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from the Failed-to-reach-a-top...Quibile? dept.
Plagued with growth issues, Quibi, a short-form mobile-native video platform, is shutting down, according to multiple reports. The startup, co-founded by Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman, had raised nearly $2 billion in its lifetime as a private company. Quibi did not respond to requests for comment from TechCrunch.
The company's prolific fundraising efforts spanned prominent institutions in private equity, venture capital and Hollywood, all betting on Katzenberg's ability to deliver another hit. The startup's backers included Alibaba, Madrone Capital Partners, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, as well as Disney, Sony Pictures, Viacom, WarnerMedia and MGM, among others. The Information reports that Quibi will have $350 million left to return to shareholders.
Their pitch was highly produced bite-sized content, packed with Hollywood star power, and designed to be "mobile-first" entertainment. For the YouTubes and Snaps of the world, producing mainstream content on a shoestring budget, Quibi wanted to be an HBO for smartphones. Investors and pundits questioned the firm's ability to monetize this vision, and it became clear soon after launch that the company had miscalculated.
[...] Admitting that the launch hadn't gone as planned, Katzenberg blamed the coronavirus for the streaming app's challenges.
One problem with finding a buyer: Quibi doesn't even own most of its original "content":
Actually, Quibi doesn't own any of the big-budget premium content for which it has shelled out upwards of $100,000 per minute. The company has seven-year licenses on its short-form series; after two years, content owners have the right to assemble the shows and distribute them elsewhere.
Also at The Verge, Business Insider, Ars Technica, and MarketWatch.
Previously: Meg Whitman-Run Streaming Service "Quibi" Launches, Reception Mixed
The Fall of Quibi: How Did a Starry $1.75bn Netflix Rival Crash So Fast?
Related: Fox Could Buy Tubi While NBCUniversal Eyes Vudu
(Score: 2, Troll) by VLM on Thursday October 22 2020, @05:51PM (3 children)
quibi is what (((Hollywood))) told us we wanted, but as usual nobody wanted what they told us to want.
tiktok is the same thing as quibi but with better content, mostly naked hot amateur women.
From what I saw the content on quibi was beyond cringe, like the crappiest ads on a daytime cable TV channel, but, somehow, worse. The kind of stuff nobody watches anymore so the budget was slashed until nobody tunes in except coma patients in the hospital. And the quibi people accidentally thought that was a real market LOL.
Quibi also closed/DRMed the heck out of everything, screenshots are a blank page. The (((hollywood))) people don't understand the best advertising for tiktok was "hot" screenshots of tiktok uploaded everywhere.
Its astounding how much money they were asking for subscription to quibi given the content.
It didn't do anything anyone wanted, and couldn't convince anyone that what it did was desirable. It was like a late night infomercial merged with mobile app development. I'd rather have a pocket sized folding fishing rod than a quibi. Or a thighmaster, snuggie, or slap-chop, or a gadget combining all in one. At least the ShakeWeight provided videos of women that guys actually wanted to see, unlike quibi. Yeah the world needs ShakeWeights about a thousand times more than it needs quibi.
Overall, a pretty good sign we're in bubble poppin territory. How exactly did "veg out brainlessly on your phone" fail during a world wide pandemic of bored people? The collapse would have been absolutely unimaginable under better conditions.
So yeah I been laughing at this one for awhile, waiting for the inevitable obituary to make some laughs above. This cycle needs a "fuckedcompany.com" like at the turn of the century.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 22 2020, @07:17PM (2 children)
What's with the air quotes?
(Score: 2) by NateMich on Thursday October 22 2020, @08:11PM
Unless there was a video somewhere with his hands in the air (on Quibi perhaps?) then I don't think that means what you think it means.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 22 2020, @10:25PM
Do you mean the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triple_parentheses [wikipedia.org] or the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scare_quotes [wikipedia.org]