Elon Musk’s planned $44-billion purchase of social media company Twitter Inc. announced this week falls into the second camp.Twitter lost $1.3 billion over the past two years. Its user growth is slowing. So is its growth in the advertising revenue that accounts for about 90 per cent of its total revenue. Its debt carries a junk-bond rating of BB+, below investment grade.He is also a stranger to commercial media. Musk is emphatic that he does not want to own Twitter for “economic” reasons.
Musk’s priority at Twitter is to roll back content moderation in the name of free speech. He regards Twitter as “the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.” As a business, Twitter barely registers with its $5 billion in 2021 revenues, against the $118 billion in revenues posted by Meta Platforms Inc., owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
In its 15 years, Twitter has never been able to settle on a business model that generates sustainable profit growth.For instance, Twitter is only now developing an “edit” function that allows users to rewrite and update messages they’ve sent. To finance this deal, Musk has put up $21 billion of his own money. Another $12.5 billion is covered by bank loans secured by $62.5 billion worth of Musk’s shares in Tesla.Those numbers add up to more than $44 billion to cover the lenders’ fees.With projected cash flow of only $1.9 billion next year, Twitter won’t have much free cash flow to finance a needed turnaround.
Musk might be thinking of the New York Times and others that have erected paywalls and met with some success.
lol 'so little value'
So if I read this right, a newspaper is saying communication has little value!? Odd 🤔
It seems he just planned on pissing of investors in his other businesses, especially when you look at the market losses.
Buying a social media company that doesn’t generate much revenue: $44,000,000,000 Controlling the political and cultural conversation: Priceless.
Social media is one of the most valuable channels with unlimited potential in today's media landscape. There is untapped potential when you quickly acquire a base with access to internet. I see huge profits in his future. Twitter is valuable. It just needs commercialization.
LeonMuskTwitGod cuckoo.
Supreme troll move is all perhaps.
Seriously? What does he care about $$? It's a statement, not a financial move.
If it barely register's why is it worth 44 billion ?
Twitter has way more political clout relative to its size than other platforms.
I love seeing a news paper talk about how a social media company is dwindling...
Bro. You still mad? Lol!
he wasn't thinking, he was angry that grimes left him for a trans woman
Elon’s net worth is over $273 Billion dollars ....he bought twitter because he CAN!
You're asking this after we've seen a slew of TV series that had atrociously low viewership but ruled the zeitgeist? Do you not know the phenomena of the comedian's comedian, or the musician's musician - the cult figure who inspires the stars and indirectly drives culture?
This one’s easy. Musk was thinking about himself.
You who were sold for 52million which barely registers. Just watch what happens!
The fact that you don’t see the value says enough.
It’s called f*ck you money
How can you put a price on a platform that allows people to speak freely. Your ideology is sub-human click bait to publish such a blasphemous headline.
An op-Ed clearly written as a devil’s advocate piece. I doubt a newspaper like the Star Is that ignorant of the power of information.
Only if you disregard the value of social and political influence, not to mention vanity, to billionaires.
Buying twitter is a way of rich man's tantrum
It’s happened before. Some idiot bought the Toronto Star.
There are things in the world the value of which aren't measured in dollars & cents. You may want to consider broadening your horizon 🇨🇦🏴🇺🇦
OMG this is rich . Why are Lefties losing their minds over this?
Twitter, unlike the Toronto Star , has tremendous value
another opinion piece that doesnt matter
Love the flip flop from “its worth way more” when he made the offer to “something of so little value” when he wins. Lmao
Elon saw Twitter's value as a propaganda machine that elites have been using to pedal a certain narrative
'Barely registers?' Come on. How many companies with sales in excess of $1,000,000 DON'T have a Twitter account. 'Barely registers.' Jesus!
So much money for so little value? So like when JustinTrudeau wants to spend 3-5 billion$$$ taking guns away from people who dont commit crimes and then give reduced sentences to violent criminals who do commit crimes?
Where do all these people that are fans of this billionaire come from? I will confess, I used to be one. Lol. He is a nut, so I stopped
Methinks thou doth protest too much.
Ah, but the publicity? Priceless.
Just another bored billionaire
It’s been losing money because when you go woke you go broke 🤷🏻♂️. Elon sees huge potential in Twitter and is going to unlock that value. With his proven track record, the odds are on his side that he’ll succeed.
He needed Data you geniuses.
He will use it to build narratives favouring his businesses, clandestinely, simple.
The journalists at the Star think they are smarter than Elon
Information is power
Love the fear ❤️
How much is the Trudeau government spending trying to police the entire internet?
He said his goal = Free speech + unlocked potential. If MSM doesn’t hold gov to account we are all worse off for it. It’s degrading in Canada but God is real (and in our Charter preamble) and He is always sovereign. Man is but dust.
Look in the mirror MSM
Because for him it's not about profiting, it's about proving via one of the most expensive tantrums in history that he can do whatever he pleases with his money when he could use it in much better, more respectable ways.
If Twitter has so little value, then why is the left losing their minds over Elon buying it?
Toronto Stars, if you don’t understand the value of “Freedom of speech”, go visit the prisons of dictatorship countries
Blue Jays not for sale or ……maybe not Twitter.
Why worrying? Cause ability to speak is restore, not only to those ban on right but also for the left