Like an 11th hour call from the Governor, video-looping service Vine may have just received a last-minute stay of execution. TechCrunch reports that parent company Twitter is currently entertaining numerous offers and term sheets to purchase the service — thereby saving it from its announced shuttering.
We first learned that Twitter would terminate Vine late last month — an announcement that led Pornhub to make a very quick purchase offer.
"We figure since Twitter has dropped (Vine) and is having significant layoffs, that you and your stakeholders could benefit from a cash infusion from the sale of Vine," Pornhub VP Corey Price wrote in a letter to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey that was shared with Cnet. "Not to mention we would be saving Vine gems like 'Damn Daniel,' 'Awkward Puppets' and many more." Price then added, referencing the short nature of Vine clips, that "porn in six seconds is more than enough time for most people to enjoy themselves."
And while that offer may or may not have been serious, other offers to purchase Vine from Twitter apparently have been. According to TechCrunch, "Twitter received a large number of bids, including several from Asia," although at this time the names of the specific interested buyers is unclear.
This could potentially be great news for all the people who poured several years worth of creative energy into the service, as well as those in the African-American community who The New York Times reports have found a comedic home in Vine. It is likely less exciting news for Vine's existing employees, as TechCrunch says some of the purchase offers are for less that $10 million. For comparison, the Times reports that the app costs about $10 million per month to run.
Interestingly, Vine's original creator Rus Yusupov has expressed regret at selling his company to Twitter. However, with a reported transaction price of $30 million back in 2012, maybe he and his co-founders can now just buy the damn thing back.
Previously: Pornhub Just Offered To Buy Vine