Justin.tv will be removing its built-in video archiving system

Justin.tv, the webcam streaming service that birthed (and is now arguably dwarfed by) videogame streaming site Twitch, is killing off one of its core features today. As of June 8th, Justin.tv will no longer let hosts record their streams for viewers to catch later — and as of the same day, all previously recorded streams will be deleted. Why? Because, as far as they can tell, pretty much no one is actually watching streams after the fact. The company says that 50% of archived streams had 0 to 1 views, and the “vast majority” beyond that had less than 10 views. In other words, it’s just not worth it for them to keep supporting the feature and paying for the video storage. If you’ve got any videos sittin’ in your Justin.tv account that you don’t want to lose, you’ve got 7 days to grab them. Interestingly, they’re not even leaving the feature up for those willing to pay. In an FAQ, the company notes that they’re killing off archiving for everyone, including their $10-per-month premium users.