Twitter on Thursday revealed third quarter earnings that beat analysts' expectations. The report also confirmed rumors that the microblogging platform would be laying off nearly a tenth of its global workforce, or just over 300 employees.
A brief note published on Medium shortly after revealed that one of the departments hit hardest by the layoffs is the Vine team. In fact, the entire division is getting the axe.
Twitter said that in the coming months, it will be discontinuing the Vine mobile app. There's no reason to fret today, we're told, as the team promised to handle the closing "the right way" by providing users with the ability to access and download their Vines.
What's more, Twitter will be keeping the Vine website online as they feel it's important to still be able to watch all of the videos that have been made. Users will also be notified before any changes are made to the app or website.
Vine was founded by Colin Kroll, Rus Yusupov and Dom Hofmann in June 2012 before being acquired by Twitter later that year for a reported $30 million. The app didn't go live until the following year, rolling out first for iOS users followed by Android roughly five months later.
The app was an instant hit but its staying power didn't last. Facebook added a video sharing element to Instagram in mid-2013 and as The Verge correctly highlights, Twitter was characteristically slow to add new features. Although a slightly different type of product, Twitter's decision to acquire and launch Periscope likely didn't help Vine's chances.
Image courtesy Charlie White, Mashable