LimeWire, the early-2000s file sharing platform that was relaunched in 2022, has acquired the Fyre Festival brand.
What festival?
Fyre Festival was the infamous 2017 event created by Billy McFarland and rapper Ja Rule that promised a high-end experience but dissolved into chaos and criminal charges courtesy of poor planning and artist cancelations.
The bidding process:
Fyre Festival recently auctioned its name, trademarks, domains, social handles and more on Ebay.
The highest of 175 bids was $245,300, evidently from LimeWire.
They beat creative agency Maximum Effort, co-founded by Ryan Reynolds.
The future:
In a statement LimeWire CEO Julian Zehetmayr said, “We’re not bringing the festival back – we’re bringing the brand and meme back to life. This time with real experiences, and without the cheese sandwiches.”
LimeWire says it will unveil a “reimagined vision for Fyre” in the coming months.
That vision “expands beyond the digital realm and taps into real-world experiences, community, and surprise.”
Supporters can sign up for updates and early access here.
What they said:
Marcus Feistl, COO of LimeWire: “We’re not here to repeat the mistakes – we’re here to own the meme and do it right. Fyre became a symbol of everything that can go wrong. Now it’s our chance to show what happens when you pair cultural relevance with real execution.”
