Popular Weather Line App Acquired By Unnamed Buyer, Service to Shut Down Next Year

[Spanky Deluxe]

We go outside. We do things. Some events are better when it’s warm and sunny, some when its cold and snowy, etc.

Maybe you live in a place with consistent or predictable weather. A lot of us don’t. I cycle 35 mins to work along the coast. Wind, rain, and temperature all impact my commute. It can thunderstorm in the morning commute, and be 30 degrees in my evening commute. I have to plan accordingly

Sure but there's a built in weather app on the iPhone which seems to show the same data and looking at that lets me plan what I do or wear when I go outside. What do all these other weather apps add? It looks like they're effectively just different themes and don't seem to add anything. I get things like apps that include weather radar maps e.g. Clime (although that's crazy expensive now) and apps that track things like tides e.g. Tide Pro as they add additional features but what did Weather Line and the like add?

 

[CrashSpyroXP]

Serious question, why are there so many weather apps if they all do the same thing from (likely) the same sources?

Can anybody explain why some people are obsessed with weather apps?

The same reason there are so many Mattress Firms.

 

[KSB]

Facebook buying up for their upcoming Zuckerberg Watch 😅

 

[mporcheron]

Sure but there's a built in weather app on the iPhone which seems to show the same data and looking at that lets me plan what I do or wear when I go outside. What do all these other weather apps add? It looks like they're effectively just different themes and don't seem to add anything. I get things like apps that include weather radar maps e.g. Clime (although that's crazy expensive now) and apps that track things like tides e.g. Tide Pro as they add additional features but what did Weather Line and the like add?

The built-in app is getting better, but it’s granularity is still not great. In a one-hour period I get a percentage chance of there being any rain (spit to torrential).

If you live in cities designed for driving (like the US), or will only be outside momentarily, or never change your plans based on the weather, it might not matter I guess. For me, accurate and precise predictions are the difference between a drizzle of rain for 2 minutes and a 60 minute downpour.

 

[jonnyb098]

Still waiting 10 years for a weather app on iPad. Gotta love Apple's excuse by Craig a few years ago "we just don't think we can make a great weather app on iPad".

Ok Craig....because contacts and voice memos were such a design feat for your engineers to overcome.

 

[macnchiefs]

Does anyone know of a widget by another company that displays the days like the weatherline widget that is shown in this story does? For some reason I'm having the hardest time finding one.

 

[reubs]

Can anybody explain why some people are obsessed with weather apps?

Same reason we used to be obsessed with Twitter apps. Lots of room to play with design and interaction in an area with limited scope.

Like note-taking apps, too. All kind of do the same thing, but they do it in different ways.

 

[laszlo182]

the weather data was inaccurate for me

 

[ericg301]

Only makes sense if the app was acquired by Apple.

And who else would guarantee this?

I thought this too. Especially because Weatherline is basically a UI for Dark Sky (or at least it was). It makes sense for Apple to want the source, and the skin.

 

[Robert.Walter]

Only makes sense if the app was acquired by Apple.

And who else would guarantee this?

Apple doesn’t need that info because they already have it because of App Store.

 

[Cosmosent]

RE " ...there's currently no suggestion that Apple is behind the Weather Line buyout."

OK then, I'll suggest it; I'd say the chances are fairly high !

 

[icymountain]

This is what the "app as service" model is like. You like it, still have the hardware for it, paid or subscribed for it, but it may still be gone at the next instant, anytime.

 

[nutmac]

Sad, but also, happy for the indie devs involved.

Not really sure what the deal is here, though. The devs don’t join the new team, the app is discontinued, user data isn’t sold… what exactly did they buy, other than having one less competitor?

I paid $45 for lifetime sub last year. So I say, screw them. (It's not recent enough to request a refund from Apple.)

All Weather Line devs are offering in return in upgrading me to "family sharing" until the app sunsets in less than 13 months. All of my family members use either Apple Weather or CARROT Weather, so doubtful.

I am moving back to CARROT Weather. I am never buying lifetime sub from an independent developer again.

 

[DCstewieG]

This is what the "app as service" model is like. You like it, still have the hardware for it, paid or subscribed for it, but it may still be gone at the next instant, anytime.

Weather apps make sense as a subscription because the data costs money.

That said, the lifetime subs got screwed here.

 

[Waterloon]

Popular iOS app Weather Line has been acquired by an unnamed buyer and removed from the App Store with immediate effect, the developers behind the weather forecaster have announced.

Weather Line Home Screen widget​

Despite its acquisition and removal from the App Store, anyone who has previously downloaded the app can still use it until the service is shut down in April 2022, while users of the premium paid-for service will also have their subscriptions extended until then for free. From the Weather Line blog:
The developers went on to emphasize that no personal user data, such as email addresses and payment information, was included in the acquisition deal, and there are no circumstances in which anyone will be billed again by the app.

