Twitter considers subscription options amid drop in ad revenue

Twitter, a US-based social media platform, says it is considering subscription options for users as the company grapples with a sharp drop in advertising revenue.

According to CNN, Jack Dorsey, Twitter co-founder and CEO, broke the news during a conference call with investors on Thursday.

Dorsey, while speaking on the company’s second quarter earning results, said Twitter would possibly test some of the proposed initiatives during the course of the year.

“You will likely see some tests this year,” he told analysts, adding that the plans are at “very, very early phases of exploring.”

Dorsey said he has “a really high bar for when we would ask consumers to pay for aspects of Twitter,” but noted the measure has become imperative as the company weighs how to diversify its revenue sources.

Twitter’s operational model has been based on offering users free service while its revenue comes from advertisers who target people to market theirs brands.

But the coronavirus pandemic and social media ad boycott by investors amid protests over allegations of racial injustice had caused a dramatic dip in the company’s revenues.

The news outlet reported that the company’s ad revenues, as of Thursday, was $562 million — a 23% decrease compared to the same quarter a year ago.

“We want to make sure any new line of revenue is complementary to our advertising business,” Dorsey added.

“We do think there is a world where subscription is complementary, where commerce is complementary, where helping people manage paywalls … we think is complementary.”

The development comes on the heels of controversies trailing the platform after verified accounts owned by Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft; and Elon Musk, chief executive officer of SpaceX, were hacked alongside those of other high-profile users.

Dorsey had during the meeting apologised over the incident, noting that the company will strengthen its security by partnering relevant authorities.

“We feel terrible about the security incident. Security doesn’t have an end point. It’s a constant iteration … We will continue to go above and beyond here as we continue to secure our systems and as we continue to work with external firms and law enforcement,” he said.