‘Juicy Campus’ no more: citing hard times, gossip ends
Though GCSU students only recently began blogging on the Web site, the gossip and news will be short lived as the Web site announced its imminent shut down due to economic difficulties.
“Unfortunately, even with great traffic and strong user loyalty, a business can’t survive and grow without a steady stream of revenue to support it,” said Matt Ivester, Juicy Campus founder and CEO, in a letter to his users. “JuicyCampus’ exponential growth outpaced our ability to muster the resources needed to survive this economic downturn, and as a result, we are closing down the site as of Feb. 5, 2009.”
Though Ivester claims in his letter to have provided a Web site founded on interest and fun, GCSU students are reactwith approval and outrage at this closure.
“I think in some ways it will have a positive effect,” Caitlin McCourt said. “[The Web site] set the example that it’s okay to talk behind people’s backs and encouraged slanderous behavior.”
Other students question the sudden closure and wonder if the Web site shut down for more than economic difficulties.
“I’m not sure if it shut down just for economic difficulties,” Ellie Ebert said. “I never read it, but it would be terrible if the shutdown conflicted with the freedom of speech.”
The Web site originally launched in August 2007 and Ivester created it to provide a simple and seemingly fun outlet to juice up campus. Like an oversqueezed lemon though, the site garners a sour reaction from some students.
“I think it is amazing,” said Mandy Labra. “That sight brings nothing but pain and horrible experiences to people.”
Labra went on to explain that she was not surprised by the site’s economic failure.
“I don’t know how they would raise funds in the first place, not that many people know about the site,” Labra said.
For the students who do not read JuicyCampus, the shutdown seems of little consequence.
“It might effect some fallacious females that I know, but not me personally,” Drew Godsey said. “There were some hurtful things on there, but people did not have to read them.”
With the imminent shut down, the online juice will soon run dry, though Ivester released no statement saying that he might not try to launch the site again, should he receive adequate funding.
Even without the Web site, Ivester encourages college students around the nation to, “keep it juicy.”
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Feb 6 2009. Filed under News.
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