Twitter might become a cooperative owned by users as the company’s shareholder are scheduled to vote on whether to investigate such a possibility next month, a recent filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has revealed, as reported by Business Insider. The vote is scheduled to take place at Twitter’s annual meeting on May 22, with some shareholders of the San Francisco-based social media giant interested in transforming the company’s ownership structure by selling the platform to its users with broad accountability mechanisms attached.
While the proposal is unlikely to be seriously entertained by Twitter, it’s yet another sign of the general dissatisfaction among many of the company’s shareholders that have been criticizing Twitter’s top management for years now, even after the firm underwent some significant leadership changes. Despite all of its efforts, Twitter is still struggling to grow and monetize its user base, and the company recently decided to start cutting costs and shutting down some of its side businesses and international operations in an effort to refocus on its core service, streamline its operations, and hopefully increase its profits.
The idea of transforming Twitter into a user-owned cooperative was suggested by a recent online petition signed by approximately 3,500 people calling for radical changes at the company that’s struggling to make money despite its massive outreach and global popularity. The instant nature of Twitter feeds and the unique user experience offered by the platform should be more than enough to ensure the company is running a profitable business, some upset shareholders believe. Many more investors were recently pressuring Twitter into selling itself due to similar reasons, convinced that a larger parent company might have a better idea of how to turn Twitter into a successful business, and not just another social platform whose influence is slowly diminishing over the years. The company’s efforts to sell itself were prolonged, but ultimately unsuccessful, despite reported interest from the likes of Google, Salesforce, and even Disney. While Twitter is unlikely to ever become a user-owned cooperative, the company might make some radical management changes in the near future as yet another attempt to shake up its struggling operations.