Analysis: Twitter under Elon Musk must change its business model

Although it is listed along with Facebook, Instagram and YouTube among the American social networks, Twitter does not have the hegemonic position of the others.

It is closest to political and economic journalism, including the presence of reporters and sources on the platform, and the acquisition by Elon Musk reflects the crossroads that the media face today in the US.

The businessman wants the platform, his favorite, in which he is the protagonist, embodying an “absolute” freedom of expression. No cancellations, which became the norm at the turn of the Joe Biden administration.

The 2020 election was the one in which the press, mostly pro-Democrat, ended up associating itself with platforms to restore the power of gatekeepers.

Musk’s entry on social media is questioned as a rescue of the anti-democratic, Trumpist voice, but he is not alone with Republicans in reacting to cancellations and sharing restrictions.

A month ago, the New York Times stated in the editorial “America has a free speech problem” that “many progressives have become intolerant of those who express other opinions.”

Criticizing cancel culture, the paper announced a long-term coverage project to identify and combat threats to freedom of expression, particularly on social media.

At the same time, he finally acknowledged that the emails from Hunter Biden, Joe’s son, reported on the eve of the 2020 election and “canceled” by both the NYT and Twitter, were true.

In the episode, Twitter went deeper than anyone else, not only suppressing messages on the subject, but taking down the account of the New York Post, the 220-year-old newspaper that had correctly reported the emails.

This is the platform that Elon Musk wants to get out of the hole, not only journalistic, but business. More than money, it offers current controllers the search for a business model that finally works.

Twitter never made it to Facebook, Instagram or YouTube, in part because it didn’t provide minimal advertising revenue. Musk did not detail what he intends, but signaled that it is one of the fronts on which he will act.

Perhaps then the platform will indeed become a concern for governments that come from Europe to China seeking to rein in the power of the tech giants. For now, Twitter is in the amateur league.

Twitter X-ray

• Market value (at 12:00 this Monday) – US$ 38.73 billion
• Revenue in 2021 – US$ 5 billion
• Result in 2021 – Net loss of US$ 221 million
• Number of employees – 7,500
• number of users – 217 million

Follow the story of Twitter

• March 21, 2006 > Foundation — Jack Dorsey, Co-Founder and CEO, Posts First Tweet
• Mar.2007 > The social network has a surge in popularity during the SXSW (South by Southwest) festival, reaching 60,000 tweets a day
• Oct.2008 > Evan Williams becomes the CEO
• Feb.2010 > Network reaches 50 million tweets per day
• Oct.2010 > Dick Costolo becomes CEO
• Dec.2010 > Twitter Raises $200 Million, Reaches $3.7 Billion Valuation
• Mar.2011 > Network reaches 140 million tweets per day
• Jun.2011 > Release of the Portuguese version
• Oct.2013 > Announcement of the IPO on the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange)
• Nov.2013 > Twitter reaches $31 billion market cap
• Oct.2015 > Jack Dorsey returns as CEO
• Jan.2021 > Twitter deletes Donald Trump account for risk of incitement to violence
• Nov.2021 > Dorsey leaves Twitter and Parag Agrawal assumes the presidency
• Mar.2022 > Elon Musk buys 9.2% stake in Twitter
• Apr.2022 > Musk makes $43 billion offer

Sources: Twitter, NYSE, Wikipedia