Over the last year, a number of new streaming services became available; leading to a battle for subscriptions many have called the streaming wars. Now, the first official casualty of the streaming wars has occurred. Quibi, the short form mobile streaming service announced this week plans to shut down after only six months.
Jeffrey Katzenberg, the co-founder of Quibi, informed investors of plans to shut down the relatively new streaming platform amid struggles. Quibi first launched in April, but failed to draw an audience even after reducing subscription prices and streaming previews of its originals on YouTube. They were also hurt by their mobile platform, as they were slow allowing viewers to view their content on television screens.
Quibi made waves when first announced at CES 2020, as Katzenberg raised approximately $1.75 billion in startup capital for the launch. Even their advertising deals with Walmart and Pepsi couldn’t save the streaming platform. Now viewers will just have to choose one of the many other streaming services to use instead.
Via Engadget