Twitter ad sales down 59%, company valuation down 66%

[NotATether]

Elon will absolutely not sell, because he said he's determined to make it profitable.

These days he's been aiming shots at "legacy media" such as FOX, CNN, ABC and so forth. So I think he's going to try and turn Twitter into a news channel. He won't be able to do that without easily-generated video content - generative AI could help here.

Of course, it will be full of misinformation, but you can expect for people to place counter-information right under it using the new Community Notes feature (I haven't used it myself to be honest, but I've been looking at it these days as a sort of BS-detector)

Did anyone on this forum, who use twitter, notice any unusual or significant increase in hate speech? Personally, I haven't noticed.

I haven't seen much hate speech, but I've certainly seen an upsurge of "dumb speech" in my timeline - tweets that are so nonsensical that they can't even be classified as memes, but are just plain stupid to read. It's mainly from the army of blue checks though. I guess a better word for it would be spam though.

[Iroh]

Keep in mind that Musk didn't buy Twitter to make profit (as a business). He did it to gain power over information and in the political scene. This means such drops does not matter at all, the only drop that matters is in the number of users and the propaganda's reach which is not happening so far.

I’m starting to think along the same lines as well. I did think he bought twitter as a business to make a profit off advertisers and the sales of blue ticks reenforced my thoughts on that.

But his engagements on the platform has shown me at least that he’s content and willing with spreading his own thoughts and opinions over certain issues and lots of gullible people would gulp it down as truth. And yes, the only drop in numbers that would matter to him is the number of users cause he’s actively promoting twitter as a platform where free speech is allowed. Hate speech disguised as free speech in my opinion.

[jrrsparkles]

Probably just a temporary crisis or this will be the new form of Twitter in future but I don't think Elon has the idea of selling the Twitter because he knows how to make money using the platform with his huge influence he can manipulate other things including cryptocurrencies so he can make money for his own.

[savetheFORUM]

This is what happens when a person takes over a company and has no idea about the business of such company, I think no one can deny that Musk is a good businessman, but this is only true when it comes to his field of expertise, on any other field he is just as bad as us, this reminds me of Steve Jobs which also had that tendency, however it is difficult for them to see this as both of them were considered the golden boys of silicon valley.

I think the mistakes he did with Twitter go far beyond not being an expert in the field of social media. Buying a company and immediately firing essential employees, demanding people to work long hours and in general trying to "fix" what wasn't broken is just a sign of general incompetence. Any normal CEO would do anything to please the advertisers, because they are the main source of revenue, instead Elon chose to ignore their concerns and switch to a different revenue model - premium subscription, without any strong research to back it, just his genius entrepreneur instincts.

Or maybe they saw this coming and that is why introduced premium subscription sales for the blue tick? I mean, they probably saw their ad sales are going down, maybe not this much initially but their analyzing experts must have gotten a hint and they thought they will start some other way to get revenue so that if the money isn't coming from one stream, it might come from the other but apparently, the plan didn't work as planned.

Elon Musk definitely couldn't manage things well, maybe because he didn't have much planning or ideas about how he would go ahead with things and he also did a lot of unexpected things like changing Twitter's logo to DOGE coin's logo, etc.

[Lucius]

At this rate Twitter will either file for bankruptcy or will be sold for 5-10 billion to new owners. Or maybe Musk will double down and will start using his Tesla/SpaceX money to support Twitter, although if that happens, the shareholders of those companies will be very unhappy. Another way how Twitter can survive a bit longer is if it will secure funding from foreign governments. One of the buyers of Twitter together with Musk was a Saudi prince. Maybe Musk will start offering censorship/propaganda/data harvesting service to governments for a large fee to offset his ad revenue losses. Because blue checkmark sales are clearly not enough.

Honestly, it doesn't matter to me at all if that company will fail quickly and completely, or if something else will happen, considering who became the owner. There are quite adequate alternatives, and with time people will find them and join the millions who have already left that platform for one reason or another.

In addition, there is no good news from the EU either, because Mr. Mars (so far) refuses to harmonize his business with the new regulations when it comes to digital laws in the EU. Obviously, these new laws do not match his vision of "freedom of expression".

Despite Twitter’s withdrawal, the EU’s anti-disinformation code remains “strong,” said Vera Jourova.
Vera Jourova, the European Commission’s Vice-President for Values and Transparency, bashed Twitter’s latest decision to leave the EU’s anti-disinformation code as “irresponsible” at a time when Russia’s disinformation is extremely dangerous.
“Bye, bye birdie,” Jourova tweeted on Saturday. “Twitter has chosen a hard way to comply with our digital laws,” she added.
“Russia’s disinformation is dangerous and it is irresponsible to leave [the] EU's anti-disinformation Code”.

[BitcoinTurk]

I don't think the news actually had much of a surprise because Twitter hasn't had much of a good start since it was acquired by Musk. Although I am not an advertiser on Twitter I do not know whether it is a problematic platform for advertisers but if it is a platform that constantly imposes unnecessary restrictions for advertisers it is quite normal to see a decrease in the number of advertisers. On the other hand, if the advertiser is not very satisfied with the ad performance I think this will cause a decrease in the number of ads because advertisers expect a sales return or conversion of the target audience from these ads. To make a general comment about the Twitter, I think that the loss of value will accelerate due to the decrease in its return.

