Subscene, a popular website known as the largest movie subtitle store in the world, has recently announced its decision to cease operations. Users of the website were informed that Subscene.com was officially closed and they can download their account information for a short period before all access is completely terminated. The website’s homepage features a thank you message to the community for the wonderful journey they have shared, but no specific reason has been provided for the shutdown.
Subscene was established in 2005 and is widely considered the world’s largest movie subtitle library, offering a vast collection of subtitles in numerous languages for almost all movies released over the years. For the 8x and 9x generations in Vietnam, the website was a significant part of their youth as they began to use broadband internet in the early 2000s. They would download movies online and search for subtitles on Subscene because most movies are in English.
The website’s instructions were simple: name the subtitles the same as the movie file name and place them in the same folder, and the movie viewing software would automatically recognize the subtitles. Users could find many subtitles in different languages, all were contributed by the community, and completely free to download.
The closure of Subscene has come as a surprise to many users, as several online tools have developed, and viewers have started to watch movies online instead of downloading them to their devices. Those who like to collect movies often use versions with pre-mixed subtitles, and few people still download subtitles individually to their devices as before.
As a free website for users to download subtitles, Subscene’s closure has caused the community to speculate that the owner could no longer afford to maintain the website. About two months ago, a post appeared on the Reddit forum with a notice from the Subscene administrator stating that the website would be closing due to funding issues. However, several pieces of information have been shared on the forum, with some suggesting that the administrators want to completely shut down the website, refusing all offers to buy back or transfer it, so that those with financial resources can continue to maintain “part of the internet.” This shows that the problem may not lie in financial difficulties.
Other shares confirm that the administrator shows signs of depression, and through their shares on the forum, the situation does not seem positive. Many people are now exploring alternative options and are also looking to download the database of this website for future use. However, there is a risk of fake websites being created to exploit people’s desire for subtitles. These websites can take advantage of user psychology during this period to exploit their information or secretly install malware onto their computers through fake links or dangerous files.