stage6 shutting down

greyed

http://www.stage6.com/blog/107/

Not sure if this is the appropriate forum, but seems best suited here.
This is really disappointing, was a really really great resource... high quality video readily available from every type of film-maker... great for anime too:(

Probably already known here but im posting in part for confirmation, this is not a practical joke right?

Example of some cool animation to be found there. Local stuff too.

Many of you used the site? Id be prepared to pay for its continuation.
Three days.

AntiRip

Yes just seen this on digg.

This is very very sad news. I loved this site especially the "other" spin off sites that links it's videos. Some really good content in high quality divX. I just can't face watching sh1tty youtube videos after this

Fiach Dubh

And so the Internet takes another big step backwards

AntiRip

Fiach Dubh wrote: »

And so the Internet takes another big step backwards

Anything thats good and worthwhile doesn't last long on the interweb

Actually I'm quite surprised that there aren't more comments on this issue.

extopia

Stage6 is facing a $30m lawsuit to Universal Music Group because the site is illegally hosting copyright material.

That's what this is all about . What else would you expect? Piracy isn't a very good long-term business proposition.

AntiRip

extopia wrote: »

Stage6 is facing a $30m lawsuit to Universal Music Group because the site is illegally hosting copyright material.

That's what this is all about . What else would you expect? Piracy isn't a very good long-term business proposition.

If thats the case (and I'm not saying it isn't) then every single video hosting site is in trouble

djkeogh

Sad news indeed. As was said earlier Stage 6 and some of it's spin off sites have been a great source of really high quality video.

I'll miss this one

greyed

AntiRip wrote: »

Actually I'm quite surprised that there aren't more comments on this issue.

Thought there would be more RIPs alright...

Stage6 is facing a $30m lawsuit to Universal Music Group because the site is illegally hosting copyright material.

So these are the "other details", maybe posting this would have stemmed some of the colourful outbursts:rolleyes:

standbyme

Yeah im sorry its gone as well, only source of hi-quality interesting vids on the net. I meant to post here last nite but didnt get back to it, but only doin so as i got this newsletter from Stage6, earlier today in my email its a bit long:

I'm Tom (aka Spinner), a Stage6 user and an employee of DivX, Inc., the company behind the service. I'm writing this message today to inform you that we plan to shut down Stage6 on February 28, 2008. Upload functionality has already been turned off, and you'll be able to view and download videos until Thursday.

I know this news will come as a shock and disappointment to many Stage6 users, and I'd like to take a few moments to explain the reasons behind our decision.

We created Stage6 with the mission of empowering content creators and viewers to discover a new kind of video experience. Stage6 began as an experiment, and we always knew there was a chance that it might not succeed.

In many ways, though, the service did succeed, beyond even our own initial expectations. Stage6 became very popular very quickly. We helped gain exposure for some talented filmmakers who brought great videos to the attention of an engaged community. We helped prove that it's possible to distribute true high definition video on the Internet. And we helped broaden the Internet video experience by offering content that is compatible with DVD players, mobile devices and other products beyond the PC.

So why are we shutting the service down? Well, the short answer is that the continued operation of Stage6 is a very expensive enterprise that requires an enormous amount of attention and resources that we are not in a position to continue to provide. There are a lot of other details involved, but at the end of the day it's really as simple as that.

Now, why didn't we think of that before we decided to create Stage6 in the first place, you may ask? That's a good question. When we first created Stage6, there was a clear need for a service that would offer a true high-quality video experience online because other video destinations on the Internet simply weren't providing that to users. A gap existed, and Stage6 arrived to fill it.

As Stage6 grew quickly and dramatically (accompanied by an explosion of other sites delivering high-quality video), it became clear that operating the service as a part of the larger DivX business no longer made sense. We couldn't continue to run Stage6 and focus on our broader strategy to make it possible for anyone to enjoy high-quality video on any device. So, in July of last year we announced that we were kicking off an effort to explore strategic alternatives for Stage6, which is a fancy way of saying we decided we would either have to sell it, spin it out into a private company or shut it down.

