The recent purchase of Twitter by Elon Musk has given place to numerous interpretations. The statements made by the entrepreneur himself do not directly reveal the reasons why he has bought this social network. In this article, we will try to understand the real reasons.
The romance between Elon Musk and Twitter comes from a long time ago. A user replied that he should buy it and the Tesla founder asked how much it was worth.
That conversation might have been an anecdote, but it seems premonitory with the benefit of time.
What’s Musk’s problem with Twitter?
The 2017 anecdote is just one more in Elon Musk’s long relationship with Twitter. We should remember that this billionaire has millions of followers on this social network, but he has also generated controversial content and some well-known scandals. For instance, the defamation trial he won was brought against him after a controversial tweet about a diver who took part in a rescue operation in Thailand.
According to Musk himself, this million-dollar purchase has to do with his concept of freedom of expression and the social network’s potential in this sense. This would lead to a somewhat strange situation where the purchase would not have a lucrative possibility for Musk. This is something we are not used to when it comes to this kind of acquisition.
Free speech or business?
Analysts are divided. For some of them, it is a planned business move. Do not forget that Elon Musk is a major shareholder in Tesla and some of the companies with the greatest economic potential for the future, such as SpaceX. In all these companies, Twitter would have a prominent place and a great potential in terms of the number of followers and message traffic.
On the other hand, this billionaire is known for economic moves that may seem eccentric to any other businessman. From this analysis, more than a few people say that the purchase could indeed have a lot to do with Musk’s personality and his desire for a social network without filters and with less control over its content.
It should be remembered that the current purchase follows an initial acquisition of a 9.2% stake in the company in January. After that initial purchase, Elon Musk did not want to participate in the board of directors because he did not want to be subject to any responsibilities or controls.
The message about freedom of expression in a tweet published to announce the purchase of the social network seems to point in this direction.
The billionaire’s concept of the digital public square seems to have played a key role in his desire to buy Twitter.