Jack Dorsey Doesn’t Want to Sell Twitter – But Will That Matter?
Twitter cofounder and CEO Jack Dorsey does not want to sell Twitter. He believes the company can continue growing, improving products, and ultimately succeed on its own. But does that matter?
A report in Bloomberg suggests Jack Dorsey is largely on his own in defense of keeping Twitter independent. Most investors want a sale, most analysts expect one, and Dorsey’s own team seems no longer convinced by his ability to steer the ship back on course.
At Twitter’s September board meeting, “the board ultimately decided to consider takeover prospects after getting an expression of interest from a potential acquirer, which led it to hire Goldman Sachs and Allen & Co. to evaluate possible bids,”reports Bloomberg.
Three companies appear to be interested in buying Twitter: Disney, Salesforce, and Google. And one may very well acquire the company, because Dorsey does not have the control he used it, according to Bloomberg:
On the board, he may be overruled by fellow directors on the future of Twitter as an independent company. Within his management team, he’s largely delegated command of Twitter’s strategy to chief financial officer Anthony Noto. And among advertisers, Twitter’s fortunes are being constrained by its stagnant user numbers, which Dorsey’s product changes have failed to significantly boost.
Revenue growth is slowing. The active user base has stalled. And Dorsey, who is already preoccupied with Square, has not been able to deliver results in the year since he returned to the helm of Twitter. Under his reins, the company’s stock has dropped, only rising when rumors of a sale emerge.
Dorsey, of course, has deep attachments to Twitter—he helped create the company, after all. But despite his wishes, his creation may soon find new owners.
