In an email sent to Meerkat’s 48 investors, CEO Ben Rubin wrote, “The year started on a high note … But over the year, it became rougher waters. Mobile broadcast video hasn’t quite exploded as quickly as we’d hoped. The distribution advantages of Twitter/Periscope and Facebook Live drew more early users to them away from us and we were not able to grow as quickly alongside as we had planned.”
And growth has been a key issue for Meerkat. While people seem more than willing to watch the livestreams (Rubin tells Re/code that audience numbers are still burgeoning), the number of people actually providing content has stagnated at around 100,000. So now, they’re shifting gears altogether.
While Rubin has stayed relatively mum on just what the new focus of Meerkat will be, Re/code reports that its plans “sound more akin to Google Hangouts or Skype, with a priority on smaller, group video chats with people you know versus strangers tuning in.”
So does this mean that Meerkat’s days are numbered? Not necessarily. As Mashable points out, it’s not at all uncommon for smaller, more nascent startups to pivot in their early days, especially when faced with such formidable competition. So don’t lose hope just yet, Meerkat lovers. The face may be changing, but the soul will (hopefully) stay the same.