[SyndicateLabs]

What's important is that Twitter, like any other tech company, needs to find ways to increase revenue and create shareholder value. Investing in new areas can help Twitter grow and adapt to changing markets.

Attracting potential investors and partners from other countries is also one of the ways to ensure the existence of Twitter. Seeking funding from foreign governments can also help Twitter get funding to develop new services and products. Twitter needs to find new ways to increase revenue and shareholder value. Cooperation and finding funding from foreign partners and governments can be an effective way to help Twitter survive and develop in the future.

[Blowon]

If Elon Musk no longer holds Twitter as the original owner it looks like it will have a big impact on crypto. especially Dogecoin which is likely to fall, but it will change how Twitter holders at that time handle Twitter again, whether there will be a crypto trend or a new trend created there. I myself wonder, if it has decreased to like this, what is Elon Musk's motive for buying Twitter, does he want to stop by for a moment in the world of crypto. but it seems that, compared to tesla and spaceX , twitter has received less attention from Elon Musk so he must have a plan to resell twitter.

[Synchronice]

Keep in mind that Musk didn't buy Twitter to make profit (as a business). He did it to gain power over information and in the political scene. This means such drops does not matter at all, the only drop that matters is in the number of users and the propaganda's reach which is not happening so far.

You are right! There is a hope that he wants to keep free speech on Twitter but there is another problem, billionaire and free speech? A billionaire that pumped and dumped market for personal growth and made people buy Dogecoin? A real shitcoin? By the way, it's inevitable that resources are and will end up in his hands. Let's hope thing go better but to be completely honest, I don't believe in this person lately. His intention was the development of an AI and now he says that it's a threat, he bumped and dumped the crypto market like it was a 3yo's toy, now he talks about freedom of speech and I'm afraid its just a mask that will allow him to change freedom into dictatorship over time.
This man is very hard to guess! His intentions can be both good and bad while being completely unpredictable. There is still a positive lit shining him in my mind because he is a very hard-working man who really changes the world and has some positive ambitions.

Did anyone on this forum, who use twitter, notice any unusual or significant increase in hate speech? Personally, I haven't noticed.

I haven't seen much hate speech, but I've certainly seen an upsurge of "dumb speech" in my timeline - tweets that are so nonsensical that they can't even be classified as memes, but are just plain stupid to read. It's mainly from the army of blue checks though. I guess a better word for it would be spam though.

Well, I noticed that too, especially when Ledger announced Ledger Recover service and was telling us how secure and beneficial it is, this was one of the dumbest tweet I have ever read, so, I agree with you, I've seen increase in dumb speech but I think that it's just natural degradation of some people and Elon has nothing to do with it.

[kojektea]

there is a possibility that this is happening because Elon Musk cannot handle the many existing businesses, I think Twitter is starting to be forgotten. even though I've heard that Elon Musk is preparing someone to hold the position of CEO of Twitter, but I think if he gets a big loss, I'm sure Elon Musk will think far and wide of selling Twitter again to cover that loss. because Tesla and spaceX have been very good at business, too many businesses will find it difficult to manage even if they have to trust others.

[hatshepsut93]

Honestly, it doesn't matter to me at all if that company will fail quickly and completely, or if something else will happen, considering who became the owner. There are quite adequate alternatives, and with time people will find them and join the millions who have already left that platform for one reason or another.

Honest question, what are the alternatives? I only know about Mastodon, which is too clunky for most people, so it will never achieve the full network effect, and I know of Trump's Twitter clone, which is what Elon Musk is trying to recreate.

My prediction is that Reddit and Telegram will absorb a lot of Twitter users, since these two social networks are not as cancer as products of Meta.

[Hispo]

If this is true, I must say it is quite a blow for the investment Musk made on Twitter. I was aware the advertisement renevue was going to decrease as a result of the policial noise of the purchase and the policial instances Elon has made public.

My personal prediction is that Elon would just continue to keep Twitter as it is and just continue to focus on his other enterprises. Twitter is just a toy for him, in my eyes, something to entertain himself and steal the spotlight whenever possible.

[Darker45]

This has been the case ever since Elon Musk took over the platform. Just days after Twitter changed hands, there was an exodus not only of mere users but also of advertisers. More than half of Twitter's top advertisers like Unilever, Coca-Cola, and others have left the platform. Billions were lost.

The way I felt it, even before the transfer of ownership finally took place, Elon was not really liked. Jack Dorsey was kind of loved. The transfer was controversial, even chaotic. Elon made unpleasant statements against Jack. He also made statements on the upcoming changes which were largely unwelcome.

If Elon really wants Twitter to stay alive, I guess the best way is for him to quit running the platform and stay away from it.

[sunsilk]

The blue tick will never be enough to cover the entire ROI for Musk. I guess he's aware of it or if it will ever do then there has to be the "all in" app that he's planning all along for Twitter.

We may not see it yet but if ever he's got a plan and he's still chill on the situation that Twitter he's facing, in no way that he's going to support it with outside money just to sustain it from the other companies that he's had.

