It’s basically the dot com bubble all over again. These companies survived for years off free money and venture capitalists with seemingly endless pockets due to low interest rates. Now that rates are up the money is dry. Now that investors don't have free money they want to see a return. Since these companies never could be profitable they’re now collapsing under their own weight.

As for who was wanting to shut it down… basically any government agency dealing in child abductions, any mom group, “family” organization, incels/people mad at others for just being social. Just my guess.

I do recall trying out Chatroulette when it first came out but it was a lot of mushroom caps I wasn't interested in seeing so I didn't stick around long.

Back before that when I was dating some of that included the personal section of Craigslist. Unfortunately there was some horrible attacks of sex trade workers that used the personals down in the US and then the US government came together to "protect" people by holding the websites liable.

In the process the personal section of CL which included dating and penpals was closed. Many people met their spouses and had long term relationships and friendships as a result of CL that they wouldn't have had in real life. I think it some ways that dating section was much better than the juiced up dating sites that have followed since. They are more about driving revenue than true connections.

I'm not sure if they solved the sex trade problem, but I don't think they have won the war on drugs either. Much like the gun lobbying crowd say innocent gun owners shouldn't be affected I would think in the same way users of internet services shouldn't be either.

But life isn't so black and white and many of us are unable to get beyond this stage of adolescence...