Unless Apple wants to buy Twitter because they're about to launch a similar service that encroaches any patents that Twitter may hold. May be cheaper/quicker to buy 'em out... ?
Twitter is the most useless online service yet. I don't see any reason for apple to buy it. Maybe they can somehow integrate it into the iphone, but twitter can just release an app for free. I think twitter will fizzle out within a year or two.
Not gonna happen. Get real, people. $700m, or more? Please. Let's see some semblance of a profitable business model come from Twitter, then we'll talk acquisition. Apple has better things to do with their cash, such as buying semicondcutor companies and the like. Not unproven "micro-blogging" sites. Let's get a reliable source for these rumors too - the tech blogosphere does not count.
From a business point of view I agree, I don't see them spending the money on it. Too soon after eBay - Skype.
But I'm surprised to see some many people summarily dismiss it as having zero use and more importantly, zero potential, so quickly.
Naaah... I don't see it happening, besides CNN owns 20% of Twitter already.
I can see CNN owning a percentage of Twitter considering most of CNN's programming is as useful at that "arrived at the airport, bought a latte" tweet post.
But watch out when CNN owns 51% of Twitter, then CNN reporters/journalists will actually debate your tweets as opposed to just posting them!
As for others I cannot say, but as for me, sorry, I do not "tweet"!
Thank God some people here agree with me as to the boringness of Twitter. I think it has its purpose, but telling me whatever mundane task you are up to is something I care nothing about and I have to see that crap to get to the good stuff (that rarely exists in Twitter). I'd rather use email, IM, Facebook, blogs, or any of the other established methods of online communication.
I don't mean to be insulting, but I think one must be really bored to bust out their iPhone and send out a Twitter to all their friends telling them something like "This coffee is really doing the trick" - an actual tweet I once received. Why is there so much tweeting about coffee? I mean, who the F*@# cares? If that's your thing, then cool, but it isn't for me. And yes, I have tried it for a while... and yes, this is just my opinion.
Needless to say, I hope Apple doesn't waste their resources on Twitter. We all know they love it, though. They describe it as a "Triumph of Humanity" on the Apple website.... please.
YES!! Finally someone on my level. I hate the whole Facebook thing myself, I just don't get it. If I want people to know what I'm doing I will pick up the phone and tell them or possibly send them an email. I have to admit I signed up to Twitter to see what all the fuss was about but then I saw it. You get told about the mundane aspects of peoples days. Well that sounds just dandy to me! Surely during the hours of 9-5 people know what I'm doing: WORKING! After 5 if I want to contact people then I will properly contact them, pick up the phone and have a civil conversation and ask them how their day went. It seems that people are losing sight of how to interact as humans.
I can see how Twitter could possibly be adapted to be useful but as it stands at the moment...count me out.
there is no reason at all to buy twitter. not for apple, at any rate. some stock manipulator is feeding the rumors.
I completely and utterly agree. The fact that this rumor comes out in the same 24-hour period as the rumor about Apple purchasing Electronic Arts should have set everyone's stock manipulation detectors off. Companies purchasing other companies always have their stock value driven down by the transaction (and those being purchased have theirs driven up). Someone wants to push Apple's stock value down to be more easily purchased before it shoots right back up again immediately before WWDC. That's my guess, anyhow. Apple and Twitter doesn't make sense but it'll sure grab headlines; and Apple and EA makes slightly more sense but still not enough to pass my bullsh*t detector.
But I'm surprised to see some many people summarily dismiss it as having zero use and more importantly, zero potential, so quickly.
What could an Apple-owned Twitter do that a Twitter iPhone app can't already do? Twitter is a one-trick pony, and that pony hasn't turned a profit yet.
Obviously, the only reason Twitter is worth anything is all the users that are there. The technology (or lack thereof) behind twitter is both what makes it great and incredibly easy to duplicate. So, the question that should be asked is why Apple would feel the need to tap into this population. Odds are that Twitter people are already well aware of who Apple is and what they produce. I call BS on this one unless Twitter has some piece of intellectual property Apple can't get around (but that doesn't sound like Apple).
