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So it goes: Vidoop is no more

Rick Turoczy on May 30, 2009

To quote one of my favorite authors, “So it goes.” It grieves me to report that—according to TechCrunch—Portland-based Vidoop is officially dead. For many of us in the Portland startup and OpenID scene, Vidoop had the promise of doing something big—and it was simply filled with great people.

But sometimes, even the best and brightest hit a rough patch.

I don’t have a lot of details on this at the moment, but the story doesn’t likely come as a shock to anyone who has been following Vidoop’s recent layoff announcements.

TechCrunch has a letter from CEO Joel Norvell and highlights that “employees are getting computers in lieu of wages”:

Bad news for Portland-based Open-ID startup Vidoop (as well as Vidoop partners like AOL, MySpace and Flock): it’s apparently out of business. Earlier this month the company announced layoffs, but based on an email string that was forwarded to us… From CEO Joel Norvell to Vidoop insiders, where he says that the company has no funds to pay wages or other liabilities, and that employees are being offered computers in lieu of wages.

More on the story as it develops.

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Published by Rick Turoczy

More than mildly obsessed with the Portland startup community. Founder and editor at Silicon Florist. Cofounder and general manager at PIE. Follow me on Twitter: @turoczy

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  4. Jeff Brandt June 8, 2009 at 2:16 pm

    Major bummer for all. All of the people that I have meet from my home state of Oklahoma were a good addition to the Portland. It is a bit tough out there for all but remember that as long as you have your health you have it made.

    Good luck to all,

    Jeff
    motionPHR Your Personal Health Record for the iPhon

  5. Patrick Lightbody May 31, 2009 at 7:52 am

    Really sorry to hear that. I hope all those affected (and their families) are able to find some stability soon. My company, BrowserMob, can’t help everyone out, but perhaps one or two folks from Vidoop might be a good fit.

    We’re looking for early folks to join the company and help scale it up to something great. Right now we’re highly profitable and entertaining discussions with VCs. If you love cloud computing or open source, check out http://browsermob.com/careers and get in contact with us.

    For everyone else, I wish you the best of luck.

  6. PortlandNews_ (PortlandNews_) May 31, 2009 at 7:47 am

    So it goes: Vidoop is no more: To quote one of my favorite authors, “So it goes.” It grieves me to r.. http://tinyurl.com/mxq9j8

  7. Travis Cannon May 30, 2009 at 9:12 pm

    Total Bummer! Vidoop had an awesome service! Best wishes to all involved in moving forward.

  8. AdamD May 30, 2009 at 8:58 pm

    Bummer. I’m hoping the passionate, talented employees stick around Portland. We want them here.

  9. Kathleen McDade May 30, 2009 at 5:09 pm

    Really sad about this – I’m a happy MyVidoop user; seems like they have great products and great people.

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