Weather Line's smart infographic-focused design, streamlined forecast interface, and Home Screen widgets proved a hit with iOS users, so it will be interesting to see what comes of it in future.

Dark Sky, another popular third-party weather app, was acquired by Apple last year, but there's currently no suggestion that Apple is behind the Weather Line buyout.

Article Link: Popular Weather Line App Acquired By Unnamed Buyer, Service to Shut Down Next Year

Maybe it’s always been this way for iOS users (I don’t recall), but I re-downloaded Weatherline today and it shows Cupertino labelled as “Mothership”...?

Popular iOS app Weather Line has been acquired by an unnamed buyer and removed from the App Store with immediate effect, the developers behind the weather forecaster have announced.

Weather Line Home Screen widget​

Despite its acquisition and removal from the App Store, anyone who has previously downloaded the app can still use it until the service is shut down in April 2022, while users of the premium paid-for service will also have their subscriptions extended until then for free. From the Weather Line blog:
The developers went on to emphasize that no personal user data, such as email addresses and payment information, was included in the acquisition deal, and there are no circumstances in which anyone will be billed again by the app.

Weather Line's smart infographic-focused design, streamlined forecast interface, and Home Screen widgets proved a hit with iOS users, so it will be interesting to see what comes of it in future.

Dark Sky, another popular third-party weather app, was acquired by Apple last year, but there's currently no suggestion that Apple is behind the Weather Line buyout.

Article Link: Popular Weather Line App Acquired By Unnamed Buyer, Service to Shut Down Nex

 

[Nicky G]

I paid $45 for lifetime sub last year. So I say, screw them. (It's not recent enough to request a refund from Apple.)

All Weather Line devs are offering in return in upgrading me to "family sharing" until the app sunsets in less than 13 months. All of my family members use either Apple Weather or CARROT Weather, so doubtful.

I am moving back to CARROT Weather. I am never buying lifetime sub from an independent developer again.

At this point, probably best to think of “lifetime” as reflecting the developer’s and/or their intellectual property’s lifetime, versus your lifetime.

 

[Saturnine]

A spokesperson for Apple did not yet say, “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”

 

[Localcelebrity]

I'm genuinely perplexed by this. This doesn't seem like something that Apple would buy as, unless I'm missing something, what is unique about the app is its design, which they would likely need to reimplement anyway if they were buying it to integrate into iOS.

So, if you're not bringing on the developer, and you're shutting the current down, what are you buying? Do they have some patents or unique tech that is not explained here? There doesn't seem like there is much value for a company like Apple or Google, so I have to imagine it would be someone who is planning to rebrand it and relaunch it or replace their app with this one.

It just seems odd, is all. Am I missing something? I, unfortunately, had never had the chance to play with this app before it got yanked.

 

[Saturnine]

Can anybody explain why some people are obsessed with weather apps?

I don’t think anybody’s obsessed. That would be quite worrying indeed for the person involved.

If you live in certain parts of the world, you can predict the weather by looking at your clock and your calendar.

If, however, you live on a small island in the North Atlantic, it can be quite important to know what the weather is likely to do in the coming hours lest you find yourself soaked to the bone in the afternoon wearing the Bermuda shorts and T-Shirt that seemed like a good idea at breakfast time.

Or worse yet, you miss the opportunity to light the barbecue and have the family round to enjoy the five minutes of sunshine we get each year.

 

[Reason077]

Why would someone buy out the app just to shut it down?

I mean, if you’re acquiring it for the users and transitioning them to their own app, sure. But it sounds like this mysterious buyer isn’t even interested in the users?

It doesn’t make much sense to me.

 

[jonblatho]

Serious question, why are there so many weather apps if they all do the same thing from (likely) the same sources?

There’s a lot you can do starting from the same data, from just different ways of presenting information to different methods of smoothing out spatial and temporal gaps in observations.

 

[now i see it]

Whenever an article title states "Popular App....." that's a dead ringer that most people have never heard of it

 

[Whathappened]

Only makes sense if the app was acquired by Apple.

And who else would guarantee this?

The law.

 

[Spanky Deluxe]

The built-in app is getting better, but it’s granularity is still not great. In a one-hour period I get a percentage chance of there being any rain (spit to torrential).

If you live in cities designed for driving (like the US), or will only be outside momentarily, or never change your plans based on the weather, it might not matter I guess. For me, accurate and precise predictions are the difference between a drizzle of rain for 2 minutes and a 60 minute downpour.

Fair enough. I live in a place with fairly changeable weather (London UK) and the % chance has been more than enough for me. If it rains, it rains. If there's any chance of rain, I'm just going to wear a slightly more water resistant coat and know that I might need to give the dogs a bath afterwards.

 

[chucker23n1]

Fair enough. I live in a place with fairly changeable weather (London UK)

lol

Now that’s fairly changeable weather.