Twitter might go bankrupt, warns Elon Musk after senior executives leave company
San Francisco: Elon Musk reportedly said on Thursday, barely two weeks after he bought it for $ 44 billion, that Twitter is possibly on the way to bankruptcy.
The deal over the purchase of the social media platform, according to credit experts, affected Twitter’s finances ‘negatively’, reported NDTV.
Musk is learned to have informed Twitter employees over call that the possibility of bankruptcy could not be ruled out. He is also said to have told them so after a warning from a US regulator and also the resignation of senior executives considered the future leaders of the company.
Yoel Ruth and Robin Wheeler, executives, who had been moderating a Twitter Spaces chat with Musk on Wednesday as he tried to appease advertisers, have resigned, said sources. Lea Kissner, Twitter’s chief security officer, posted on Twitter on Thursday, that she had quit.
Damien Kieran, chief privacy officer of the company, and Marianne Fogarty, chief compliance officer, too have resigned, as per an internal message to Twitter’s Slack system on Thursday by an attorney on the privacy team of the company, sources added.
On Thursday afternoon, holding his first meeting with all employees of the social media company, Musk had reportedly warned that Twitter might lose billions of dollars in the coming year. He has also said that the company is losing more than $ 4 million a day, which is attributed largely to advertisers withdrawing from Twitter since the takeover followed by the new owner’s outright firing of employees.
Twitter is now in debt of $ 13 billion, on which it faces interest payment close to $ 1.2 billion within the next one year. The payments, however, exceed Twitter’s recently disclosed cash flow, which was $ 1.1 billion, till June-end.
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said that, after the resignation of three privacy and compliance officers of Twitter, it was watching the company with concern, as the loss of major hands put Twitter at a risk of violating regulatory orders.
Douglas Farrar, director of public affairs at the FTC, reportedly warned, “No CEO or company is above the law, companies must follow our consent decrees. The revised consent order of the FTC equips us ensure compliance, and we will use them if necessary.”
The FTC had alleged in May that Twitter had misused information, including phone numbers, to target advertising to users, although users were told that the information was being collected only for security purposes. The social media platform agreed to pay $ 150 million to settle the allegations.
Twitter, however, did not reply to queries on the possibility of bankruptcy, the Commission warning or resignations of executives.
While Musk, communicating with advertisers on Twitter’s Spaces feature, told the advertisers that he aimed to turn Twitter into a force of truth and put a halt on fake accounts, the advertisers don’t seem convinced.
Several brands, including General Motors and Chipotle Mexican Grill, have put a halt on their advertising on Twitter since Musk took over, reportedly concerned over the violation of moderation rules by the new head.
Chipotle Mexican Grill is learned to have said on Thursday that they would like to gain a better understanding of the platform under the new leadership.
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Gruha Jyothi, drought in state contribute to 11.35 pc increase in power consumption in 2023-24
Bengaluru: The overall power consumption on domestic basis across Karnataka has increased by 11.35 per cent between August 2023 and July 2024, with all electricity supply companies (escoms), except the Bengaluru Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM), recording a rise of 10 to 19.75 per cent this year.
The power use has increased by 3.76 per cent within BESCOM limits, which includes not only Bengaluru Urban and Rural districts but also other districts like Ramanagar, Tumakuru, Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Davanagere and Chitradurga in 2023-24, reports Deccan Herald.
The increase is being attributed to the extension in drought and high-temperature days in the state as well as to the implementation of the Gruha Jyothi scheme by the state government, as the number of beneficiaries has increased during said period by 7.13 per cent.
In contrast to the hike witnessed in the state this year, Karnataka had recorded a 4.64 per cent increase in power consumption in 2022-2023, as households had used 16,089 million units (MUs) in 2023-24, which was 1,263 MUs higher than the number of units consumed in 2022-23.
While the six escoms in Karnataka provides electricity to around 1.98 crore households in total, more than 1.69 crore users have enrolled for Gruha Jyothi. Of these, 1.6 crore users have availed of the benefits of the scheme.
The government had given a 10 per cent buffer on the average power consumption of 2022-23, for the households to receive zero-electricity bill, with Energy Department sources informing that the state government had predicted the power consumption in Karnataka to rise by 10 per cent at most, as compared to 2022-23.
The state government had, however, not allocated additional funds in the budget for the scheme, although it has been clearing escom dues regularly, a senior officer has said.
Another senior officer confirmed that drought and high temperatures have contributed to the increased household power consumption across the state. However with good rainfall this year, the power consumption could be expected to return to its average level, the officer added.
Low rainfall in the summer of 2023 had reduced the power supply in the state, forcing escoms to also reduce supply to irrigation pumpsets. Several areas in the state also used to report scheduled load shedding. There have been instances where the government has purchased power from private players and national grid at Rs 7.42 to Rs 10 per unit during peak season, said the officer.
The state currently depends on renewable energy sources, including hydro, wind and solar powers, to meet 63 per cent of its requirements.
