Twitter takeover by Elon Musk- defining new corporate tool for publicity?
Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, has been making headlines for acquiring Twitter, a social networking site or microblogging site that was launched in 2006 by Jack Dorsey and that can be used to receive news, follow high-profile celebrities, or stay in touch with other people. Musk started the acquisition on April 14, 2022, and concluded the deal on October 27, 2022. Though there is nothing wrong with acquiring a company, the way this acquisition has taken place and the way things have been unfolding since the acquisition are quite intriguing.
In the beginning, he put in a $44 billion offer to buy it. He stated at the time that he wants to add new features to the platform, open source its algorithms, eliminate spambot accounts, and promote free expression. Later in July, after Twitter had accepted his bid, he made the decision to terminate the earlier contract, claiming that Twitter had violated the terms by refusing to crack down on spambot accounts. But again, in October, he changed his mind and announced that he would go ahead with the acquisition. However, these events are only a small part of the recent hype around the acquisition, as there have been numerous other developments since the acquisition. These are-
Firing spree
Since taking over as CEO of Twitter, Elon Musk has been striving to attract fresh talent and employees, cut costs, and improve the company's financial situation. For instance, in order to seize complete control of the business and appoint himself as the sole director, he fired not just Twitter's CEO, Parag Agrawal, and its policy chief, Vijaya Gadde, but also its CFO, Ned Segal, and the whole board of directors. According to India Today, the total number of Twitter employees was over 7500 in the first few weeks of November, but by the end of the month, the figure had dropped to just 2700. Additionally, Indian workers have also been affected by this firing spree. For instance, Twitter once employed more than 200 people, but since the current management took control, more than 90% of the company's Indian employees have been asked to quit (Garg, 2022). According to critics, while Elon Musk is trying to portray himself as a supporter or defender of free speech, he is firing even his own staff for opposing the new management.
Twitter 2.0- The Everything app
On November 27, 2022, Elon Musk shared on the social media platform a glimpse of his vision to transform the social network into an "everything app" that blends several services in one tha is where users could socialise, make payments and even shop, something along the lines of China's WeChat.
Different badges, Pay for verification Plan and Manual authentication
Twitter, like other social media sites such as Instagram and Facebook, has its own system for proving the legitimacy of a Twitter account, which is known as Twitter authentication. This feature, which took the shape of a blue tick, was not there when the platform was first introduced but was added in 2009. This blue tick was used to recognize legitimate account holders of celebrities, organizations, agencies, and government websites for readers. In addition to this, the blue tick served as a sign that the social media platform had taken steps to confirm that the account belonged to the person or company it claimed to represent. This, however, did not imply that Twitter was endorsing anyone or that the information in the tweet was accurate.
But once Elon Musk took charge, he announced that there would soon be three distinct levels of verified status, each indicated by a different color. These checks will come in three different colors: gold for verified companies, gray for verified government accounts, and blue for verified individuals. But these ticks are not free under Musk's verification system. According to the new rules, anyone who wants the blue tick on the microblogging website must pay $8 per month. The primary reason for charging this sum is to increase the company's revenue. Additionally, these verified users will gain access to a number of advantages, like seeing fewer advertisements generally and being given preference in replies and mentions, among other things.
However, according to one of the concerns noted in the Wire, while the previous verification method had many shortcomings, it was highly successful in cleaning out a substantial chunk of illegal activity on the site and identifying notable accounts in the public interest. Musk's payment verification, in comparison, just confirms that a person has $8. The report further points out that payment verification cannot ensure that the system won't be used for illegal purposes. (Graham, 2022)
Last but not least, Musk stated that the company would introduce a new manual authentication procedure, which he labelled "painful but necessary." However, it is unclear how he intends to accomplish this, given that he has already laid off a large number of employees. Thus, this is yet another of the numerous concerns.
Free speech
Musk, who describes himself as a "free speech absolutist," has the vision to ensure free speech on Twitter. He stated that he is "against censorship that goes well beyond the law." One of the reports in the Hindu highlighted that Musk has been attempting to create a policy similar to Youtube, where some provocative content is given less prominence in the site's algorithm but is not fully taken down. (Hindu, 2022) This serves as an example of how he plans to accomplish the above-mentioned vision. According to Musk, "you won't discover the tweet unless you specifically seek it out, which is no different from the rest of the Internet."
Conclusion
It has only been one month since the acquisition, so it is too early to comment on the success or failure of these new features. Only time will tell if it will be as successful as his Tesla acquisition or if it will fail like many other ambitious acquisitions in the past, as Indian Express points out (Express, 2022).
References
- Express, I. (2022, November 06). Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter: 5 latest developments. Retrieved from Indian Express : https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/tech-news-technology/elon-musk-twitter-takeover-latest-developments-8252424/
- Garg, A. (2022, November 22). From 7,500 on Nov 1 to 2700 on Nov 22, here is how Elon Musk fired Twitter employees to reduce cost. Retrieved from India Today : https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/features/story/from-7500-on-nov-1-to-2700-on-nov-22-here-is-how-elon-musk-fired-twitter-employees-to-reduce-cost-2300449-2022-11-22
- Graham, T. (2022, November 08). Why a Paid 'Blue Tick' Verification on Twitter Is Fundamentally Flawed. Retrieved from The Wire : https://thewire.in/tech/elon-musk-paid-verification-twitter-flawed
- Hindu, T. (2022, November 19). New Twitter policy is freedom of speech, but not freedom of reach: Elon Musk. Retrieved from The Hindu : https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/technology/new-twitter-policy-is-freedom-of-speech-but-not-freedom-of-reach-elon-musk/article66156289.ece
Pic Courtsey-Hillary Black at unsplash.com
(The views expressed are those of the author and do not represent views of CESCUBE.)
