Today is a bittersweet day for us. On the bitter side of the spectrum is the news that Clipmarks and Amplify are shutting down. For those of you who don't know, Clipmarks was one of the first Web services that gave users the ability to save and share portions of Web pages. Amplify, created by many of the same people, was a similar service that promoted a more social and collaborative version of the same concept. Clipmarks and Amplify were truly pioneers in the space that we are in, and we -- as well as many others -- are indebted to them for having paved such an important path.
On the sweet side, Clipboard is excited to continue to grow its user base by offering invitations to former Clipmarks and Amplify users. Look for this invitation in the email account that was linked to your previous Clipmarks or Amplify account. You'll find that the underlying premise of the site is similar to Clipmarks and Amplify. We believe that Clipboard expands on those functions to bring you a more enhanced experience.
We are so excited to be expanding our community and we look forward to hearing your feedback about Clipboard. Happy Clipping!
For more information about this news, please read on...
What's being announced?
Clipmarks.com and Amplify.com are shutting down immediately. Clipboard.com -- a new clipping site under entirely different management and ownership -- will provide invitations by email to existing Amplify and Clipmarks users. Clipboard will also hold all Amplify and Clipmarks databases in trust to assess if there is demand to retroactively migrate clips from Amplify and Clipmarks into Clipboard.
Why are Clipmarks and Amplify shutting down now?
Despite being first in what is now recognized as an important service category, both services have struggled for some time to continue operating. The reasons why are difficult to state, but ultimately neither service was meeting the needs of their users. Management of each service has decided that the most responsible next step is to retire the sites in as graceful a manner as possible, while helping to support the growth of Clipboard; a new, innovative service that aims to solve the same problem that Clipmarks and Amplify were created to address.
Why did Clipmarks and Amplify place user data in trust with Clipboard?
There are a variety of clipping services today that capture different types of Web content. Most specialize in one form of content in favor of all others (e.g., images only, text only, screen grabs only, videos only, or bookmarks only). Clipmarks and Amplify have always allowed users to clip content with text , images and videos, all while preserving most of the visual style of the source, which made our services unlike many of our competitors.
Today, Clipboard allows its users to clip almost arbitrary Web content (images, videos, text, flash embeds, etc.) while preserving most of the visual likeness of the source. Thus, of all of the services that we could have partnered with, only Clipboard could conceivably take our user's clips and preserve them without loss. Moreover, we -- the founders of Clipmarks and Amplify -- believe that Clipboard represents the best chance for our original vision to be realized and is the service most closely aligned with the needs of our users.
I am a Clipmarks / Amplify user and I want my clips preserved. What do I do?
We can't guarantee that all of your clips will be preserved. But if you want all of your clips preserved, you'll want to look for an email from the Amplify and Clipmarks teams, which contains an invitation to Clipboard. From the registration page, you will be able to request that your clips be migrated from Amplify or Clipmarks into Clipboard.
The Clipboard team will assess the demand for having old clips preserved. If it is sufficiently high and technically feasible, they will build a custom tool to automate the clip migration process. In the event that they have decided that there is not sufficient demand or other complicating issues, they will notify users of that outcome as well.
I am a Clipmarks / Amplify user and I want my clips destroyed. What do I do?
If you do not request that your clips be migrated, then all data related to your clips will be temporarily stored in a database that is not directly connected to the Internet. Once the migration issues have been resolved (either completing all requested clip migrations or deciding that none should be done) then the holding database will be destroyed. Hence, if you do not request that your clips be preserved, they will be deleted in time.