To Sell or Not to Sell?

By Jason Farago,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 27, 2009 7:35 AM CDT
To Sell or Not to Sell?
Twitter could sell to Google or Apple today for more than $1 billion, according to the blog Mashable.   (©keiyac)

The founders of Twitter keep insisting it's not for sale, but perhaps they should think again, writes Ben Parr of tech blog Mashable. Only two weeks ago Twitter looked smart for refusing its suitors—but then Facebook made a series of big moves, from buying FriendFeed to launching a speedy Twitter-ish search engine. If the microblogging platform wants to triumph, selling for $1 billion or more to Google or Apple might be wise.

"Twitter can get great value for its business right now," Parr writes, while down the line Facebook might erode some of its dominance in lucrative real-time search. Biz Stone and his co-founders need to look hard at their business model and determine whether they'll turn a profit in the next year or two. If so, they should hold on and its valuation could "skyrocket drastically." But if a cash-positive future isn't out there, then perhaps it's time to bail. (More Twitter stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X