Justin.tv facts for kids
Justin.tv was a free website where people could share live videos. It was like having your own TV channel online! It was started by Justin Kan and his friends Emmett Shear, Michael Seibel, and Kyle Vogt in 2007.
On Justin.tv, users had "channels," just like on YouTube. They could broadcast all sorts of live videos, which were called "broadcasts." The company was based in San Francisco, California.
 |
|
| Available in | Various |
|---|---|
| Dissolved | August 5, 2014 |
| Owner | Twitch Interactive (called Justin.tv, Inc until February 2014) |
| Registration | Optional |
| Launched | March 19, 2007 |
| Current status | Defunct |
The very first version of Justin.tv was just one channel. It showed Justin Kan's life 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This idea was called "lifecasting." In 2007, Justin Kan stopped his personal broadcast. Then, Justin.tv became a platform for thousands of other people to share their own live videos.
People could broadcast to many viewers for free. You didn't even need to sign up to watch videos. Justin.tv had rules to keep content safe and fair. For example, some videos were only for registered users over 18. The rules also said that users could not share videos that broke copyright laws or encouraged bad behavior.
On February 10, 2014, the company that owned Justin.tv also owned Twitch.tv. This company changed its name to Twitch Interactive. On August 5, 2014, Justin.tv officially closed down. The company decided to focus all its efforts on Twitch, which became very popular for video game streaming.
How Justin.tv Started
The idea for Justin.tv began with Justin Kan himself. He wore a special webcam on his baseball cap. This camera was connected to a laptop in a backpack. He started streaming his entire life live online on March 19, 2007.
This new idea of "lifecasting" got a lot of attention from the news. People compared his project to movies like EDtv or The Truman Show.
Some of the first lifecasters became well-known. One example is iJustine, who still makes popular videos on YouTube today. Another was Mooncricket Films, who started lifecasting from San Francisco. JoeInIraq was a unique lifecaster. He streamed his life from Iraq in 2007–2008 during the War in Iraq. This gave people a rare look at how soldiers spent their time there.
