MediaMax/TheLinkup
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
MediaMax, later renamed TheLinkup, was an early online file-storage service spun off from Streamload (later Nirvanix) in 2007. It was a 'social network for file sharing' that let users send, receive and store large amounts of music, video and photo files online, and was one of the first consumer cloud-storage services, winning multiple awards. The spin-off was arranged so the new company took the MediaMax name and its customers but no servers or data; its back end was hosted first by Nirvanix and then Savvis.
02 / MediaMax/TheLinkup FAILURE REASONS
Failure reasons
TheLinkup died from one of the largest data-loss disasters in cloud history. In June 2007 a Nirvanix engineer's maintenance script misidentified active files and deleted 'good data' along with dead accounts - some 3.5 million user accounts and files - and months of recovery work never restored everything. Then the spin-off could not complete the migration of files from the old MediaMax back end to the new system, so the company could not offer a working service. On July 10, 2008 the 'meltdown' came: the site closed on August 8, 2008, leaving about 20,000 paying subscribers without their files.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Spin-off and data deletion
The MediaMax consumer business was spun off from Streamload (renamed Nirvanix) in July 2007; in June 2007 a script error deleted good user data along with 3.5 million dead accounts and files.
- Renamed
MediaMax was renamed TheLinkup; partial data restoration continued into October 2007, but many files were irretrievably lost.
- Meltdown
On July 10, 2008 TheLinkup announced closure; the service shut on August 8, 2008, leaving about 20,000 paying subscribers without their music, video and photo files.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN
How the factors connect
- 01
Spin-off from Streamload (later Nirvanix), July 2007; consumer cloud file storage and sharing (formerly MediaMax).
- 02
June 2007: a script error deleted 'good data' alongside 3.5 million dead user accounts and files.
- 03
Partial restoration completed October 2007; much data irretrievably lost.
- 04
Could not complete migration of MediaMax files to the new back end; could not deliver a working service.
- 05
July 10, 2008: announced closure; shut August 8, 2008; ~20,000 paying subscribers lost their files.
- 06
No reliable loss figure disclosed.