After the 2022 announcement and an attempted backtrack, Elon Musk has actually taken over the social media giant Twitter. Musk, who uses Twitter himself, wants to completely overhaul the platform.
Elon Musk took over power on Twitter and immediately set the first signs. He had announced that he would relax the short message service’s strict rules on what millions of Twitter users can post.
Twitter board fired immediately
“The bird is free,” wrote the founder of electric car maker Tesla in a tweet on Thursday. This is a reference to Twitter’s logo – the little bird. After a month-long tug-of-war, the billionaire has officially owned the social media platform since Thursday, October 27, 2022, which cost him $44 billion.
Immediately after the acquisition, Musk fired Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal and chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde. Gadde was in charge of the 2021 Suspension of ex-US President Donald Trump’s Twitter account. Agrawal and Segal were escorted by security forces from Twitter’s San Francisco headquarters, insiders told Reuters. Musk changed the self-description on his Twitter account to “Chief Twit“. The richest man in the world could now take over the management of the company himself, which bids farewell to the New York Stock Exchange on Friday. Twitter, Musk and the managers did not initially comment on this.
Musk had accused Twitter executives of misleading him and investors about the number of fake accounts on the social media platform. According to official information, there are less than five percent “fake accounts”. In the dispute over the confidential company data, Musk had threatened to call off the takeover announced in the spring, but the board of directors had sued him to implement the project.
Musk wants to appease advertisers
Musk has announced major job cuts among Twitter’s 7,500-strong workforce, but is now trying to ease their concerns about mass layoffs and keep advertisers on board as well. “Twitter must not become a lawless hellhole where anything can be said without consequences,” he wrote in one open letter to advertisers – on twitter. The platform must not become an echo chamber for hatred and division. He didn’t buy Twitter to make more money. “I did it to help the people I love,” Musk explained.
Musk has so far left open how he intends to do this and who will lead the company in the future. According to a report by the Bloomberg news agency, he wants to take over the chief post himself.
Giving in at the last second
The drama surrounding Musk and Twitter began on April 4, when the self-made billionaire disclosed a 9.2 percent stake, making him Twitter’s largest shareholder. But instead of moving into the board of directors as agreed, he submitted a takeover bid for $54.20 per share, of which it was long unclear how serious it was. But Musk was serious: Without checking the books as usual, he accepted a week later at the offered price.
Only then did he raise doubts about the publicly available data, such as fake accounts, and accused the Twitter leadership of withholding information. At the beginning of July he even announced that he would call off the takeover. But management hit back, accusing him of trying to use an excuse to slip away because he felt he paid too much. Twitter sued the court for the completion of the transaction. But in early October, Musk gave in at the last minute.
4 things that could change now
With the purchase, the richest man in the world is taking over one of the most influential media platforms on the planet. In connection with the court case, text messages had been published, according to which he would like to convert Twitter from an advertising to a subscription model. In addition, services such as money transfers should be made possible. The deal would also have a political dimension, at least in the US. Supporters of former President Donald Trump hope Musk will unblock his user account. The Republican was banned from Twitter after his supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
In May, Musk announced that he would unban former US President Donald Trump’s Twitter account. But Trump has said he doesn’t want to return to the platform. He has since launched his own social media app, Truth Social. However, this is still struggling for its planned IPO.
Freedom of speech without moderation
Musk had already started several polls on Twitter before announcing his intention to buy. Among other things, he wanted to know from users whether Twitter should become open source and whether the platform adhered to the principle of American free speech. The entrepreneur had repeatedly criticized that Twitter blocked or at least muted conservative accounts and that the platform was a mouthpiece for left-wing voices.
Music sees Twitter as a kind of digital marketplace. One goal of the takeover is therefore to allow more freedom of speech largely without Twitter’s intervention. In the open letter to advertisers, Musk at least assured that the company would comply with US laws. Twitter should therefore not be a legal vacuum. European Commissioner Thierry Breton also responded to Musk’s “The bird is freed” tweet that “In Europe the bird will fly according to EU rules“.
Fight against bots
Musk also wants to take rigorous action against bots. Bots often control fake or inactive Twitter accounts and distort both the number of followers of prominent personalities and the opinion on hot political issues.
Musk wants to make Twitter a “super app”.
Musk had hinted that he wants to develop Twitter into a “super app” that – similar to WeChat in China – should enable everything from money transfers to online purchases to taxi services. But with the whirlwind surrounding Musk’s acquisition, the company is at risk of losing its most active users. Although these “heavy tweeters” account for only ten percent of all users, they account for 90 percent of all tweets and half of global sales.
Subsequent editing of tweets
Another change that has been discussed for years is an “edit button”. Musk also asked Twitter users about this topic if they wanted such an option. Three quarters of the participants answered the question with “yes”. In the US, Twitter Blue subscribers can use the feature already testing.
With material from Reuters