I won't (and can't, really)* go into too much detail on those first two options other than to say that we tried really hard to find a way to keep Stage6 alive, either as its own private entity or by selling it to another company. Ultimately neither of those two scenarios was possible, and we made the hard decision to turn the lights off and cease operation of the service.

So that's where we are today. After February 28, Stage6 will cease to exist as an online destination. But the larger DivX universe will continue to thrive. Every day new DivX Certified devices arrive on the market making it easy to move video beyond the PC. Products powered by DivX Connected, our new initiative that lets users stream video, photos, music and Internet services from the PC to the TV, are hitting retail outlets. We remain committed to empowering content creators to deliver high-quality video to a wide audience, and we'll continue to offer services that will make it easy to find videos online in the DivX format.

It's been a wild ride, and none of it would have been possible without the support of our users. Thank you for making Stage6 everything that it was.

--Tom

* probably copyright reasons? as someone has posted earlier about.

RIP STAGE6

quickg

I'm amazed it lasted so long. Could never figure out how it got away with full recent blockbusters and TV shows being hosted there. It's pioneering work with Hi Def on the internet was thoroughly worthwhile. Sorry to see it go.
Such is the power of the big studios. You dont mess with those boys.

sdanseo

AntiRip wrote: »

If thats the case (and I'm not saying it isn't) then every single video hosting site is in trouble

Not really, Stage6 is (was) the only one with the facility for HD uploads. And it didn't have time constraints.

weeder

AntiRip wrote: »

If thats the case (and I'm not saying it isn't) then every single video hosting site is in trouble

nah, universal music have there own accounr on youtube and regularly upload videos

standbyme

djkeogh wrote: »

Sad news indeed. As was said earlier Stage 6 and some of it's spin off sites have been a great source of really high quality video.

Pardon my ignorance, what are the other spin-off sites?

Thanks.

Skull_Collector

Just seen this, really sad! This was a great site, the quality of the vids was just unbelievable..
Im sure there will be another site to replace it...

Veoh seems to be the next best thing at the moment..

AntiRip

standbyme wrote: »

Pardon my ignorance, what are the other spin-off sites?

Thanks.

sites that link movies/tvshows to stage 6

doubt if you can name them here. Google is your friend.

donmeister

yeah,noticed the shuting down right after they issued that letter on the main pg,so disappointed one of my fav. sites,savage for downloading divx videos,was good while,that brings me to asking any decent alternatives,i already know dailymotion,veoh,etc is there something im missing???

AntiRip

donmeister wrote: »

yeah,noticed the shuting down right after they issued that letter on the main pg,so disappointed one of my fav. sites,savage for downloading divx videos,was good while,that brings me to asking any decent alternatives,i already know dailymotion,veoh,etc is there something im missing???

There's HD content on Vimeo not as good as Stage 6 though

Tellox

www.divxit.net stage6 returning April 29th, or so they say.

AntiRip

Tellox wrote: »

www.divxit.net stage6 returning April 29th, or so they say.

Suppose was only a matter of time before a clone sprang up

Weses

I never really went on Stage6 basically because my internet is 1mb and it's really slow on loading/downloading.

Also, I think they were worried that 4chan would hack them again.

donmeister

divxit.net has now changed to vreel,and will be up and running on the May 28th or so it seems,looks interesting enuf.....:rolleyes:

mobileblog

Guys get over to Vimeo, some great stuff floating about over there. Never used any of the other sites but have been with Vimeo for the past few years and started to upload since christmas. Great collection of users and a general good feel to it all. Not sure how its going to fare with the increase of users due to closure of stage6 and it’s popularity spreading but check it out.

carbonkid

Suppose no one was on the stage6 site the week before it closed...it rocked, all their shows were download able direct from their server on .divx files...only took like 20secs to download a highish quality show. The site was also great for up and coming tv show creators/students to air their work in high quality.

Overheal

ill just stick to the torrents. slow, but reliable.