If you mean hiring the core people, the team of long-time devs who created Anystream, it's highly unlikely. As a rough estimate, if they were in at the start of SlySoft, which had a 13 year run, and then another 8 years when they ran RF, they'd probably be in their late 40's or early 50's by now - or maybe even older, if SlySoft wasn't their first decrypting gig. And if they had to pull the plug on the site, or wipe the server, or whatever exit strategy was required ahead of a seizure, court order, an arrest or any other form of prosecution, which looks to be the likeliest reason for their going dark, why should they risk doing it all over again for a third time, and for a company they don't own? They were stiffed the first time around when SlySoft was closed down owing them a lot of money, so if it were me, I'd be retiring after a good, long run, and be damn sure I stayed under the radar in whatever country I retired to. I could be wrong (and frequently am), but I can't see them risking their security or their futures to crack DRMs for SF - not unless they actually physically relocated to China where they could be protected, and I'm not sure what life as a foreign national living there would be like for them - or if it would be worth it.
It's been pointed out here many times that SF doesn't do their own work; nothing about it is original. So if there's another major CDM revocation, that'll probably be it for SF, since after 5 solid months they still couldn't read the writing on the wall and hire the developers needed to keep SF a direct downloader. If they hadn't bought the solution from AS - and you know the timing points to that - we'd still be stuck with a screen recorder/re-encoder while they kept adding on porn modules, because they truly just don't get it.
artsunlimited
The completely unbelievable coincidence that SF had a solution a few hours after RF disappeared leads us to believe that a deal was made. But it could also have been completely different. This is only a speculative theory, but it would resolve this supposed coincidence. Because then there would have been no coincidence at all:
https://forum.dvdfab.cn/forum/software-support-english/youtube-to-mp3-youtube-video-downloader/443640-so-where-did-the-competition-go?p=444115#post444115You yourself write that the developers of RF/AS could be at an age where they can very well think about retiring. A good financial cushion can't hurt. We also know that they have always spoken condescendingly and disdainfully about SF. I don't think they would sell their own solution to them of all people. But they might well be pleased that people now think exactly that thanks to the "coincidence".
