{{Short description|Former social media network}} {{More citations needed|date=January 2010}} {{Infobox website | name = Meez | logo = Meez better logo.png | caption = Your 3D ID | commercial = No | type = [[Avatar (computing)|Avatar]] | registration = Required | headquarters = [[San Francisco, California]]<ref name="Thefreelibrary.com">{{cite web | title=Meez Launches Virtual World - Meez Nation | website=Thefreelibrary.com | date=2008-07-01 | url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/MEEZ+LAUNCHES+VIRTUAL+WORLD+-+MEEZ+NATION.-a0180669542 }}</ref> | owner = Donnerwood Media | key_people = Sean Ryan (founder) | launch_date = March 28, 2006 | dissolved = December 2017 | current_status = Defunct | url = [https://web.archive.org/web/20151107032511/http://www.meez.com/ www.meez.com] }} '''Meez''' was a [[free-to-play]] [[virtual world]]<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Roquilly|first=Christophe|date=2011|title=Control Over Virtual Worlds by Game Companies: Issues and Recommendations|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23042802|journal=[[MIS Quarterly]]|volume=35|issue=3|pages=653–671|doi=10.2307/23042802|jstor=23042802|issn=0276-7783|url-access=subscription}}</ref> that launched on March 28, 2006. Meez was developed by Donnerwood Media (a company based in [[San Francisco, California]], that were also the license-holders for Tringo) as an "online entertainment" [[social networking service]]. It was founded by Sean Ryan,<ref>{{cite web | title=Express Yourself – For A Fee | website=[[Forbes]] | author=Rachel Rosmarin | date=2006-03-28 | url=http://www.forbes.com/digitalentertainment/2006/03/27/aol-yahoo-chat-cx_rr_0328meez.html | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130123191845/http://www.forbes.com/digitalentertainment/2006/03/27/aol-yahoo-chat-cx_rr_0328meez.html | archive-date=2013-01-23 | url-status=dead }}</ref> the former vice president of the music service [[RealNetworks]]. Meez's CEO, John Cahill, was a former [[Yahoo]] executive.
Meez's main draw was the Meez Nation, where users could visit several regions, known as "Hoods", to chat with other users in chat rooms.<ref>{{cite web|title=Meez: Virtual World|url=http://www.meez.com/virtual-world.dm|access-date=2012-07-19| website=www.meez.com |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120717045136/http://www.meez.com/virtual-world.dm|archive-date=2012-07-17}}</ref> Meez had over three million unique users, who would spend 60 hours a month on the site. There were 13 million registered Meez users by the time the site had become discontinued, 90% of whom were in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.socialtimes.com/2009/10/meez-becomes-profitable-with-3-million-monthly-users/ |title=Meez Becomes Profitable With 3 Million Monthly Users |publisher=Socialtimes.com | author=Nick O'Neill |date=2009-10-20 |access-date=2012-07-04}}</ref> Meez advertisers included Nike, Rocawear, Domo, Coast, the NBA and the NHL.<ref>{{cite web | title=Meez teen virtual playground integrated into MySpace | author=Dean Takahashi | website=[[VentureBeat]] | date=2009-10-20 | url=https://venturebeat.com/2009/10/20/meez-teen-virtual-playground-integrated-into-myspace/ }}</ref> ''[[MIS Quarterly]]'' estimated that its users were primarily children and teenagers.<ref name=":0" />
In 2007, Meez was named one of the Internet's five worst websites by [[Time (magazine)|TIME]].<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1638344_1638341_1638338,00.html|title=5 Worst Websites |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=2007-07-09}}</ref> ==Shut down== Meez went offline in December 2017,<ref>{{cite web | title=10 Computer Games that Should Bring Back Memories | author=Chinyere Ibeh | website=[[Her Campus]] | date=2021-03-09 | url=https://www.hercampus.com/school/depaul/10-computer-games-should-bring-back-memories/ }}</ref> with no warning to its users, and its site domain later expired in March 2018. Donnerwood Media has not given any statements about how or why Meez was taken offline.
== References == {{reflist}}
==External links==
===Reviews=== * [https://www.forbes.com/digitalentertainment/2006/03/27/aol-yahoo-chat-cx_rr_0328meez.html "Express Yourself – For a fee"] * [https://www.sfgate.com/living/article/VIRTUAL-WARDROBE-Get-your-alter-ego-all-dolled-2552540.php "Virtual Wardrobe: Get your alter ego all dolled up"] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070629215729/http://zdnet.com.com/1606-2-6113924.html "Break-dance online with Meez.com"]
[[Category:American entertainment websites]] [[Category:Internet properties established in 2006]] [[Category:American social networking websites]] [[Category:Defunct social networking services]] [[Category:Internet properties disestablished in 2017]]