Twitter is shutting down its 6-second video app

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October 28, 2016 7:49 AM

Vine's days are coming to an end as Twitter tries to overhaul its core product.

Twitter has announced that it will be shutting down Vine, the short-form video app it acquired before launch to complement its text-based network with an active community of content creators.

Vine will be discontinued "in coming months," Twitter said in a Medium post. According to The Verge, a source said significant employee exits hit the mobile app today.

The report further says that Twitter has refused to say how many Vine employees are affected or whether any Vine employees are going to be offered new jobs.

Twitter does say it will not delete any vines that have been posted - for now, at least. “We value you, your Vines, and are going to do this the right way,” the company said in the Medium post.

“You’ll be able to access and download your Vines. We’ll be keeping the website online because we think it’s important to still be able to watch all the incredible Vines that have been made.”

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Twitter acquired Vine, which had not launched yet, in late 2012. The app later launched in January 2013, and its trademark looping 6-second videos steadily became popular with sports highlights, visual effects, and comedy.

Some vine stars even went on to become popular artists and actors after clips of them doing stuff went viral.

Still, Vine never became the destination Twitter hoped it would be. Its co-founders quit and Twitter was not eager to invest in the app.

Instagram adding video in 2013 stunted its growth, and the rest of its product just didn't add features quickly enough.

Vine's days are coming to an end as Twitter tries to overhaul its core product, which has been struggling to make money or add users.

Twitter said in a statement that it would lay off 9 percent of its staff - about 350 people - as it tries to find a better way forward. Its latest effort to get a buyer failed when no one would meet its asking price.

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