Rumors surface of Apple showing interest in acquiring Twitter

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
A couple of popular tech blogs are reporting Tuesday that Apple may have some interest in acquiring Twitter in an all-cash deal, though neither publication is able to substantiate the rumors or outline a clear-cut strategy that would serve to motivate the iPhone maker into such a deal.



For those unaware, Twitter (AppleInsider Twitter feed) is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that lets users broadcast short messages of up to 140 characters -- known as tweets -- to other users who subscribe to their feeds, known as followers.



Twitter usage has skyrocket in recent months as celebrities like Ashton Kutcher and Britney Spears have adopted the service as means of communicating with their fans. A variety of applications that let users tweet from their iPhones have also helped matters and emerged as some of the App Store's most popular downloads.



It's estimated that there are now approximately 25 million Twitter users worldwide, a figure which has been swelling at a rate of 40 percent each week ever since Oprah announced her plans last month to incorporate the service into her daily routine, says TechCrunch.



The technology blog was one of the publications to report Tuesday that Apple may be talks to acquire Twitter for $700 million in cash, citing "a normally reliable source" as saying that, “Apple is in late stage negotiations to buy Twitter and is hoping to announce it at WWDC in June."



Still, the publication immediately hedged its bets, explaining that it contacted other sources who would presumably be familiar with the matter if it was indeed materializing only to have them express no knowledge of such a situation.



"If these discussions are happening, Twitter is keeping them very quiet indeed," wrote TechCrunch's Michael Arrington, who added that he would have passed on reporting the dubious rumor entirely had it not begun to find its way onto other technology blogs.



Arrington was likely referring to a report that cropped up a few hours earlier over at rival tech blog ValleyWag, which cited a "source who's plugged into the Valley's deal scene and has been recruited by Apple for a senior position" as passing on similar, if not exactly the same, details.



In neither report, however, is there a compelling argument waged as to where an acquisition of Twitter would fit into Apple's strategy, though ValleyWag did give it a shot by claiming the deal would land Apple seasoned engineers in tune with modern Web culture.



Founded in 2006, Twitter has yet to devise a way to profit from its success and continues to run on solely on venture capital. After reportedly turning down a buyout offer from FaceBook north of half a billion, the company in January began pitching a $250 million valuation to venture capitalists in an effort to secure more cash and maintain its course.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 151
    hattighattig Posts: 860member
    I see no reason for Apple to invest or buy into such a tedious system.
  • Reply 2 of 151
    galleygalley Posts: 971member
    I enjoy twittering, but fail to see how Apple could integrate it into their ecosystem. Perhaps as an option in the new Messages app on the iPhone?
  • Reply 3 of 151
    istinkistink Posts: 250member
    Twitter seems to just be one of those things everyone else is into, but I have absolutely no interest in. Kind of like watching 24, or CSI or something, know what I mean?



    So the purpose of twitter is to post a little comment about what you're doing or whatever, and everyone can read it and comment on it? Please correct me if I'm wrong here. Isn't that exactly what the "status" in facebook is?
  • Reply 4 of 151
    bsenkabsenka Posts: 799member
  • Reply 5 of 151
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Funnily enough I've already though about this privately for whatever reason. "I wonder if Apple is eyeing Twitter?" - I thought to myself. This is a gem this service. Apple could make it a cultural persuasion. Do what Google did for YouTube. And Apple likes simple. This news is extremely interesting to me, being that I'm in the process of setting up a (simple) Twitter-related service.



    Twitter isn't a flash in the pan guys, everyone says that until they end up realizing the value in it, and in turn are using it. One great thing about it is everyone uses it differently. I use it rather than e-mail in some cases, quite a bit. When using it rather than e-mail it forces u to get to the heart of the matter, and it makes it quick for the person on the other end to get the point. And no, IM is not the same thing, it's different.
  • Reply 6 of 151
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Yeah, right. People may enjoy twittering and generally being techno twits, but how could this possibly fit into the Apple landscape?
  • Reply 7 of 151
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    A waste of time- bloatware= twitter.
  • Reply 8 of 151
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iStink View Post


    Please correct me if I'm wrong here. Isn't that exactly what the "status" in facebook is?



    Nothing more annoying when some indulgent twit occupies my whole Facebook page letting me and the rest of their 6000 close friends know that they just arrived at the airport, bought a latte or whatever else totally boring thing they just did.
  • Reply 9 of 151
    alonso perezalonso perez Posts: 385member
    How do you send a message from an iPhone to a Mac user? You can send an e-mail, but that requires more writing (a subject, etc.).



    There is no good platform that integrates the Internet with the phone network for short messages. Chat is not the same; you need to open a chat window for each person you want to receive messages from, and you usually converse briefly with them.



    A "short message e-mail" system with integration with phone network SMS and broadcast capability could (I emphasize could) make sense for Apple and it's iPhone system. It does seem like a smallish niche, but maybe not.



    By the way, I'm not a Twitter user either and it does seem kind of pointless on its own. People apparently get bored with it and drop out at high rates. It does feel like a fad. We'll see.
  • Reply 10 of 151
    Everybody, here's my take on the potential merger between Apple and Twitter:



    http://thequantumbyte.com/2009/05/ru...r-700-million/



    Does anyone agree with my opinions? Let me know!



