Shutdownify is shutting down
August 20, 2015 5:56 AM   Subscribe

"It is with tremendous regret that I must announce the shutdown of Shutdownify"
Once the darling of the neo-dot-com era, Shutdownify (Shutdown Notice as a Service) is no more after failing to secure additional funding. What a long, strange journey it has been.
posted by AndrewStephens (16 comments total) 7 users marked this as a favorite
 
It's fake.
posted by acb at 6:10 AM on August 20, 2015 [7 favorites]


I work in this industry, and yet I cannot outrun the meta-ness of it.
posted by randomkeystrike at 6:11 AM on August 20, 2015 [3 favorites]


whois shutdownify.com

Whois Server Version 2.0

Domain names in the .com and .net domains can now be registered
with many different competing registrars. Go to http://www.internic.net
for detailed information.

Domain Name: SHUTDOWNIFY.COM
[...]
Updated Date: 19-aug-2015
Creation Date: 19-aug-2015
Expiration Date: 19-aug-2016
Fail fast!

(Yeah, it's a joke. A good one too.)
posted by zamboni at 6:12 AM on August 20, 2015 [3 favorites]


Very well done - I totally bought it as a legit idiotic startup reaching the end of its incredible journey, but the whole thing's a pisstake:
Domain Name: shutdownify.com
Registry Domain ID:
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.1and1.com
Registrar URL: http://1and1.com
Updated Date: 2015-08-19T17:42:35Z
Creation Date: 2015-08-19T14:11:37Z
posted by jack_mo at 6:13 AM on August 20, 2015


The absolute best part of the joke is that Gizmodo felt they had to write an entire article explaining that this wasn't a real company.

But maybe if we all band together we can save Shutdownify a la Blingee! brings together web celebrities to record fundraising track "Don't Shutdownify Our Hearts"
posted by phooky at 6:17 AM on August 20, 2015 [5 favorites]


This is the latest stint from Shaun Gallagher, of Experimenting with Babies infamy.
posted by Smart Dalek at 6:21 AM on August 20, 2015 [2 favorites]


"Shutdownify's last meal is its own dog food" is just gnomic enough to have come from a real startup.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:30 AM on August 20, 2015 [12 favorites]




I founded Shutdownify after recognizing an unmet need in the market. Startups that were ceasing operations, whether because of financial distress or an acquisition, faced an unenviable problem: They had to replace their entire site with a shutdown notice in a very limited time window.

I am reminded of an episode of the Mary Tyler Moore show where Mary Richards was given the task of updating the newsroom's pre-written obituaries. Bored out of her mind with the assignment (and fortified by some of those small airplane bottles of whiskey she kept in the cupboard) she writes a goof one and what do you know the person dies the next day and Richard's goof obituary was read live on the air in all the seriousness Ted Baxter could muster.

Pity these guys didn't do down the same way. It would be nice to see a better flame out from a dot com rocket.
posted by three blind mice at 6:41 AM on August 20, 2015 [2 favorites]


http://archiveteam.org/index.php?title=Shutdownify
posted by joeyh at 6:43 AM on August 20, 2015 [1 favorite]




> It's fake.

Rats!
posted by flug at 8:39 AM on August 20, 2015


Perhaps they just need to rebrand away from startups and offer their services to the ECB.

Why is {country} shutting down?
Our {republic} has proved to be unprofitable. Our {creditors have} decided that the {country} should shut down now and sell all remaining assets, the proceeds of which will be distributed to our investors.

Will {country} continue to operate during the shutdown?
Effective immediately, no new {citizens} may be created in {country}. Existing {citizenships} will expire at the end of August 2015 and will not auto-renew. {Citizens} may continue to live within {country} until Dec. 31, 2015. {Members of the European Parliament} for {country} will remain active until Dec. 31, 2015.

How can I export my existing {citizenship}?
At this time, we are not offering tools with which to export {citizenships}.

What if I have other questions? How can I get in touch?
You may contact your {MEP} until Dec. 31, 2015
posted by frimble at 9:13 AM on August 20, 2015 [2 favorites]


> It's fake.

I'm pretty sure that word no longer means what it used to mean, cf. Donald Trump.
posted by benito.strauss at 9:49 AM on August 20, 2015 [4 favorites]


SHUTDOWNIFY IS THE BEST. ALL THE OTHER SHUTDOWN SERVICES ARE LOOOOSAHS.
posted by tonycpsu at 10:57 AM on August 20, 2015 [1 favorite]


Looks like there's a real company: http://shutdown.io
posted by Apocryphon at 11:08 AM on August 21, 2015 [1 favorite]


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