'We have a really high bar for when we would ask consumers to pay for aspects of Twitter,' he said. Segal cautioned in July that Twitter was not only 'very, very early' in exploring a subscription service, but also planned to be picky about how it goes forward. Still, Twitter Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal said on a call with investors last year that a subscription option of some kind would offer sales 'durability,' and recurring revenue is more consistent than advertising spending. This is Twitter’s management dashboard that makes it easier for users to control multiple feeds at the same time. TweetDeck was mentioned by name as one of those being considered.
Subscriptions have always offered a tantalizing alternative to advertising, but social networks have traditionally stayed free as a way to encourage user growth and engagement, which is then subsidized with paid marketing posts. Building on those previous reports, Twitter is apparently considering making its premium tier more appealing by locking various advanced features behind the paywall. Other possible ways to generate recurring revenue include charging for the use of services like Tweetdeck or advanced user features like 'undo send' or profile-customization options. At least one idea being considered is related to 'tipping,' or the ability for users to pay the people they follow for exclusive content, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions are internal. Twitter Considers Subscription Fee for Tweetdeck, Unique Content.
To explore potential options outside ad sales, a number of Twitter teams are researching subscription offerings, including one using the code name 'Rogue One,' according to people familiar with the effort. Twitter Considers Subscription Fee for Tweetdeck, Unique Content. That business has grown in recent years at a slower pace than competitors like Facebook and Snap, and Twitter's slice of the digital ad market globally remains at at a lackluster 0.8%, according to EMarketer. From a report: The majority of Twitter's revenue comes from targeted advertising, which serves up promoted posts aimed at specific groups of users. Twitter struggled with the idea of charging anything for its own service while competitors like Facebook refused to do the same, according to two former employees. Twitter is building a subscription product as a way to ease its dependence on advertising - a plan the social network has considered for years, and one that has taken on a heightened priority given the pandemic and pressure from activist investors to accelerate growth. When it acquired the messaging app WhatsApp for US19 billion in 2014, it killed the app’s US1 annual subscription to encourage more people to sign up.