Short Form Video Service Quibi Shutting Down

Short form video streaming service Quibi is shutting down, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal and The Information. Employees and investors were notified about the impending shutdown over phone calls that went out this afternoon.

Screen Shot 2020 05 27 at 09
Quibi, which launched in April, is similar to Netflix or Hulu but it provides video content in shorter 5 to 10 minute snippets for $4.99+ per month. Quibi envisioned its short form video being watched on smartphones, with the company pouring more than $1 billion into original content.

Following its launch, Quibi saw a slow start, which Quibi founder Jeffrey Katzenberg attributed to the pandemic. Katzenberg called Quibi's launch "not close to what we wanted," and the service ended up with an estimated 400,000 to 500,000 subscribers.

Quibi believed that it would garner approximately 7.4 million subscribers during its first year after launching, and it has so far come nowhere close to meeting that target.

Katzenberg approached several tech executives to see if Quibi might be able to be sold off, but no companies were interested. Katzenberg spoke with Facebook, Warner Media, and even Apple's software and services chief Eddy Cue, all of whom declined a purchase.

Companies were not interested in Quibi because of its unappealing licensing deals. Quibi's content is exclusive to Quibi for just two years, with creators then able to license it to other services, and after seven years, creators get back show ownership. Quibi is also facing a lawsuit from interactive video company Eko, with Eko claiming Quibi stole its horizontal/vertical video content technology.

Quibi also attempted to expand outside of its smartphone-only streaming format, offering apps on other platforms such as the Apple TV. An ‌Apple TV‌ app for Quibi launched yesterday, but the platform expansion has come too late to save the service.

Quibi had backers that included most major Hollywood studios, Alibaba, and Google, and The Information says it will shut down with $850 million in cash and several hundred million in debt. It is not clear how much money will be returned to shareholders, and investors in the company stand to lose money.

Tag: Quibi

Popular Stories

iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Coming Next Week With These New Features for Your iPhone

Friday February 14, 2025 6:18 am PST by
The first iOS 18.4 beta for iPhones should be just around the corner, and the update is expected to include many new features and changes. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects the iOS 18.4 beta to be released by next week. Below, we outline what to expect from iOS 18.4 so far. Apple Intelligence for Siri Siri is expected to get several enhancements powered by Apple Intelligence on iOS...
apple launch feb 2025 alt

What to Expect From the 'Apple Launch' Next Week

Thursday February 13, 2025 11:48 am PST by
Apple has yet to announce any new devices this year, but that could change starting next week. Apple CEO Tim Cook today said to "get ready" for a "launch" on Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," said Cook, in a social media post. The post includes an #AppleLaunch hashtag, along with a short video featuring an animated Apple logo inside of a circle....
iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro With All-New Camera Bar Design Allegedly Revealed

Thursday February 13, 2025 5:49 pm PST by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro will feature three rear cameras arranged in a familiar triangular layout, but the cameras will be housed in an all-new rectangular camera bar with rounded corners, according to YouTube channel Front Page Tech. iPhone 17 Pro camera design render created by Asher for Front Page Tech In a video uploaded today, Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser said the camera ...
iphone air concept weis

iPhone 17 Air Could Look Like This in Real Life

Friday February 14, 2025 3:41 am PST by
There have been several alleged leaked details of the iPhone 17 Air, Apple's rumored new slim iPhone, but images have been limited to grainy shots taken in component factories. However, this hyper-realistic concept created by WEIS Studio gives us the best idea yet of what Apple's thin device might actually look like. The concept design is inspired by recent leaks indicating that the device...
m2 pro mac mini

Apple is Now Selling a Refurbished Mac Mini for Just $319 (!)

Saturday February 15, 2025 9:58 am PST by
A few days ago, we reported that Apple's refurbished Mac mini pricing had a problem, and it appears that Apple has taken note. Apple was offering a refurbished Mac mini with the M2 chip, 16GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage for $559, which was $50 more than a refurbished Mac mini with the M4 chip, 16GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage. All other key specifications were equal. That's no longer...
apple launch feb 2025

Tim Cook Teases an 'Apple Launch' Next Wednesday

Thursday February 13, 2025 8:07 am PST by
In a social media post today, Apple CEO Tim Cook teased an upcoming "launch" of some kind scheduled for Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," he said, with an #AppleLaunch hashtag. The post includes a short video with an animated Apple logo inside a circle. Cook did not provide an exact time for the launch, or share any other specific details, so...
Apple Maps 2024

Apple Maps Might Start Showing Ads

Sunday February 16, 2025 7:22 am PST by
Apple is "exploring" the idea of showing search ads in the Apple Maps app, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Back in 2022, Gurman said software engineering was "already underway" to display ads in the Apple Maps app, but Apple did not move forward with the idea at the time. Today, he said Apple is "giving this notion more thought" again. This time around, he said Apple has yet to...
M4 Mac mini Apple Video

Apple's Refurbished Mac Mini Pricing Has a Problem

Thursday February 13, 2025 6:20 am PST by
Apple this week began selling refurbished Mac mini models with the M4 chip for the first time, but this has led to a pricing conundrum. In the United States, Apple is offering a refurbished Mac mini with the base M4 chip, 256GB of storage, 16GB of RAM, and Gigabit Ethernet for $509, down from $599 new. This is the standard 15% discount that Apple offers on refurbished Macs. The issue is...

Top Rated Comments

MysteryMii215 Avatar
57 months ago
Can we start referring to six months as a Quibi now?
Score: 61 Votes (Like | Disagree)
graywolf323 Avatar
57 months ago
I wonder why they even bothered to release the Apple TV app yesterday
Score: 39 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
57 months ago
1 day after the Quibi debuted their Apple TV app. :D
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WhoDatWayne Avatar
57 months ago
That was quick.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
icanhazmac Avatar
57 months ago

('https://www.macrumors.com/2020/10/21/quibi-apple-tv-app/')

Short form video streaming service Quibi today introduced an Apple TV app, allowing Quibi content to be watched on the Apple TV for the first time.

Article Link: Short Form Video Service Quibi Now Available on Apple TV ('https://www.macrumors.com/2020/10/21/quibi-apple-tv-app/')
AND.... it's gone!
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Baumi Avatar
57 months ago

Following its launch, Quibi saw a slow start, which Quibi founder Jeffrey Katzenberg attributed to the pandemic.
That's one of the flimsiest excuses I have ever heard: "Our entertainment streaming service got off to a slow start because it launched at a time when movie theatres and other public entertainment venues were mostly closed and people stayed at home and went online much more than usual."

From my understanding, Disney+ got a boost from its launch in the middle of the Covid lockdowns, and it was one of the few bright spots in Disney's results. Quibi failed because it didn't offer enough interesting content.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)