Benedict Townsend
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
Karen is the first to admit that the 1600 group had power, that they were crucial to Vine's survival. But Taylor's version of history still irritated her.
Karen is the first to admit that the 1600 group had power, that they were crucial to Vine's survival. But Taylor's version of history still irritated her.
From the point of view of Vine HQ, it was forces from above rather than below that had been crippling Vine's potential long before the meeting had ever taken place. The prevailing narrative? That a group of the biggest Viners brought down the app after a climactic multi-million dollar showdown was captivating and cinematic.
From the point of view of Vine HQ, it was forces from above rather than below that had been crippling Vine's potential long before the meeting had ever taken place. The prevailing narrative? That a group of the biggest Viners brought down the app after a climactic multi-million dollar showdown was captivating and cinematic.
It was one of the main things that drove me to start this project in the first place. But like most captivating cinematic stories... It's just not true. Vine died in October 2016, but as we've found over the course of our series, the app had been atrophying for nearly a year before that.
It was one of the main things that drove me to start this project in the first place. But like most captivating cinematic stories... It's just not true. Vine died in October 2016, but as we've found over the course of our series, the app had been atrophying for nearly a year before that.
In a way, it wasn't that Vine left behind legions of mourning fans, it's that legions of fans had already left Vine.
In a way, it wasn't that Vine left behind legions of mourning fans, it's that legions of fans had already left Vine.
It's interesting that Taylor mentions Musical.ly, the lip-syncing app that would prove to be Vine's unlikely successor. When I asked Russ if there was anything Vine could have done to have survived, his reply really surprised me.
It's interesting that Taylor mentions Musical.ly, the lip-syncing app that would prove to be Vine's unlikely successor. When I asked Russ if there was anything Vine could have done to have survived, his reply really surprised me.
Quite a few people in tech have really labored this point about the significance of lip-syncing, which, you know, at this point kind of feels like a bit of a blip in the history of the internet, but Musical.ly figured out how to do something that Vine had never managed to do, which is to get masses of users to actively post content on their own rather than sitting back as just passive observers.
Quite a few people in tech have really labored this point about the significance of lip-syncing, which, you know, at this point kind of feels like a bit of a blip in the history of the internet, but Musical.ly figured out how to do something that Vine had never managed to do, which is to get masses of users to actively post content on their own rather than sitting back as just passive observers.
That's real engagement.
That's real engagement.