In the recent turn of events, Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla and SpaceX, has offered to buy Twitter at $54.20 per share in cash. Last week, the Tesla owner was expected to join Twitter’s board. However, Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal disclosed that Musk has rejected to join the company’s board on April 10.
Amid the speculation of Musk joining Twitter’s board, the billionaire shared his ideas on changes he wished to bring to the social media platform, which he later deleted. Notably, Elon had himself fueled the speculation after disclosing buying a 9.1 percent stake in the microblogging platform.
On Tuesday, Musk said he was “serious” about acquiring the social media giant. However, He did not elaborate on how he would finance such a deal.
Talking about twitter’s extraordinary potential of becoming a platform of free speech in a note, he wrote, “I am offering to buy 100% of Twitter for $54.20 per share in cash, a 54% premium over the day before I began investing in Twitter and a 38% premium over the day before my investment was publicly announced. My offer is my best and final offer and if it is not accepted, I would need to reconsider my position as a shareholder.”
He had mentioned his wish to transform Twitter into a private company. Notably, Twitter has struggled to grow its user base and generate profits. Activist investors are pressuring the company to make changes. Musk is one of the most popular users on Twitter, with more than 22 million followers, and has been actively using the platform to promote his businesses.
I made an offer https://t.co/VvreuPMeLu
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 14, 2022
Twitter CEO reassures employees
While Musk’s tweet created a buzz around the social media platforms including Twitter, CEO Agrawal called for employees meeting to reassure that company was not being ‘held hostage’
Replaying an employee’s question on the situation, he said, “I have a strong point of view that people who are critical of our service, their voice is something that we must emphasize so that we can learn and get better.”
Musk no more the largest stakeholder?
However, in a recent development, Elon Musk is no longer the largest stakeholder in the microblogging site. Pennsylvania-based, Vanguard group has taken a 10.3% holding in Twitter, making it the largest shareholder of Twitter.
According to the sources, “Vanguard isn’t making a directional bet on Twitter.. Instead, the majority of its assets are in indexes and other so-called passive funds. The firm often sides with management on voting issues and doesn’t advocate for changes like a hedge fund or activist investor might.”
Earlier, the Vanguard group owned around 70.4 million Twitter shares which accounted for 8.8% of all outstanding shares while now it owns 82.4 million shares of Twitter, holding a 10.3% stake.
Why is Twitter failing?
In the past year, Twitter has made several changes that have drawn the ire of users. These include:
- The introduction of an algorithm that determines which tweets users see first, instead of showing them in chronological order
- A change to the “favorite” button, which is now a heart instead of a star
- Allowing users to add text, video, and other media to their tweets
- Removing the 140 character limit for direct messages
Such a transformation has only worsenedTwitter’s reputation. As the public pole is skewed towards a revival of the revolutionary platform, It’s no wonder that many users would welcome a change in ownership. And who better to take over Twitter than Elon Musk?
Also, Musk is the founder and CEO of Tesla Motors, SpaceX, and several other startups. He’s also known for his forward-thinking approach to business and technology. So it’s no surprise that he would be interested in acquiring Twitter.
On July 15, Musk said that he was “seriously considering” taking over Twitter in a series of tweets. He even went so far as to offer $30 billion for the social media company.
While it’s unclear if Musk is serious about buying Twitter, his interest highlights the potential value of the platform. And with Twitter’s stock price down more than 30% this year, now might be the perfect time for him to make an offer.
Evolution of Twitter
Twitter is one of the most popular social networking platforms on the internet. It has evolved significantly since its inception in 2006.
Let’s have a look at the history of Twitter and how it has changed over the years.
2006: The Beginning
Twitter was founded by Jack Dorsey, Evan Williams, Biz Stone, and Noah Glass in March of 2006. The original name of the platform was “twttr”. Dorsey sent the first tweet on March 21, which read, “just setting up my twitter”.
2007: Growth and Expansion
By 2007, Twitter had already gained a significant amount of popularity. It was used by a variety of people including celebrities, politicians, and businesses. In May, Twitter launched its first major update, including user profiles, followings, and direct messaging.
2008: The Rise of Hashtags
In October 2008, Twitter introduced the hashtag. A hashtag is a word or phrase prefixed with the “#” symbol. Hashtags are used to categorize tweets and make them easier to find. They quickly became a popular way for users to organize and find content on Twitter.
2009: New Features and Expansion
2009 was a big year for Twitter. The platform continued to grow in popularity and introduced new features. In February, Twitter launched its “retweet” feature, allowing users to share other users’ tweets with their followers. In April, Twitter launched its “@username” feature, which allows users to mention other users in their tweets.
2010: Twitter Goes Mainstream
2010 was the year that Twitter truly went mainstream. In January, Twitter was used by over 50 million people worldwide. In June, Twitter launched its official iPhone and Android apps. In July, Facebook announced that it would be integrating with Twitter. This was a major milestone for the platform as it showed that Twitter was being recognized as a major player in the social media landscape.
2011: Continued Growth
2011 was another year of continued growth for Twitter. In September, Twitter reached 100 million active users. In December, Twitter launched its “Tweet button,” which allows websites to add a button that lets visitors tweet content from the site.
2012: Twitter Goes Public
In November 2012, Twitter went public on the New York Stock Exchange. This was a major milestone for the company and made its founders very wealthy. Since going public, Twitter has continued to grow in popularity and is now used by over 200 million people worldwide.
2013-present: Continued Evolution
Twitter has continued to evolve since 2013. In 2014, Twitter acquired the video-sharing service Vine. In 2015, Twitter introduced Moments, a feature that curates tweets around a certain event or topic. In 2016, live streaming video service Periscope was acquired by Twitter. And in 2017, Twitter launched its new 280-character limit for tweets.
As you can see, Twitter has come a long way since it was first founded in 2006. It has continually evolved to meet the changing needs of its users. And it shows no signs of slowing down.
Twitter’s Transition from Jack Dorsey to Parag Agrawal
Over the past few months, Twitter has undergone a leadership change, with Jack Dorsey stepping down as CEO and Parag Agrawal taking over the reins.
This change comes at a time when Twitter is facing some serious challenges, including flat user growth, increased competition from other social media platforms, and regulatory scrutiny.
So far, it appears that Agrawal is up to the task of addressing these challenges. He has already made some changes to the way Twitter operates, such as increasing transparency around political ads and increasing the character limit for tweets.
Free Speech and Social Media – Role of Twitter
Twitter has become an important platform for free speech and social media. It is a place where people can share their thoughts and opinions on various topics. The site has also been used to help organize protests and rallies. Twitter has been credited with helping to spark the Arab Spring and other movements around the world.
The importance of Twitter for free speech was highlighted in 2012 when the site was used to help spread information about the Occupy Wall Street movement. Protesters also used the site in Egypt during the 2011 uprising against former President Hosni Mubarak.
Twitter has also been praised for its role in providing a voice to marginalized groups of people. LGBTQ activists have used the site to share their stories and experiences, while women have also used it to speak out against sexism and harassment.
Despite its positive impact, Twitter has also been criticized for its role in spreading false information. The site has been used to share fake news stories and conspiracy theories. Twitter has also been accused of not doing enough to prevent the spread of hate speech and bigotry.
Hence, it will be refreshing to see Elon Musk taking up Twitter’s charge as a CEO bring old Twitter.
