Social Talk: Twitter And Clubhouse Discussed $4 Billion Takeover

Twitter held discussions with Clubhouse, the audio social media app, about buying out the popular new company for $4 billion, but the discussions have fizzled, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources. No reason was given.

After the talks with Twitter didn’t go forward, Clubhouse began to consider earlier this week whether it might be better to just raise money to get to the same valuation.

Clubhouse, which focuses on private invite-only rooms where audio-based discussions and talks take place, and which allows people to ask to join in the conversations, has drawn attention from big names as of late.

That has led to numerous companies like Facebook, LinkedIn and Slack Technologies putting together their own alternatives to try and jump on the trend.

Twitter’s own Clubhouse competitor, Spaces, rolled out late last year, although it’s still in beta form and not available to all users. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is “bullish” about using audio as a way for people to interact on Twitter, and the company has previously bet on live content via partnership deals or acquisitions, Bloomberg reported.

At a press event on Wednesday (April 7), Twitter Revenue Product Lead Bruce Falck said the company is considering ways to monetize Spaces, although nothing has been decided upon yet.

Clubhouse also announced this week that it would be debuting a payments feature, letting users monetize their creations as well as send and receive payments. The company said it wants to help creators grow and build a community.

PYMNTS noted another way Clubhouse differs from other social media in a January report. Rather than an algorithm filling one’s feed with posts, users can pick chat rooms to join and select ones that are of interest to them. They can also leave or report ones that don’t feel right.