Billionaire Elon Musk is doubling down on his determination to desert the Twitter identify and its well-known blue hen brand, arguing the model is not an correct illustration of the corporate.
Musk defined that he purchased Twitter for $44 billion final 12 months “each to make sure freedom of speech and as an accelerant for X, the every thing app.”
The screed surfaced as Musk confronted sharp criticism for abandoning Twitter’s 17-year-old brand and the related model worth.
“This will not be merely an organization renaming itself, however doing the identical factor,” Musk wrote Monday. “The Twitter identify made sense when it was simply 140 character messages going backwards and forwards – like birds tweeting – however now you may publish nearly something, together with a number of hours of video.”
“In the months to come back, we’ll add complete communications and the flexibility to conduct your whole monetary world,” he added. “The Twitter identify doesn’t make sense in that context, so we should bid adieu to the hen.
Twitter was acquired by X Corp each to make sure freedom of speech and as an accelerant for X, the every thing app. This will not be merely an organization renaming itself, however doing the identical factor.
The Twitter identify made sense when it was simply 140 character messages going backwards and forwards – like…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 25, 2023
The clarification was in keeping with Musk’s long-held want to make use of Twitter as the place to begin for a “tremendous app,” much like China’s WeChat, that capabilities as a one-stop store for a wide range of on-line companies. Musk has described his Twitter acquisition as an “accelerant” for that idea a number of occasions over the past 12 months.
Still, consultants have warned that Musk risked a advertising and marketing blunder by altering the identify – with Wedbush analyst Dan Ives telling The Post that it was “taking a web page out of the ‘New Coke’ branding” in a reference to The Coca-Cola Company’s notorious recipe change within the Eighties.
Gary Black, the Future Fund co-founder and distinguished Musk supporter, stated he was “combating rebranding Twitter to X and shedding the little blue hen’s model fairness.”
Musk’s identify change worn out anyplace from $4 billion to $20 billion in model worth related to Twitter, in keeping with estimates from analysts and model businesses cited by Bloomberg.
The X management group has but to handle some questions in regards to the rebrand, comparable to whether or not particular person posts will nonetheless be referred to as “tweets.”
“X is the long run state of limitless interactivity – centered in audio, video, messaging, funds/banking – creating a world market for concepts, items, companies, and alternatives,”CEO Linda Yaccarino stated in a publish earlier this week.
X is the long run state of limitless interactivity – centered in audio, video, messaging, funds/banking – creating a world market for concepts, items, companies, and alternatives. Powered by AI, X will join us all in methods we’re simply starting to think about.
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayacc) July 23, 2023
As a part of the identify change, the “X.com” internet tackle now redirects to Twitter.
The simplistic black-and-white “X” brand is prominently displayed on Twitter’s dwelling web page.
