It's the only social media platform where any and everything is allowed including explicit porn, blatant racism, religious threats, all under the logic of "free speech". Now with the branding being changed to "X", it promises to be even more outrageous because Musk believes there should be a place where people can post whatever is on their mind without consequence.
“It has become a verb. That’s the holy grail. This is a brand that has secured a place in our cultural lexicon. Musk has wiped out over 15 years of brand equity in the Twitter name.” - Forrester research director Mike Proulx.
His effort has already been met with legal resistance. While a crew was removing the 21 year old Twitter sign at the corporate office in San Francisco on Monday July 25, the cops showed up and stopped the process 'cos they had no permit to remove. Yep, in a big city one can't simply remove a building sign or put one up without civil approval.
Twitter’s chief executive, Linda Yaccarino, said the logo swap heralded larger shifts at the company as it transforms into a sweeping venture, encompassing commerce and an online payment system like the one Musk helped pioneer two decades ago at PayPal and a predecessor, X.com.
Yet marketing experts said that the move was an unnecessary gamble on a hazy future, coming from a platform with wide brand recognition. Though Twitter has weathered a year’s worth of bad news, its ad revenue is down 50%, alternatives are springing up, and regulators are circling, they said it would not make sense for the company to dodge by changing its handle, as some saw Facebook’s rebrand into Meta after the release of a trove of internal documents from whistleblower Frances Haugen.
This move may just mean the absolute demise of the work Jack Dorsey, one of the original owner who had blocked the account of Trump and many others that were spreading hate and violence in 2020, all accounts which Musk restored in 2022 and they have been even more vile with their messages of hate.
Will you leave or stay with the now branded "X"?
