“The Bird is Freed” by Elon Musk! The Sensational $44 Billion Deal needs to “sink in”!

The deal is done- Twitter is now owned by Elon Musk. After 6 months of multiple altercations and back-and-forth swings, Elon Musk now owns Twitter.

How it all happened?

Read on as we chart out the whole episode of this sensational deal closure.

March 2022- The Twitter aficionado, Tesla CEO with a follower base of 80 million questions free speech on Twitter and whether Democracy is in danger.

April 2022-Musk acquires a 9.2 percent stake in Twitter to become its largest shareholder trend on all news platforms.

The company announced Musk would take a seat on its board of directors, but within the space of a week, that plan unraveled, and the mercurial billionaire informed the board he would not accept the position.

Musk also raised the possibility of creating a rival social media in front of his loyal Twitter audience.

14-April-2022– Musk made the next move by making an unsolicited offer to twitter. The offer was to buy 100 percent of Twitter’s shares i.e. for $54.20 each or about $44 billion.

25-April-2022-Twitter announced that it has accepted Musk’s offer to acquire the publicly traded company. Moments after the news broke that Twitter trading was halted, the company issued a press release confirming that it was accepting Musk’s offer to take the social network private.

“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated, I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spambots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it,” said Elon Musk.

Bret Taylor, Twitter’s Independent Board Chair, said, “The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon’s proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing. The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter’s stockholders.”

Parag Agrawal, Twitter’s CEO, said, “Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the entire world. Deeply proud of our teams and inspired by the work that has never been more important.”

The twist in the tale…

May-2022-Musk says the deal was “Temporarily on Hold” as he was awaiting data on the number of fake and spam accounts on Twitter. He was seeking evidence to back the company’s assertion that spam and bot accounts make up less than 5% of its total users.

In a letter filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Mr. Musk’s lawyer said Twitter had failed or refused to provide this information.

“Sometimes Twitter has ignored Mr. Musk’s requests, sometimes it has rejected them for reasons that appear to be unjustified, and sometimes it has claimed to comply while giving Mr. Musk incomplete or unusable information,” the letter read.

The company later said that it removed around 1 million such accounts each day.

Mr Musk believed that spam or bot accounts could account for 20% or more of Twitter users. Shares in Twitter fell by 7% in extended trading after the announcement.

July 2022- Twitter sued Musk in order to compel him to finish the deal, consequently a fast-track trial was announced in Delaware’s Chancery Court in October. Judge, McCormick found that the battle over the deal was “creating a cloud of uncertainty” over Twitter. “The reality is, continued delays threaten imminent harm” to the company, she said. Twitter shares jumped as much as 5.4% after the ruling.

A series of legal arguments followed by evidence, accusations of fraud, and even a few depositions.

27-October-2022-Finally, Musk decided to do what he had already agreed to do and buy Twitter. Judge Kathaleen McCormick gave the two sides a deadline of 5 PM on October 28th to close the deal, and with time ticking down on the evening of the 27th, the deal has closed.

Entering Twitter HQ – let that sink in! pic.twitter.com/D68z4K2wq7

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 26, 2022

the bird is freed

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 28, 2022

28-October-2022-Elon Musk reportedly began Twitter’s new era of private ownership by firing several executives, including previous CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal, and policy chief Vijaya Gadde.

What’s Next?

The deal has emerged as the biggest, messiest Tech Deal ever. Mr. Musk has projected the acquisition as a campaign to protect “Free Speech”. But he is being quoted as a “Billionaire Shitposter” by many. He has added the company to his empire after months of legal skirmishes. The key aftermaths of the messy deal are as follows-

• After the firing of executives, many Twitter employees now await their fate under Elon Musk.
• Musk has suggested he will change the way how Twitter moderation works.
• Although Musk has said that his Twitter acquisition is “not a way to make money,” he’s reportedly raised ideas for cost-cutting and increasing revenue.
• Governments and corporations could be charged a “slight cost” for using Twitter.
• Musk wants to make Twitter WeChat of China, which at its nascent stage was a messaging platform, but now encompasses many businesses from shopping to payments and gaming.

It’s now time for the “Bird Watch”.

Is the bird really freed?

How much moderation will be a good moderation?

How will bullying be avoided if everyone can speak about anything and everything?

Let’s wait and watch how the Twitter-Musk Saga sinks in.