Elon Musk X-es out Twitter’s Blue Bird; The Implications for the Platform and its Users
Introduction
In an unprecedented though in hindsight not unexpected move, Elon Musk just revealed a fresh logo for his $44bn social media baby, formerly known as Twitter, now called X. Talk about a major rebranding! Musk has again been tearing through the app, making all sorts of bold moves. His mission? To turn X into the ultimate everything app. Watch out, because big things are coming in the next few months.
The internet had a field day with this one! Some folks were like, “Why mess with the classic blue bird?!” while others saw it as a bold move towards a total app makeover. Ready to dive into this article and discover what the heck this rebranding could mean for the future. We’ll also chat about how they plan to keep that brand trust intact, delve into the legal implications, and even explore what it means for all you ‘tweeps’ on ‘crypto twitter’. So, buckle up and let’s get reading!
Bye Bye, Blue Bird
Ah, the iconic Twitter Blue Bird, a true OG since its debut in 2006. It’s been strutting its stuff on the platform, with a few revisions along the way. But to be honest, it’s the 2010 and 2012 versions that we can consider the most iconic ones. Those were the years when we witnessed what we can call the golden era of social media seeing significant events and changes. And we did witness some major breakthroughs in the past decade or so.
Over the last decade, Twitter gradually changed from just being an SMS-like microblogging platform. With the introduction of hashtags in 2007, sealing multiple funding rounds, reaching 200 million users in 2012, acquiring third party companies to improve user experience and app performance, releasing the video feature back in 2013 through Vine, replacing the favorite (star) button with a like (heart) 2 years after and more.
This series of events led up to Elon Musk acquiring the platform in August of last year. Musk himself had made significant changes with the blue bird including firing multiple 1,000s of employees in a restructuring effort, and introducing Twitter Blue.
More than just X
On July 24th, Elon changed the logo from the blue bird we all know, to just a simple X in color black, marking a bye for good to the blue bird. This signifies a rebranding effort within the app, in its journey towards being an everything app, far from the microblogging platform it was 17 years ago. But, what is in store behind the logo and rebranding to X?
In a bold move on a serene Sunday, the billionaire embarked on a transformative journey to mold the social media titan into a captivating WeChat-inspired marvel. With great fanfare, he unveiled his grand vision of rebranding Twitter as “X” — a moniker that has long symbolized his ambitious aspirations for the all-encompassing application.
“If you’re in China, you kind of live on WeChat. It does everything — sort of like Twitter, plus PayPal, plus a whole bunch of things, and all rolled into one, with a great interface. It’s really an excellent app, and we don’t have anything like that outside of China. I think if we could achieve that, or even close to that with Twitter, it would be an immense success.” Musk said.
In a delightful turn of events, then Twitter introduced an ad revenue sharing program, exclusively available to a select few who met the qualifying criteria. Astonishingly, certain notable accounts have joyfully reported receiving a princely sum of up to $100,000 through this newly unveiled feature.
This exciting development suggests that the skilled creators on the X platform may soon be granted the opportunity to enjoy more monetization features in the upcoming months.
Behind The Logo
Source: X.com
Musk’s obsession with the letter X seems never-ending. The letter X pops up in Musk’s other ventures too, like his space-exploration company SpaceX, his new AI app xAI, and Tesla’s early electric car, the Model X. His son’s first name is also X!
In April, Twitter got a new legal name: X Corp. This weekend, X.com took a detour to Twitter.com, and recently, a crane is giving Twitter’s bird logo a one-way ticket out of their San Francisco HQ.
The X logo gathered mixed reactions over the platform with some referring to it as very plain and simple, while others referred to it as a perfect representation of the foreseeable rebranding efforts from Musk. One thing is for sure though, the logo took massive inspiration from Musk’s love for the letter X and his company endeavors.
Unveiling the Legal Maze
The logo change and reveal also caught the eye of other tech giants like Microsoft and Meta over trademark concerns with the letter X — a pretty common name in other industries as well. Trademark attorney Josh Gerben predicts that Twitter is bound to face a lawsuit over this, with almost 900 active U.S. trademark registrations already owning the letter X in various industries.
Microsoft has held the X trademark for Xbox communications since 2003. Meta Platforms, the creator of Threads, a new rival to Twitter, obtained a federal trademark in 2019. This trademark safeguards a captivating blue-and-white letter “X” across software and social media realms.
This thereby implies that trademark and copyright among others is the most important thing to note and consider when rebranding a company or a platform, ensuring a smooth transition all throughout.
Additionally, names, brandings and documents should be consistent all throughout the platform, company and its holdings. X has been making gradual changes from obtaining the X username on the platform from a user, to changing logos and names from the app and taking out the Twitter logo in its office in San Francisco
X’s domain availability was also made easy as Musk was X.com’s original owner. Walter Isaacson, the biographer of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, revealed on X (formerly Twitter) that Musk had desired to name the startup X.com. According to Isaacson, Musk revealed his plan to rebrand Twitter as X.com and transform it into the platform he had envisioned back in 1999, even before he officially took over.
