Twitter CEO tells staff future of company uncertain under Elon Musk

SAN FRANCISCO (REUTERS, NYTIMES) - Twitter chief executive Parag Agrawal told employees on Monday (April 25) that the future of the social media firm is uncertain after the deal to be taken private under billionaire Elon Musk closes. He was speaking during a companywide town hall meeting that was heard by Reuters.

Mr Musk will join Twitter staff for a question-and-answer session at a later date, the company told employees.

As Mr Agrawal listened to staff questions about Mr Musk's plans for the company, the possibility of layoffs and the board's rationale for the deal, he deferred many questions as ones that should be asked of Mr Musk.

Mr Musk has said he believes Twitter should be a platform for free speech. Employees asked Mr Agrawal whether former United States president Donald Trump, who was permanently suspended from Twitter last year, would be allowed to return once Mr Musk takes over.

"Once the deal closes, we don't know which direction the platform will go," Mr Agrawal said, referring to the question regarding Mr Trump. "I believe when we have an opportunity to speak with Elon, it's a question we should address with him."

Mr Agrawal also told employees there were no plans for layoffs.

Mr Bret Taylor, chair of Twitter's board of directors, aimed to reassure employees that the agreement with Mr Musk prioritised "operating continuity" until the deal was closed.

"I think we feel very comfortable that (the deal) gives this team the ability to continue to make the company successful in between signing and closing the transaction," Mr Taylor said.

Meanwhile, former antitrust officials said regulators may examine Mr Musk's purchase of Twitter but are unlikely to sue to block it.

Mr Bill Baer, who led the Justice Department's antitrust division during the Obama administration, said enforcers would "look hard to see whether there is a risk to competition and to consumers".

The big price tag, roughly US$44 billion (S$60.4 billion), will require Twitter and Mr Musk to submit the deal for review by the Justice Department or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the two agencies that regulate acquisitions.

Officials at both have pledged to take a closer look at how mergers and acquisitions fuel concentration in the technology industry. The FTC has sued Facebook on the grounds that the company's purchase of Instagram and WhatsApp stamped out possible future competitors.

But Mr Musk's acquisition of Twitter is not the kind of deal the government usually challenges. The government most commonly intervenes when a company is buying a competitor. It also sometimes challenges deals when the acquisition will unfairly benefit the purchaser in another part of its business. Mr Musk's two major holdings - electric carmaker Tesla and rocket company SpaceX - do not compete with Twitter, and it is not clear that he will try to link them to the social network in any way.

"It seems to me he has a major stake in two transportation companies at the moment," said Mr William Kovacic, a former chair of the FTC. "And it's hard to see how Twitter has much to do with either one of them."