustle about this news, Twitter said users should refer to the Medium post for all info about the news, and that the company intends "to fully invest in our highest priorities and are de-prioritizing certain initiatives and simplifying how we operate in other areas... the restructuring, which focuses primarily on reorganizing the company’s sales, partnerships, and marketing efforts, is intended to create greater focus and efficiency to enable Twitter’s goal of driving toward GAAP profitability in 2017."
Image: Twitter