Brand Trust: The Make or Break Factor in Rebranding
While there are indeed potential advantages waiting to be discovered, let us not forget a few caveats and important things to consider. Brand trust, amongst others, should be given a red carpet treatment and make it a number one priority.
Staying connected with the community and customers is crucial. With Elon, he’s been keeping us in the loop with updates and sneak peeks before the big rebranding reveal. And it’s not just Elon, other X employees have been joining in on the fun, sharing insights, teasers, and giving us a taste of what’s to come.
However, no major announcements or teasers were made regarding X’s future integrations. Changes like the app logo and integration of an advanced search function are the only ones being teased so it is interesting to see how it pans out and reflects towards consumers and brand trust. It will be fun to watch how innovation — one thing Elon Musk is known for will pan out.
Additionally, it is crucial to recognize that significant changes must be implemented throughout the entire organization. This typically involves cultural shifts, brand induction, and re-training for both management and staff. Only then can you guarantee the success of your rebrand. Maybe firing 80% of the workforce earlier this year was a way of preparing.
Twitter’s Rebrand: The Internet Reacts
The internet, of course, has its own say with what went over the week with Twitter’s transition to X. Some made fun of the logos, others posted what they dub as an imperfect rebranding, while a few pointed out good things about it as well.
A few were optimistic though, considering the rebranding as a major step to something bigger. But what about Crypto Twitter though?
Crypto Twitter, Gone?
Twitter, together with Reddit, are a crypto enthusiast’s playground and hangout place providing insights, market news, analysis, tips, and more. With Twitter now being rebranded to X, Would it now be Crypto X?
Well, the recent rebrand has the crypto world’s attention into detail as we wait how it plays out for crypto knowing that Elon Musk is an enthusiast himself. Elon Musk’s Twitter location now reads “XÐ,” potentially hinting at a potential Dogecoin-Twitter collaboration.
Musk has also pondered a blockchain-based social media platform. In April, the billionaire shared his idea for a “Doge” social media platform with his brother, Kimbal Musk, through private texts. Later, Musk’s court battle with Twitter made the messages public. Also, The Financial Times reported that the billionaire aims to bring crypto to Twitter once the site is approved for payments.
X has been quietly working on entering the payments industry. The company became a registered payments processor with the US Treasury in November, as per regulatory filings. Twitter is taking steps to acquire state licenses for their online payments service. This could be another step towards the X superapp.
ntegrating crypto unto the platform. However, dAt the start of the year, the US legislators and advocates stated their interest to tighten social media regulations. This was only a few days after the US Congress passed a bipartisan spending bill banning TikTok from government devices. Currently, Meta’s being a first to market has had to have different apps rather than one superapp in order to adhere to current regulations. If X can become a superapp don’t be surprised if Meta also becomes one.
X-treme Makeover for the Future
As mentioned, there have been major teasers about X’s upcoming features, being likened to China’s huge ecosystem platform in WeChat. Just like how Twitter progressed in its early days through partnerships with third party apps bringing major features to the platform, X would probably have similar moves to further expand it to an everything app Elon has been talking about.
Musk envisions X as a money magnet. During his debut meeting with Twitter’s staff as the new owner, Musk declared that a “game-changing chance in payments” awaited them. X / Twitter as a super app? Surprisingly sensible. Imagine a magical app that lets you do it all in the US and soon, all over the world. Stay informed about global happenings, chat with friends, withdraw cash, reserve a table, and call a ride home.
Moving to the social type of things, there would probably be major changes that further solidifies its position as a social app. With additional features like audio and video calling, people would definitely love to see crypto leaders and influencers doxxing themselves.
As for the conversation side of things, X is still Twitter plus a few new features. People will definitely still use it for crypto talks and topics of all sorts. Actually, the rebrand, which could potentially bring better algorithm and search engine optimization, would further help in getting personalized content for us crypto enthusiasts and users that value certain ecosystems and tokens. Maybe we just have to get used to it being called Crypto X from now on.
Conclusion
Musk is very ambitious. He has the financial resources, connections and influence, and a serious following built across his many brands, to shape X however he wants.
The X rebrand of Twitter is a daring move with potential to greatly impact the platform and its users. Time will reveal the rebrand’s lasting impact. One thing is certain: Twitter is embarking on a new era, signaling imminent major changes. The impact of these changes is uncertain, but they will certainly be significant.
As the X rebrand unfolds, Musk’s grand plans for Twitter become evident. He envisions an all-inclusive app, capable of doing everything. Musk envisions X as the future of communication, encompassing payments, social media, and crypto.
Musk’s vision for X is uncertain. The rebrand is a game-changer for Twitter. The platform’s upcoming transformation promises an intriguing outcome.
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