Qplay, the Internet video service from TiVo co-founders Mike Ramsay and Jim Barton, this weekend announced that it is closing down just six month after first launching. Its last day of service will be Friday, July 25.
Qplay combined a $49 streaming device and an iPad app to let viewers watch a continuous stream of videos found on sites like YouTube, Vimeo, Twitter, Facebook, Comedy Central, Yahoo, and more. Like Google Chromecast, video playback started from the cloud, making it possible to continue streaming even if the iPad was being used for any other purpose or is turned off.
Although Qplay didn't give any specific reason behind the decision, the shutdown seems abrupt as the company announced just last month that it was adding support for Google’s Chromecast media streamer.
As a goodwill gesture, the startup is issuing refunds to those who bought one of its TV adapters. Refund requests will be accepted until Friday (July 25) at 5 PM Pacific. The company is also urging customers to recycle their adapters as the devices will stop functioning when the service shuts down.
"We truly enjoyed bringing you the best videos from around the Internet. We had fun building and using Qplay and hope that you did too. Unfortunately, it is not possible for us to keep developing and running the service."
Founded in August 2012, the San Jose-based company was initially funded by Redpoint Ventures and Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers. Qplay had not disclosed how much funding it had raised.
