Snap-owned GIF platform Gfycat to SHUTDOWN soon; Users rush to save their memes
Snap-owned GIF-hosting platform, Gfycat, founded in 2013 and acquired by Snap in 2020, was once a popular site with integrations across various platforms, has announced its impending shutdown on September 1, leading to the removal of its entire archive of GIFs from the platform. Users have been given a two-month window to save their content before it is permanently removed. The future of Gfycat's content remains uncertain, as it is unclear whether Snap plans to integrate it into Snapchat or delete it altogether.
A message on the Gfycat website states, "The Gfycat service is being discontinued. Please save or delete your Gfycat content by logging in to your account at https://www.gfycat.com. All Gfycat information and data will be removed from gfycat.com after September 1, 2023."
The fate of the Gfycat content remains uncertain, as it is unclear whether Snap plans to integrate it into Snapchat or permanently erase years of GIFs. However, a spokesperson from Snapchat mentioned to TechCrunch that users can still search for and use GIFs in their conversations with friends on the platform.
This shutdown indicates that Gfycat has struggled to compete against rivals such as Tenor and Giphy. In May, When Gfycat's temporary TLS security certificate expired in May and the site was inaccessible to the majority of users for five days, Gfycat came under fire. Additionally, Reddit reports suggest that some Gfycat users have been experiencing difficulties uploading GIFs for months, with the support team remaining unresponsive.
The service's disappearance will disappoint many users, as Gfycat supported high-definition short clips and animations. Founded in 2013 by Richard Rabbat, Dan McEleney, and Jeff Harris, the user-generated content
Read more on tech.hindustantimes.com
