"Bird is Free" Musk Acquires Twitter, Plans Delisting and Content Oversight Committee Formation

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] "The bird is freed." Elon Musk, the world's richest person and CEO of Tesla, took a decisive step toward establishing his own style of social media after completing the acquisition of Twitter on the 28th (local time). As initially announced, he applied for delisting and stated that a 'Content Management Committee' would be formed within Twitter to discuss the restoration of suspended accounts.

After completing the acquisition, Musk posted on his account, "The bird is freed, let's have fun." The bird symbolizes Twitter's logo. This was interpreted as emphasizing that the elements that had hindered Twitter's development and freedom would disappear following his acquisition.

First, as previously announced, Musk immediately began the process of converting Twitter into a private company upon acquisition. Twitter applied for delisting from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on the same day. Consequently, Twitter stock trading was suspended, and delisting is expected to be completed by November 8. Once it becomes a private company, Twitter will be exempt from obligations such as performance disclosure and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations, creating an environment where Musk can operate the business as he wishes.

Prior to this, Musk had already dismissed CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal, and CLO Vijaya Gadde. Major foreign media outlets expect Musk to serve as interim CEO for the time being following the ousting of the existing management team.

Musk has also begun to intervene in Twitter's content policies. Previously, he criticized Twitter's content control, stating that permanent bans and tweet deletions should be handled cautiously and that temporary suspensions are preferable. On this day, Musk announced on his Twitter account that "Twitter will form a Content Management Committee with broad and diverse perspectives."

Since he declared that former President Donald Trump’s account would be restored upon acquiring Twitter, it is expected that this process will follow after the formation of the Content Management Committee. Bloomberg reported that "Twitter's Content Management Committee will address issues such as the restoration of former President Donald Trump's account." Trump was banned from Twitter last January due to incitement of violence during the Capitol riot.

On the same day, Trump welcomed Musk's acquisition of Twitter on his social media platform Truth Social, stating, "I am very pleased that now a sane person owns Twitter and that extreme left-wing lunatics and crazies who truly hate our country no longer run it." He added, "Now Twitter must work hard to eliminate all bots and fake accounts that have caused great harm to Twitter. Twitter will become smaller but better. I love the truth."

However, concerns continue to arise regarding Musk's future management of Twitter's content policies. The European Union (EU) regulatory authorities have already issued warnings. Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner, pointed out, "In Europe, the bird flies according to our rules," emphasizing that Twitter must comply with the Digital Services Act, which imposes fines for illegal content. India also stated through a statement from the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology that "regardless of who owns the platform, our rules and laws remain unchanged."

Meanwhile, Musk seemed aware that changes in content policy could undermine Twitter's advertising revenue base and sent a conciliatory message to advertisers the day before. In an open letter, he proposed to advertisers that "Twitter cannot be a hellscape where anything is said without conclusion" and promised to be the best advertising platform that complies with the law.