Pownce

---

title: "Pownce" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["adobe-integrated-runtime-platform-software", "blog-hosting-services", "defunct-microblogging-services", "defunct-online-companies-of-the-united-states", "defunct-social-networking-services"] description: "Free social networking and micro-blogging site" topic_path: "geography/united-states" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pownce" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Free social networking and micro-blogging site ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox website"]

Field	Value
name	Pownce
type	Micro-blogging and Social network service
logo	Pownce.png
logo_size	64px
screenshot	Pownce Website (2008 01 26).png
screenshot_size	250px
collapsible	yes
caption	Pownce logo and screenshot
url
commercial	Yes
language	English
registration	Required
owner	Megatechtronium, Inc.
author	Kevin Rose,
Leah Culver,
Daniel Burka
launch_date	June 27, 2007
current_status	Closed
revenue	Paid (pro) option and advertising
::

| name = Pownce | type = Micro-blogging and Social network service | logo = Pownce.png | logo_size = 64px | screenshot = Pownce Website (2008 01 26).png | screenshot_size = 250px | collapsible = yes | caption = Pownce logo and screenshot | url = | commercial = Yes | language = English | registration = Required | owner = Megatechtronium, Inc. | author = Kevin Rose, Leah Culver, Daniel Burka | launch_date = June 27, 2007 | current_status = Closed | revenue = Paid (pro) option and advertising

Pownce was a free social networking and micro-blogging site started by Internet entrepreneurs Kevin Rose, Leah Culver, and Daniel Burka. Pownce was centered on sharing messages, files, events, and links with friends. The site launched on June 27, 2007, and was opened to the public on January 22, 2008. On December 1, 2008, Pownce announced that it had been acquired by blogging company Six Apart, and that the service would soon shut down. It was subsequently shut down on December 15, 2008.

History

Its launch, on June 27, 2007, was covered by Wired, Business Week, Webware, and the San Francisco Chronicle, with most of the coverage focusing on Rose, known for his involvement in Digg, Revision3 and TechTV. Due to this media exposure, invitations for Pownce were in high demand and were being sold on sites such as eBay.

On October 30, 2007, Pownce launched their public API. The developers have also created a Pownce API Google Group. Originally, it was primarily for discussing the release of the API, but it later served to gather feedback and help developers. On November 12, 2007 Pownce launched a custom theme editor for Pro users. They also added eight more preset themes for non pro users to use. On December 20, 2007 Pownce launched a mobile version of their service. This version could be accessed from a variety of mobile devices at m.pownce.com.

On December 1, 2008, Pownce announced that they had been acquired and were shutting down the site, due to a lack of revenue, stagnant growth, and an inability to compete with Twitter. Two weeks later, the site was taken offline.

Comparisons with similar websites

Pownce was compared favorably to other websites with similar functionality such as Twitter, and was called a "Twitter on steroids". CNET's Rafe Needleman recommended Pownce over Twitter in a work setting because of its discussion-tracking capabilities.

Technology

Pownce was built on a variation of the LAMP stack: Debian Linux, Apache, MySQL, and Python. The web application was made with Django, an open source web application framework, written in Python. File storage was supported by Amazon S3. The desktop application was written in Flex for Adobe's AIR platform.

Notes

References

1. Solis, Brian. (2008-01-03). "Pownce Public Opening Party".
2. Ha, Anthony. (2008-12-01). "Six Apart acquires and shuts down Pownce". [[VentureBeat]].
3. Six Apart. "Pownce Acquired by Six Apart". sixapart.com.
4. "Pownce". Pownce official website.
5. Strangle, Adario. (2007-06-28). "Pseudo Launches: Kevin Rose Announces Pownce Private Beta". [[CondéNet, Inc.]].
6. Ricadela, Aaron. (2007-07-10). "Investors Digg Kevin Rose". The McGraw-Hill Companies.
7. Butler, Peter. (July 13, 2007). "Pownce invites and the rise of Adobe AIR". Webware.
8. Rafe Needleman. (July 5, 2007). "How to choose between Twitter and Pownce". Webware.
9. West, Jackson. (2007-06-28). "Future Fresser: Social Network Fatigue". Hearst Communications.
10. "Pownce Public API". Pownce Blog.
11. [http://groups.google.com/group/pownceapi/ Google Discussiegroepen] {{Webarchive. link. (2020-12-24 . Groups.google.com. Retrieved on 2013-11-24.)
12. "New Themes and Custom Themes!". Pownce Blog.
13. "Pownce Mobile! (beta)". Pownce Blog.
14. "Movable Type - Content Management System, Blog Software & Publishing Platform".
15. Izenwasser, Murray. (December 10, 2008). "Pownce Closing Down".
16. [http://www.crn.com/software/212201417 Pownce Bounced: Twitter Competitor To Shut Doors] {{webarchive. link. (2009-03-24 . Crn.com. Retrieved on 2013-11-24.)

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::