Six seconds of mourning

Austin Keefer writes fake obituary in memory of discontinued Vine

Popular+social+media+platform%2C+Vine%2C+was+recently+discontinued+by+parent+company%2C+Twitter.++All+previous+videos+and+resources+will+stay+online.+

Parker Nolan

Popular social media platform, Vine, was recently discontinued by parent company, Twitter. All previous videos and resources will stay online.

Austin Keefer, Staff Reporter

President Abraham Lincoln once said, “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

Never has that statement seemed more relevant than with the passing of a companion that many never thought would truly leave. After years of fame, glory, and struggle, the beloved app, Vine, died last week on Oct. 27.

It was 3 years, 9 months, and 3 days old.

Vine, which was named for the word “Vignette” which is defined as “a short impressionistic scene,” was founded in June 2012 in Florida by Dom Hofmann, Rus Yusupov, and Colin Kroll. In October of that same year, it was purchased by Twitter for $30 million. It officially launched on Jan. 24, 2013. It allowed users to create, edit, and share videos around six seconds long using an in-app camera. The in-app camera only recorded when the screen was being touched, which allowed users to employ a variety of effects.

It only took three months for Vine to gain one million viewers. By April 2013, it was the most downloaded app in the United States  By August 2013, Vine announced that it had crossed over the 40 million user mark, a remarkable 13 million user increase from June. As it grew in popularity, Vine added many new features, including infinite loop counts, Vine Music, Vine Kids, and eventually, 140-second long video clips. It’s no wonder Vine was so popular; it had a lot to offer. Users could use it on a phone, a computer, or an Xbox. It was available in 25 languages. And, perhaps most cherishable of all, it only took up 14 megabytes of data.

At its peak, Vine received about five posts per second, and it also paved the way for countless stars with millions of followers, such as KingBach, Thomas Sanders, Logan Paul, Page Kennedy, and Cameron Dallas.

Besides comedic posts, Vine was often used for journalism. On Feb. 1, 2013, a Turkish journalist used it to document the aftermath of the 2013 United States embassy bombing in Ankara. It was also used by many journalists and non-journalists alike to capture the immediate aftermath of the April 15, 2013 Boston Marathon Bombing. In fact, on that day, a record-shattering 19,667 Vines were created.

Vine accomplished much in its comparatively brief lifespan. It convinced many that Thomas Sanders was the actual voice of Stewie Griffin from Family Guy, caused Page Kennedy to leave the TV Show Blue Mountain State to pursue a career on the app, and allowed Andrew B. Bachelor (KingBach) to become the most followed Viner ever with 15.8 million followers, thus making it impossible for him to live up to his last name.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and Vine was no exception. As the years went on, Twitter became more and more dissatisfied with the meager amounts of money that Vine was making, and last week, Vine was put down.

Vine is survived by parent company Twitter, and illegitimate cousins Snapchat and Instagram, all of whom refused to comment for this story.

No memorial services have been scheduled, but existing videos will remain on the web for Viners to enjoy.