DPReview Is Shutting Down

In what is some of the most surprising news the industry has seen in a long time, DPReview, one of the oldest and most respected photography publications on the web, is ceasing operations in less than a month.

The news came earlier today, with the site relaying that the decision was handed down by its parent company, Amazon, as part of a larger group of thousands of layoffs. The site will remain active until April 10, after which all new content will be ceased and forums will be locked, with the site remaining in a read-only mode for a "limited period." Readers can request a copy of their data until April 6.

The news is extraordinarily surprising, as DPReview is one of the oldest and most respected photography publications on the web. Started in 1998, it has been around for essentially all of the digital photography age. It was acquired by Amazon in 2007, but strangely, Amazon never seemed to integrate the site much into its main platform, which may have been a double-edged sword, as it allowed DPReview to continue to provide the comprehensive and objective content it was known for, but may have made it less integral to its parent company's plans.

What is particularly sad is that over 25 years, the site has built an absolutely incredible library of data and articles, all of which are slated to disappear from the web forever in a short time, which will be an enormous loss of knowledge. Even sadder is the loss of the DPReview staff, who are some of the most knowledgeable, thorough, and kind people in the industry. We certainly hope they all land on their feet, as they are all of immeasurable value to the industry we love.