Is VLive shutting down? The South Korean live-streaming service V Live informed subscribers on October 30 that it would be closing on December 31, 2022. The closure is disappointing for artists and fans. HYBE, the company behind the rival app Weverse, stated in March that it had acquired V Live and planned to shut down the service. The most extensive collection of K-pop content ever live-streamed is available on V Live. When the app is shut off, where will that content be stored?
V Live is a platform owned by Naver that went live in 2015 to help Korean musicians engage with their fans. They did that by using live feeds. Afterward, they recorded and stored them in the app as on-demand recordings. V Live linked these artists with a global audience who saw them eat meals, celebrate birthdays, and create music in real-time. It happened because K- pop popularity surged throughout the world.
Is VLive going to disappear?
Through V Live, also known as V App, celebrities in South Korea could stream live footage online, featuring performances, reality shows, award ceremonies, and live chat discussions with fans. The services may be broadcast on Windows, macOS, and Linux-powered desktops as well as iOS and Android mobile apps.
V Live streams were viral, with tens of thousands to millions of people tuning in. Many groups used it as their primary means of communication. This includes BTS, who broadcast their well-known series Run, BTS!, only on the site from 2015 until 2020. BTS has posted more than 860 videos to their V Live stream, earning more than 2 billion responses and 12 billion likes.
The app was initially available through the Google Play Store for Android users. But it was later made available through the iOS App Store. The app was created to connect with fan bases worldwide, especially those in Japan, China, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Since there were no regional limitations, the website offered various language options, including English, Chinese, and Japanese.
On August 1, 2015, V Live launched a beta service; on September 1, 2015, the full service launched. On September 2, 2015, V Live published the complete Android version and, in the middle of September, the complete iOS version.
Big Hit Entertainment and Naver collaborated. They did it by integrating the users, information, and offerings of their fan base platforms, Weverse and V Live, at the beginning of 2022. Naver stated on October 31 that the original V LIVE service will be totally discontinued by December 31, 2022, now that it has been incorporated into Weverse.
To “integrate” items with Weverse was the goal (essentially avoiding competition). Additionally, all content (both paid and unpaid) created by artists who were already on the app when V Live ended will be migrated over.
Additionally, on October 5, the idol group BUSTERS released a statement. They explained that since the V App service would be discontinued by the end of 2022, the group will again use Daum Cafe as a medium to interact with fans.
However, as many have noted, individuals who are not using Weverse appear to be left in the dark. This is because all content, including paid content, vanishes into nothing.
In response to these worries, HYBE essentially told Mashable that the corporations had been aware of this for a while, and that’s too bad.
Even though Weverse is the most feature-rich fan interaction software available, competitors like Universe and Bubble are still used by 50% of the business. However, virtually every artist used V Live to stream, some every week.
Any artist who joins Weverse before December 31, 2022, will have their content transferred to the app. This is according to a statement made by V Live yesterday. Fans were anxious. What would become of groups’ content if they chose not to sign up for Weverse?
Will VLive videos be deleted?
A Weverse spokesman assured Mashable that artists and their businesses have had plenty of time to download their archives for future use. Since November 2021, “we have continuously provided channel operators with complete information on content storage and download,” they stated.
“We are executing the content migration to Weverse and are hoping to finish the procedure by December 28, 2022,” they continued. “Following the merger, full access to the contents of non-Weverse artists will no longer be available.” This implies that non-Weverse performers’ content, which sometimes amounts to hundreds of hours of streaming, may disappear as early as December 28 before the app disappears after December 31.
Reporters questioned the spokesperson about whether artists who choose to join Weverse after V Live shuts down would find an archive of their previous V Live content there. In response, they stated, “Artists who have already agreed to join Weverse will be allowed to move their contents to Weverse.” However, they did not specify whether or not artists who registered after the closure would also have their content moved.
In advance of the closing of V Live, Weverse musicians like Tomorrow X Together, Seventeen, and Enhypen have been streaming exclusively on the site since August. Early in 2022, Weverse attempted to introduce a live-streaming service, but users criticized it for being buggy. It invested in improving that feature when it bought V Live in March.
VLive shutting down 2023
Weverse Live has already been adopted by several Weverse artists, with mixed reviews from online users. There are specific improvements that internet users expect Weverse will make to their films. Also, there are more urgent concerns for which internet users have been demanding solutions.
For instance, many TXT fans expressed frustration when they learned how long Weverse Live took to upload translations to their videos. This prevents many followers from watching content from other countries. For example, this Taehyung V LIVE on July 30, 2022, afterward posted to Weverse Live, does feature subtitles.
Conclusion
V Live “has long been the go-to platform for real-time communication between artists and fans,” said the Weverse representative. Hence, its integration will enable Weverse to “continue to evolve as a global fandom life platform.”