Twitter=eyeballs. The business model eventually will include advertising. That some people use this tool in silly ways is irrelevant. If a guy threw a hammer in the air and it landed on his head, would you think hammers are stupid? People will be using Twitter in ways that are not even imagined today. 700 million is chump change if this thing goes into the hundreds of millions of users - which it will. As far as - would less people use it if it included advertising....? Think TV and Google.
The two companies don't have any synergy - Apple can benefit from Twitter without needing to actually buy the company. ...
This is not correct IMO. The owners of Twitter have a huge Heart-on for Apple and have said so publicly a few times. I also wouldn't mind betting that most Apple employees are already on Twitter right now. They have great synergy.
More importantly, Apple can't do any kind of integration of Twitter like functionality without buying Twitter. So if indeed they have designs on merging Twitter like functionality into their products or creating an Apple version of Twitter, they *have* to buy the company. The only other option is putting in "hooks" for Twitter, and hoping that the Twitter guys introduce features you want/need and don't embarrass or otherwise screw you up by putting in stuff you don't want/need.
Apple likes to control stuff or they like it to be open (and yet still somewhat under their control). If they have a need for Twitter functionality and especially if they want to integrate it, buying the company would be step 1.
Edit: the more I think about it, if Apple bought Twitter, integrated it into some of their star products, and at the same time made the API open source or whatever, it would probably be a wet dream for the Twitter folks. They don't want to necessarily sell to the highest bidder, they want to see the service become a big deal and go on into the future. Could be the best deal ever from their point of view.
These rumours about Apple buying Twitter and/or EA are odd. I can see much more likely buyers for those businesses in Google and The Walt Disney Company. Apple seemingly has more to gain acquiring nVidia,
there is no reason at all to buy twitter. not for apple, at any rate. some stock manipulator is feeding the rumors.
Could be stock manipulation, but again, I have to say I thought of Apple buying Twitter or keeping an eye on it about two months ago. It's growing rapidly, it's useful, it's simple. Something about it seems to make sense. I'm not sure what but I have learned to trust me gut on these things. I'm not always right, but my gut tells me something's going on here. It's like being in love, you can't prove it, but you sense it. Well, let's not get too deep
Comments
Not gonna happen. Get real, people. $700m, or more? Please. Let's see some semblance of a profitable business model come from Twitter, then we'll talk acquisition. Apple has better things to do with their cash, such as buying semicondcutor companies and the like. Not unproven "micro-blogging" sites. Let's get a reliable source for these rumors too - the tech blogosphere does not count.
From a business point of view I agree, I don't see them spending the money on it. Too soon after eBay - Skype.
But I'm surprised to see some many people summarily dismiss it as having zero use and more importantly, zero potential, so quickly.
Naaah... I don't see it happening, besides CNN owns 20% of Twitter already.
I can see CNN owning a percentage of Twitter considering most of CNN's programming is as useful at that "arrived at the airport, bought a latte" tweet post.
But watch out when CNN owns 51% of Twitter, then CNN reporters/journalists will actually debate your tweets as opposed to just posting them!
As for others I cannot say, but as for me, sorry, I do not "tweet"!
Thank God some people here agree with me as to the boringness of Twitter. I think it has its purpose, but telling me whatever mundane task you are up to is something I care nothing about and I have to see that crap to get to the good stuff (that rarely exists in Twitter). I'd rather use email, IM, Facebook, blogs, or any of the other established methods of online communication.
I don't mean to be insulting, but I think one must be really bored to bust out their iPhone and send out a Twitter to all their friends telling them something like "This coffee is really doing the trick" - an actual tweet I once received. Why is there so much tweeting about coffee? I mean, who the F*@# cares? If that's your thing, then cool, but it isn't for me. And yes, I have tried it for a while... and yes, this is just my opinion.
Needless to say, I hope Apple doesn't waste their resources on Twitter. We all know they love it, though. They describe it as a "Triumph of Humanity" on the Apple website.... please.
