Periscope, a live video app Twitter acquired in 2015, is shutting down roughly six years since launching, it said Tuesday, citing factors it said have made it no longer sustainable to maintain.
Twitter users will still be able to broadcast live video using the social media company’s flagship app, but Periscope said that it will soon cease to exist as a separate, standalone service.
Periscope said it is no longer allowing new user accounts and plans to pull its program from the Apple and Android app stores within the next few months.
“I’m so grateful to the community who helped shape Periscope over the years,” said Kayvon Beykpour, product lead for Twitter and co-founder of Periscope. “You brought our vision alive in ways we never imagined when we started & you provided us with some of the most joyful, educational, challenging & gratifying moments in our careers. Thank you,” he posted on Twitter.
Twitter acquired Periscope in early 2015 before the latter officially launched as part of a deal reported at the time to be worth upwards of $50 million. Periscope subsequently went live that March and boasted of having 10 million account holders within months. That pace eventually slowed, however, likely somewhat due to Twitter letting users stream video within its app starting in late 2016.
“The truth is that the Periscope app is in an unsustainable maintenance-mode state, and has been for a while,” reads a blog post about the app credited to Team Periscope and confirmed by Twitter.
“Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen declining usage and know that the cost to support the app will only continue to go up over time,” it said. “Leaving it in its current state isn’t doing right by the current and former Periscope community or by Twitter.”
Periscope said users will be able to download their data before the app disappears. The latest version of its iPhone app, released Tuesday, specifies the app will be discontinued effective March 31.
“Although it’s time to say goodbye, the legacy of Periscope will live on far beyond the boundaries of the app itself,” Team Periscope said in the blog post. “The capabilities and ethos of the Periscope team and infrastructure already permeate Twitter, and we’re confident that live video still has the potential of seeing an even wider audience within the Twitter product.”
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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