    For those who may accuse me of advertising for my blog, here are my opinions:



    "This should be an interesting deal, if it were to go down. Sure, this may just be a result of chinese whispers, but come to think of it, Apple has been expressing its Twitter-philia with its recent business profile case study. Without doubt, Apple and Twitter are just about the two most ‘innovative’ and ‘fun’ tech companies out there, and thus Twitter’s acquisition would add much value to Apple in the micro-blogging/blogging market. I’m a huge Apple fan, but I must say, I don’t particularly fancy the sound of this. I love Twitter the way it is: fun, young and almost ‘innocent’ and ‘humble’; it being run by a small group of tech enthusiasts. Once Apple takes over, bureaucracy will set in, and the free service will become massively commercialized. I somehow get the feeling if these rumors are remotely true, Apple would undoubtedly be planning to add this to its MobileMe service, or something of the like; and that would be a terrible, terrible thing to happen!



    Unless Apple can stay true to its customers and have Twitter’s loyal users’ best interests at heart, and make Twitter better instead of commercializing it, the already highly debated (love it or hate it!) micro-blogging service will see its fall. I highly doubt Jack Dorsey, Evan Williams, and Biz Stone would want to see that happen, for just $700 million."
  • Reply 11 of 151
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Alonso Perez View Post


    How do you send a message from an iPhone to a Mac user? You can send an e-mail, but that requires more writing (a subject, etc.).



    There is no good platform that integrates the Internet with the phone network for short messages. Chat is not the same; you need to open a chat window for each person you want to receive messages from, and you usually converse briefly with them.



    A "short message e-mail" system with integration with phone network SMS and broadcast capability could (I emphasize could) make sense for Apple and it's iPhone system. It does seem like a smallish niche, but maybe not.



    By the way, I'm not a Twitter user either and it does seem kind of pointless on its own. People apparently get bored with it and drop out at high rates. It does feel like a fad. We'll see.



    DOn't worry - you'll get MMS texting like the rest of the world next month. Very easy and simple to use. Much better than twitter.
  • Reply 12 of 151
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by isaaclimdc View Post


    Everybody, here's my take on the potential merger between Apple and Twitter:



    http://thequantumbyte.com/2009/05/ru...r-700-million/



    Does anyone agree with my opinions? Let me know!



    If you have an opinion, state it here. Or Tweet it if you need the world to know.
  • Reply 13 of 151
    All time dumbest tech mergers and acquisitions



    3. Ebay + Skype

    2. AOL + Time Warner

    1. Apple + Twitter



    I'm shocked that Twitter has any market value at all. Twitter is the pet-rock fad of the 2000's that will soon disappear. It has no way of making significant revenue and it never will. If you use twitter, get a life.
  • Reply 14 of 151
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    I know a lot of people need to twit Lindsay Lohan's twat exposure.
  • Reply 15 of 151
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Some could argue it would be like one phone-maker acquiring ownership of SMS, keeping it open, but having control over it. There's a million possible good reasons for this deal, all you need to do is use your imagination. Think (different) for yourself?
  • Reply 16 of 151
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by paxman View Post


    Nothing more annoying when some indulgent twit occupies my whole Facebook page letting me and the rest of their 6000 close friends know that they just arrived at the airport, bought a latte or whatever else totally boring thing they just did.



    And doing exactly that via Twitter is superior... how?

    For the Twits out there (very appropriate verbiage, btw), PLEASE educate me. I'm only being half sarcastic there. I need to have someone who ostensibly understands this service explain its value to me.
  • Reply 17 of 151
    Apple users already have all the functionality of Twitter without having to buy the company. Can't imagine why Apple would need to buy Twitter. Doesn't make any sense. Why take on a (financially) slowly sinking ship? That is, unless Apple is going to create a subscription model for it. Maybe Apple is looking for an exclusive deal to integrate Twitter on AppleTV?
  • Reply 18 of 151
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Ask the question why? And try to come up with a real answer. It provokes interesting thoughts, well at least in me it does. Just think for a second, why? (and leave out doubt). Why? There are possible reasons, quite a few. Think.



    Or ask the question, why would Google want to buy Twitter?
  • Reply 19 of 151
    bloggerblogbloggerblog Posts: 2,462member
    Naaah... I don't see it happening, besides CNN owns 20% of Twitter already.
  • Reply 20 of 151
    virgil-tb2virgil-tb2 Posts: 1,416member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Alonso Perez View Post


    How do you send a message from an iPhone to a Mac user? You can send an e-mail, but that requires more writing (a subject, etc.).



    There is no good platform that integrates the Internet with the phone network for short messages. Chat is not the same; you need to open a chat window for each person you want to receive messages from, and you usually converse briefly with them.



    A "short message e-mail" system with integration with phone network SMS and broadcast capability could (I emphasize could) make sense for Apple and it's iPhone system. It does seem like a smallish niche, but maybe not. ...



    This is rather brilliant. I thought about this for half an hour and couldn't see a reason for Apple to buy Twitter, but this is quite plausible IMO.



    It still doesn't mean that Twitter will ever make any money or that Apple is considering buying them, but at least it's a good reason why they might.
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