Techcrunch used to be my #1 go-to tech site a few years ago. After they switched to the Facebook commenting system, I stopped caring about it, because I found I didn't want to comment anymore. Also, if anything, I think Facebook comments were ultimately worse than the ones before.
I agree they made it even worse with Livefyre but not necessarily because of the system itself, but because they're requiring "Techcrunch accounts" for it. So they've gone from bad decisions to worse, for the commenting system.
To be fair, I started commenting on TC after the switch to FB comments from Disqus, so I can't comment on the before/after.
I agree that forced registration for "TechCrunch Accounts" doesn't help at all. One of the advantages of FB Comments was zero-click registration for new users. For better or for worse.
I agree they made it even worse with Livefyre but not necessarily because of the system itself, but because they're requiring "Techcrunch accounts" for it. So they've gone from bad decisions to worse, for the commenting system.