LimeWire, once a popular file-sharing service in the 2000s before its closure due to copyright violations, announced on Tuesday that it is acquiring rights to the Fyre Festival.
And it appreciates the irony.
“LimeWire Acquires Fyre Festival Brand — What Could Possibly Go Wrong?” the company titled its news release.
LimeWire plans to “present a reimagined vision for Fyre — one that transcends digital boundaries to include real-world events, community involvement, and unpredictability.” The company has not revealed any further details about their plans for reviving the Fyre brand.
For years, LimeWire was a rival to fellow file-sharing service Napster until a court decision in 2010 effectively closed it down due to facilitation of extensive copyright infringement. In 2022, Austrian siblings Julian and Paul Zehetmayr purchased LimeWire’s intellectual property and transformed it into an NFT platform.
The Fyre Festival was a 2017 music event where attendees paid thousands for a weekend in the Bahamas, only to face a chaotic situation with makeshift bathrooms and subpar meals replacing promised gourmet offerings. Organizer Billy McFarland was convicted of fraud and sentenced to six years in prison.
“Fyre became an emblem of hype gone awry but also a historical moment,” noted LimeWire CEO Julian Zehetmayr. “We’re not reviving the festival itself — we are breathing new life into the brand and meme with authentic experiences, minus the infamous cheese sandwiches.”
LimeWire said its bid was backed by Maximum Effort, the creative agency co-founded by the actor and entrepreneur Ryan Reynolds.
“Congratulations to LimeWire on securing the rights for Fyre Fest,” Reynolds stated in a release. “I’m eager to attend their inaugural event, but will definitely be bringing my own water supply.”
