"What are you doing?" ...Celebrities, business executives, and everyday folk have answered this question on one of the fastest-growing online services this year: Twitter. In up to 140 characters, anyone can post their current ventures or future ideas, possibly receiving feedback from people around the world. It's like sending an instant message...except people, internationally, can answer you back (depending on your amount of followers and where they reside, of course).
The instant-gratification site has won the hearts of many by another key factor: it's free! However, on July 8, 2009, an "exclusive media summit" was held in Sun Valley, Idaho, to discuss capitalization on media. When it came to digital services, Twitter Inc. was first at hand, but head executives could not decifer how capital would derive from Twitter. In 2006, Twitter began with $55 million in capital, leaving execs to wonder how the site will survive once the capital runs out.
John Malone, a giant in the cable television industry, notes that Twitter cannot generate revenue without scaring away users. His solution: Charge addicitive twitterers a small fee. Warren Buffet stated that he enjoys online services so much, that he's willing to pay $5 a month for a YouTube subscription. The online video giant is suffering the same fate, despite its rapid popularity and Google ownership.
Twitter Inc.'s co-founders, Evan Williams and Biz Stone, concluded that the idea of charging users is not in the near future. If need be, Twitter Inc. will charge companies that seek to use the site for advertisement and/or to learn what consumers think of their products.
**Note(s):
***1) http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jA3DQn5C8DtPKjaW4yFqDtJYBp9gD99AVLR00
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