Distractify Explained

Distractify is an online publication and Internet media company launched in 2013 by Quinn Hu (also known as the YouTuber 2 Bucks), Yosef Lerner, and Jake Heppner. The company started as a social media startup for viral content and later branched out into news about pop culture.

History

Founded by Quinn Hu, Yosef Lerner, and Jake Heppner, Distractify began in 2013 as a social media startup for viral content. The site reached 21 million unique visitors in November 2013. In 2013, 90% of traffic to the site came from Facebook. Distractify competes with BuzzFeed, Upworthy, and ViralNova.^[1]

In 2014, Distractify saw a drop in Facebook traffic after Facebook began to lower reach for meme-related posts.^[2] The site received $7 million in funding that year.^[3]

In 2017, Distractify filed a federal lawsuit against Brainjolt, which owns "22 Words", for publishing content which was similar to some of Distractify's content.^[4] Distractify has been sued in the past on behalf of photographers for alleged copyright violations concerning the use of their photographs.^[5]

Notes and References

1. Web site: 22 November 2013 . Dickey. Megan Rose. This 20-Year-Old Is The Mastermind Behind Distractify, A Fast-Growing Media Startup. January 22, 2021. Business Insider.
2. Web site: How startups can leverage Facebook's new algorithm . May 2, 2014 . February 5, 2021 . Reinemann . Beverly . Startupdaily.
3. Web site: FinSMEs. June 25, 2014. Distractify Raises $7M in Series A Funding. January 22, 2021. FinSMEs. en-US.
4. Web site: Maddaus. Gene. June 29, 2017. Distractify Accuses 22 Words of Stealing Its Viral Facebook Posts. March 29, 2021. Variety. en-US.
5. News: Victor. Daniel. July 6, 2017. 51 Times That the Aggregator Distractify Says Its Copyright Was Violated. en-US. The New York Times. March 29, 2021. 0362-4331.