YES!! Finally someone on my level. I hate the whole Facebook thing myself, I just don't get it. If I want people to know what I'm doing I will pick up the phone and tell them or possibly send them an email. I have to admit I signed up to Twitter to see what all the fuss was about but then I saw it. You get told about the mundane aspects of peoples days. Well that sounds just dandy to me! Surely during the hours of 9-5 people know what I'm doing: WORKING! After 5 if I want to contact people then I will properly contact them, pick up the phone and have a civil conversation and ask them how their day went. It seems that people are losing sight of how to interact as humans.
I can see how Twitter could possibly be adapted to be useful but as it stands at the moment...count me out.
there is no reason at all to buy twitter. not for apple, at any rate. some stock manipulator is feeding the rumors.
I completely and utterly agree. The fact that this rumor comes out in the same 24-hour period as the rumor about Apple purchasing Electronic Arts should have set everyone's stock manipulation detectors off. Companies purchasing other companies always have their stock value driven down by the transaction (and those being purchased have theirs driven up). Someone wants to push Apple's stock value down to be more easily purchased before it shoots right back up again immediately before WWDC. That's my guess, anyhow. Apple and Twitter doesn't make sense but it'll sure grab headlines; and Apple and EA makes slightly more sense but still not enough to pass my bullsh*t detector.
But I'm surprised to see some many people summarily dismiss it as having zero use and more importantly, zero potential, so quickly.
What could an Apple-owned Twitter do that a Twitter iPhone app can't already do? Twitter is a one-trick pony, and that pony hasn't turned a profit yet.
Look at apple's approach to the netbook market. "it's a nascent market, we're watching the space carefully"
They don't jump into untested markets. They come in late and try to destroy the weaker competition.
Twitter hasn't earned any money yet and they need to be careful not to lose customers as they turn the advertising tap on and make some money.
No one knows how well they will make that transition. It may be prudent to wait and see how it turns out in the future.
If it works then I'm sure apple will make their own version better integrated into it's music and video message eco system.
Apple buying Twitter would be as pointless and stupid as ... A company like EBay buying a company like Skype.
C.
Sounds...almost perverted, somehow.
The two companies don't have any synergy - Apple can benefit from Twitter without needing to actually buy the company.
Apple buying Twitter would be as pointless and stupid as ... A company like EBay buying a company like Skype.
C.
Ebay should buy Twitter, bundle it with Skype and then auction it off.
Free shipping***
The two companies don't have any synergy - Apple can benefit from Twitter without needing to actually buy the company. ...
This is not correct IMO. The owners of Twitter have a huge Heart-on for Apple and have said so publicly a few times. I also wouldn't mind betting that most Apple employees are already on Twitter right now. They have great synergy.
More importantly, Apple can't do any kind of integration of Twitter like functionality without buying Twitter. So if indeed they have designs on merging Twitter like functionality into their products or creating an Apple version of Twitter, they *have* to buy the company. The only other option is putting in "hooks" for Twitter, and hoping that the Twitter guys introduce features you want/need and don't embarrass or otherwise screw you up by putting in stuff you don't want/need.
Apple likes to control stuff or they like it to be open (and yet still somewhat under their control). If they have a need for Twitter functionality and especially if they want to integrate it, buying the company would be step 1.
Edit: the more I think about it, if Apple bought Twitter, integrated it into some of their star products, and at the same time made the API open source or whatever, it would probably be a wet dream for the Twitter folks. They don't want to necessarily sell to the highest bidder, they want to see the service become a big deal and go on into the future. Could be the best deal ever from their point of view.
there is no reason at all to buy twitter. not for apple, at any rate. some stock manipulator is feeding the rumors.
Could be stock manipulation, but again, I have to say I thought of Apple buying Twitter or keeping an eye on it about two months ago. It's growing rapidly, it's useful, it's simple. Something about it seems to make sense. I'm not sure what but I have learned to trust me gut on these things. I'm not always right, but my gut tells me something's going on here. It's like being in love, you can't prove it, but you sense it. Well, let's not get too deep