LONDON: US billionaire Elon Musk became Twitter Inc’s owner on Thursday, firing top executives and providing little clarity over how he will achieve the lofty ambitions he has outlined for the influential social media platform.
Here’s what people are saying about the purchase.
STEVE JOHNSON, CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER, FORAGER FUNDS MANAGEMENT, SYDNEY:
“It’s been a heck of a rollercoaster, that’s for sure, and we’re certainly happy from a financial perspective that (the deal) has closed.
“I’ll be surprised if senior people here stay around. My guess is with the rest of the business (Musk) will be like he is with all his other businesses — he will be ruthless about ‘if you have a job here, you are supposed to be producing something that creates value for the company.’ And I think the company has needed that for a long time.”
BIZ STONE, CO-FOUNDER, TWITTER:
“Thank you to @paraga, @vijaya and @nedsegal for the collective contribution to Twitter. Massive talents, all, and beautiful humans each!,” Stone said in a Tweet, referring to sacked Twitter executives Parag Agrawal, Vijaya Gadde and Ned Segal.
RAJEEV CHANDRASEKHAR, INDIA’S MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
“Our rules and laws for intermediaries remain the same regardless of who owns the platforms. So, the expectation of compliance with Indian laws and rules remains.”
CHANGPENG ZHAO, FOUNDER, CEO, BINANCE, CO-INVESTOR IN MUSK’S TWITTER DEAL
“We’re excited to be able to help Elon realize a new vision for Twitter. We aim to play a role in bringing social media and Web3 together in order to broaden the use and adoption of crypto and blockchain technology.”
What people are saying about Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter
https://arab.news/v973z
What people are saying about Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter
- Here are some reactions from people on social media
Meta to charge Arab advertisers extra fee for reaching European audiences
- US tech giant told advertisers it will add fees ranging from 2 to 5 percent on image and video ads delivered on its platforms to offset digital service taxes
- Charges are determined by where the audience is located, not where the advertiser is based
LONDON: Meta will from July 1 impose location-based surcharges on advertisers targeting audiences in six European countries, a move that will directly affect Arab businesses that run campaigns across the continent.
The US tech giant announced it will add fees ranging from 2 to 5 percent on image and video ads delivered on its platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, to offset digital service taxes imposed by individual governments.
Crucially, the charges are determined by where the audience is located, not where the advertiser is based.
That means Saudi, Emirati, Egyptian or other Arab companies paying to reach consumers in the UK, France or Italy will face the additional costs regardless of their own country’s tax arrangements with Meta.
Fees will apply at 2 percent for ads reaching UK audiences, 3 percent for France, Italy and Spain, and 5 percent for Austria and Turkiye.
“If you deliver $100 in ads to Italy, where there is a 3% location fee, you will be charged $100 (ad delivery), plus $3 (location fee), for $103 total,” the company wrote in an email to an advertiser initially reported by Bloomberg. “Note that any applicable VAT will be calculated on top of the total amount.”
The taxes have been introduced at different points, starting with France in 2019, though not the EU as a bloc.
Many tech companies report substantial sales in Europe and millions of users but pay minimal tax on profits. The goal is to claw back locally derived economic value, Bloomberg reported.
The move follows similar decisions by Google and Amazon, which have also begun passing European digital tax costs on to advertisers.
For Arab brands with growing European footprints, particularly in fashion, travel, hospitality and media, the new fees add another layer of cost to campaigns already subject to currency and targeting complexities.
Digital services taxes, levied as a percentage of revenues earned by major tech platforms in individual countries, have drawn criticism from Washington, which argues they unfairly target US companies.
Meta has been reached for comments.
