Image: ALAIN JOCARD (AFP)
Tech billionaire Elon Musk acquired the short message service Twitter a year ago for around 44 billion US dollars (the equivalent of 41.54 billion euros). The entrepreneur, head of the electric car manufacturer Tesla and founder of the space company SpaceX, announced numerous changes at the time – in the interests of freedom of expression. A lot has changed since then: Shortly after Musk took over, around half of Twitter’s approximately 8,000 employees were laid off.
Most recently, the name and logo of the short message service were changed to “X”. Musk, who shares many political positions of the US right, is criticized for his handling of hate speech on the platform. According to researchers, the action against this is too lax, and the EU Commission also recently got involved.
- “X” and the problems with fake videos and misinformation about the war in Israel
The 52-year-old, who has now handed over the Twitter leadership post to advertising manager Linda Yaccarino and is himself involved in product design and technology, is not lacking in ideas: the previously free white and blue ticks that clearly identified celebrities or politicians can be used Buy now for just under ten dollars or euros each. Subscription models are also being tested: In New Zealand, for example, new users can only interact on the platform for a fee of one US dollar per year. Only passive use is free.
- Testing restrictions for free users
One reason for this: the platform needs money; advertising revenue is only about half as high as Twitter once did. The number of users has also fallen. However, alternatives such as Mastodon or Bluesky have not yet proven to be really competitive.
- You can read more about the Twitter alternative Bluesky here.
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