OnLive Denies Rumors That the Company is Shutting Down [Updated]

According to Polygon and veteran video game developer Brian Fargo, video game streaming company OnLive has fired its entire staff and the company will cease to exist as of later today:

According to e-mails forwarded to Polygon from supposedly former OnLive employees, the company will no longer exist as of today.

"I wanted to send a note that by the end of the day today, OnLive as an entity will no longer exist," reads an email forwarded to Polygon. "Unfortunately, my job and everyone else's was included. A new company will be formed and the management of the company will be in contact with you about the current initiatives in place, including the titles that will remain on the service."

NewImageHowever, according to Brian Jaquet, OnLive's Director of Corporate Communications, the story is untrue. The company's Twitter feed is still posting normally and, in response to an email from MacRumors, Jaquet wrote:

We don't respond to rumors, but of course not.

[…]

I have no comment on the news other than to say the OnLive service is not shutting down.

I'm sorry I cannot be more specific.

We've followed OnLive for a while, particularly after the company demonstrated an iOS version of its streaming video game software last December. That software was supposed to deliver "console-class gaming to tablets and phones", but is still awaiting approval from Apple to join the App Store.

Earlier this year, the company released a iOS app called OnLive Desktop that used its video game streaming technology to put a full-fledged Windows client on the iPad, including a Flash and PDF-enabled web browser.

Update: Kotaku reports that the company will be filing for bankruptcy and a new company will be created from the remains of OnLive and some employees will be brought over to that organization. Others have apparently been laid off.

Update 2: OnLive has issued the following statement to MacRumors clarifying the situation:

We can now confirm that the assets of OnLive, Inc. have been acquired into a newly-formed company and is backed by substantial funding, and which will continue to operate the OnLive Game and Desktop services, as well as support all of OnLive's apps and devices, as well as game, productivity and enterprise partnerships. The new company is hiring a large percentage of OnLive, Inc.'s staff across all departments and plans to continue to hire substantially more people, including additional OnLive employees. All previously announced products and services, including those in the works, will continue and there is no expected interruption of any OnLive services.

Tag: OnLive

Popular Stories

Apple Glass

Apple Smart Glasses: Everything We Know So Far

Wednesday May 21, 2025 8:21 am PDT by
Google recently made waves by showcasing a set of lightweight smart glasses featuring deep Gemini integration and an optional in-lens display. The demo has reignited interest in Apple's own smart glasses project, which has been the subject of rumors for nearly a decade. Here's a recap of where things stand. Current Development Status Apple is actively working on new chips specifically...
Apple Glasses Purple Feature

Apple Smart Glasses Launching in 2026

Thursday May 22, 2025 12:22 pm PDT by
Apple is planning to launch a set of smart glasses by the end of 2026, reports Bloomberg. The glasses will be comparable to the Meta Ray-Bans and the Android XR glasses that Google showed off earlier this week. Apple's smart glasses are expected to include cameras, microphones, and AI capabilities, much like the Meta Ray-Bans. The glasses will be able to take photos, record video, provide...
Apple CarPlay Ultra instrument cluster themes 01

Apple's CarPlay Ultra Is Here – Does Your iPhone Support It?

Thursday May 15, 2025 5:17 am PDT by
Apple's recently announced CarPlay Ultra promises a deeply integrated in-car experience, but not all iPhone users will be able to take advantage of the new feature. According to Apple's press release, CarPlay Ultra requires an iPhone 12 or later running iOS 18.5 or later. This means if you're using an iPhone 11, iPhone XR, or any older model, you'll need to upgrade your device to access...
maxresdefault

OpenAI Buys Jony Ive's AI Startup to 'Completely Reimagine What It Means to Use a Computer'

Wednesday May 21, 2025 10:27 am PDT by
OpenAI is acquiring io, the hardware-based AI startup co-created by Jony Ive, OpenAI announced today. Ive has been working with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on io for two years, and the duo expects to develop a family of AI devices. In a video shared by OpenAI, Altman and Ive outlined their partnership and what they expect to create as a result of the merger. "I have a growing sense that everything ...
WWDC 2025 Banner

Apple Announces WWDC 2025 Schedule, Including Keynote Time

Tuesday May 20, 2025 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today announced a more detailed schedule for its annual developers conference WWDC, which runs from June 9 through June 13. The schedule confirms that Apple's keynote will begin on Monday, June 9 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, with a live stream to be available on Apple.com, in the Apple TV app, and on YouTube. During the keynote, Apple is expected to announce iOS 19, iPadOS 19, macOS 16,...
iPod shuffle generations

Kuo: Jony Ive's Futuristic OpenAI Device Like a Neck-Worn iPod Shuffle

Thursday May 22, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
The big news in the technology world this week is that ChatGPT maker OpenAI is working more closely with Apple's former design chief Jony Ive on a futuristic AI device. The company is remaining tight lipped about the device, but Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has shared some alleged details about its design. In a social media post today, Kuo said the device will be "slightly larger" ...
macOS 16 visionOS Inspired Feature 1

macOS 16: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday May 20, 2025 7:31 am PDT by
The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple's annual developer and software-oriented event, is less than three weeks away. We haven't heard a great deal about macOS 16 ahead of its announcement this year, so we could be in for some major surprises when June 9 rolls around. Here's what we know so far about the next major update to Apple's Mac operating system. macOS 16 Name? Every year ...

Top Rated Comments

Vizin Avatar
167 months ago
.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chrmjenkins Avatar
167 months ago
Whether it's true or not, it makes you wonder what would happen to everyone's games if this did happen. Don't OnLive games cost full price? Would they just lose everything they bought?

That's the problem with paying for a license rather than paying for a product, especially when the license depends on an online service remaining active.

Yes, all of their customer will lose his license. His name is Greg. Very sad.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
doctorossi Avatar
167 months ago
Ah, my favorite PR move: "We don't respond to rumors, but here's our response to this rumor..." :D
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wovel Avatar
167 months ago
If you can't respond to a rumour that you're company will no longer exist in a day, then that's a confirmation.

They must have been bought by someone, MS? Guess we'll hear after the market closes today...

He did respond.

He said "of course not"

He went on to indicate the service would continue running.

The headline of the story even said he denied it.

What were you reading?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Peace Avatar
167 months ago
Did Apple just buy them ?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MRU Avatar
167 months ago
How does this news fit into Mac rumors set up?
Some folks with Mac computers use OnLive. Not really quantum science.....
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)