| URL | tinypic.com |
|---|---|
| Commercial? | Yes |
| Type of site | Image Hosting Service |
| Registration | Optional |
| Available language(s) | English |
| Owner | Photobucket |
| Launched | 2004 |
| Alexa rank | 563 (January 2012[update])[1] |
| Current status | Active |
TinyPic is a photo and video sharing service, owned and operated by Photobucket.com [2], that allows users to upload, link and share, images and videos on the Internet. The idea is similar to URL shortening in which each uploaded image is given a relatively short internet address. An account is not required to use TinyPic.
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TinyPic allows the upload and hosting of JPEG (jpg), png, gif, and tiff files. Images that are larger than 1600 pixels (either in width or height) are automatically resized to the largest acceptable size while maintaining their original aspect ratio. The site requires a CAPTCHA to be filled in each time an image is uploaded.
TinyPic does not accept standard-definition video files which are larger than 500 Megabytes in size or longer than 15 minutes in length. Videos longer than 15 minutes are truncated to 15 minutes. Users can also upload high definition videos as long as they are no larger than 500 Megabytes in size and no longer than 5 minutes in length. TinyPic officially accepts the uploading of videos in the following video formats: 3g2, 3gp, 3gp2, 3gpp, 3p, asf, avi, divx, dv, dvx, flv, moov, mov, mp4, mpe, mpeg4, mpeg, mpg4, mpg, qt, rm, wmv, and xvid albeit many users are unable to upload all but the most common.[3]
TinyPic cooperates with Glogster EDU which is an education web 2.0 platform. There is an option to log into the service and insert TinyPic images when creating Glogs.
In July 2010 TinyPic blocked access to the site to users from Argentina, cutting off thousands of users to access, view or delete their stored images. As of August 2010, no statement has been released from TinyPic nor any of the numerous users' questions replied, instead a sign appears upon accessing the website inviting users to join PhotoBucket, but without giving any solutions for the users' stored images and videos.[4]
On Sept 23, 2010 TinyPic announced without warning that they are no longer accepting uploads from "international locations" (i.e. locations outside of the USA, UK, Australia, Canada, and others) and that all links are turned off. A reason for this has not been provided. However, the services appear to have been restored to their former state.
TinyPic gave the following explanation on their homepage in regards to the issues on September 23, 2010: "We heard from many of our users in regards to these changes and we appreciate your feedback. TinyPic has restored linking to your images and enabled uploading. Please rest assured no content was removed from the site. We tried to notify users on TinyPic and requested they move their content to Photobucket. Unfortunately this messaging was insufficient and has taken many of our users by surprise and we apologize. Our intent was to begin combining some of the best features of TinyPic and Photobucket, thereby offering users a better experience. Any changes in the future will be better communicated. Once again, we apologize for the inconvenience."