Years Active: 2001 – Present
Kazaa’s story isn’t really any different from its predecessors. The service launched in May 2001, enjoyed its moment in the sun, and was eventually subjected to the same legal troubles of Napster and Morpheus before it. Kazaa, however, suffered backlash from its community after users discovered adware on their systems, causing the company to launch Kazaa Lite in April 2002 (which excluded spyware and adware).
Kazaa eventually closed shop in 2006 after being slapped with $100 million in damages by the record companies, but eventually relaunched as a streaming music app like Spotify and Rdio.
Where Are They Now?
An official Kazaa iPhone app was just released, according to The Next Web.
MORE: ‘LimeWire’ File Sharing Service Sued by Record Labels… Again