He may just leave his position there as the CEO and let someone run it the better way as he does because it's not clear on which he's focused with while the other companies he's running are running stably.

[Sithara007]

This has been the case ever since Elon Musk took over the platform. Just days after Twitter changed hands, there was an exodus not only of mere users but also of advertisers. More than half of Twitter's top advertisers like Unilever, Coca-Cola, and others have left the platform. Billions were lost.

The way I felt it, even before the transfer of ownership finally took place, Elon was not really liked. Jack Dorsey was kind of loved. The transfer was controversial, even chaotic. Elon made unpleasant statements against Jack. He also made statements on the upcoming changes which were largely unwelcome.

If Elon really wants Twitter to stay alive, I guess the best way is for him to quit running the platform and stay away from it.

LOL.. I don't agree with the argument that Twitter lost billions. The share price has gone down, but that doesn't count unless the equities are sold. And regarding the fact that advertisers have gone to other platforms, it was somewhat expected. When left wing extremists such as Vijaya Gadde and Yoel Roth were in charge, they converted the platform to a place where Islamist lunatics like Mahatir Mohammad would make open genocidal threats. And they banned every account even remotely right-wing. Elon restored freedom of speech and it is natural that the left-wing doesn't like him a lot.

[Pierre 2]

I am pretty sure Elon Musk passionately loves Twitter. Its one of the best social media apps out there. I am daily user of it I pretty much liked using it. If only I got more followers tho. Anyways I started using blue checkmark because I said why not? It didn't look that much expensive to me. But I think it's still pretty much useless. I think he should incentivize blue checkmark more so his money generation should be higher through. Current benefits of blue checkmark are good but not enough.
I think in short term he will fund twitter with profits from other companies btw.

[Husires]

Twitter is making a big change, and the social media market will witness drastic changes during the coming years, so I do not think that someone who paid 44 billion will think of selling the platform after several months for half of this amount, but rather we will see how things will go during the coming months, or perhaps we need after the US elections to see if The platform is really worth developing, or will it be sold to a competitor?

If you mean by Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, I do not expect that he will participate in more on this platform. He is not a party to the ruling family and therefore he is somewhat far from politics and political influence. I do not think that Elon Musk will risk more SpaceX money due to it being the company of the future more than Twitter.

[examplens]

I have seen some changes and it seems to me that he is trying to adapt the network exclusively to his ideas and needs. Twitter is definitely not the same place anymore.
I can't say I feel sorry for his losses if they are real. The whole thing seems to me like when a rich kid buys his favourite toy, and such ambitions are often not successful. Whatever, they'll post a few tweets about Doge or something and cover the loss.

Still, I just can't understand why Elon bought Twitter in the first place. The company was in decline even before the acquisition.

He made a lot of money by manipulating the Dogecoin price through his influence on Twitter, he probably thought about what power he would have if he owned the entire network.

The blue tick will never be enough to cover the entire ROI for Musk. I guess he's aware of it or if it will ever do then there has to be the "all in" app that he's planning all along for Twitter.

But it's a completely new type of income that they didn't have before. Quite a good solution to generate profit from ordinary users, not only from companies and marketing campaigns.

[bangjoe]

I'm not surprised by this news because basically some people also predict that Twitter will experience something like this because of the consequences of a shift in policy from the new owner. If Elon Musk really wants to go ahead and keep supporting Twitter - then he's probably going to be spending a lot of money in the next few years.

I also think this is a consequence of leadership transition in company management, and certainly has new arrangements and views in the management of business companies, so that those who use services have doubts or avoid temporarily paying attention to how new leaders will make Twitter better in cooperation business.

In my opinion, there is a certain amount of Musk's own guilt here. He rushes from one extreme to another without a clear business strategy. One day he wants to be CEO, the next day he doesn't. Perhaps that is his plan: to destroy Twitter. Doesn't Musk have the money to hire proper advisors?

I don't think it is without a clear business strategy, but indeed that is the way he works in managing his business, I am a little hesitant to say that Elon wants to destroy Twitter, given the lot of money he spent on this company.
Yes you are right, if seen from that situation, Elon indeed has money to hire the right person as a business advisor, but for someone who has a crazy mindset like Elon Musk I think it will be difficult.

[Lucius]

Honest question, what are the alternatives? I only know about Mastodon, which is too clunky for most people, so it will never achieve the full network effect, and I know of Trump's Twitter clone, which is what Elon Musk is trying to recreate.

Honestly, since I stopped using Twitter, I haven't even tried to try anything else, although I have also heard of Mastodon, which is mostly mentioned as the first alternative. Of course, there are other platforms of a similar type, and some of them are presented on this link Ditching Twitter? Here are the 20 Best Twitter Alternatives

My prediction is that Reddit and Telegram will absorb a lot of Twitter users, since these two social networks are not as cancer as products of Meta.

Maybe when it comes to the younger population that is looking for a replacement, but there are a lot of people who are fed up with this way of communicating and are not actually looking for a replacement. Fortunately, there are alternatives, and the world will not stop even if Twitter somehow ceases to exist.