Their cryptocurrency doesn't seem to be doing well either: https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/kin/

The market cap is currently at 666 BTC.

I wonder if they tried selling it off first, surely somebody would want a minor social network

I would think so too, kinda shocked IAC isnt interested.

TL;DR Kik's VC says that their messenger is shutting down (but their cryptocurrency is intact).

He ends the blog post with:

> I will end this with a quote that the founder of one of our portfolio companies sent me this week. I think it sums it up nicely.

> My centre is giving way, my right is in retreat; situation excellent. I am attacking.

Were I a newly unemployed engineer on the messenger team, and I'd just been described as "giving way" or "in retreat", I think I'd file that under adding insult to injury. That seems kind of tone deaf.

Fair point. I think Fred meant the comment more for the founder mentality of not giving up etc. Given that a lot of his readership is founder/investors vs. typical startup employees, maybe that's OK?

And while tone deaf to a newly unemployed engineer, I'll risk downvotes to say that perhaps it's not a bad attitude for them to take either. Yes, this is really shitty and the immediate outlook doesn't look great, but go on attack, don't sit around / wallow, go make something happen! etc.

That’s a very reasonable viewpoint, thanks. I hadn’t looked at it that way.