Twitter Shares Take Wing on Subscription Platform Plan

FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed logo for Twitter is seen in this picture illustration on January 26, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed logo for Twitter is seen in this picture illustration on January 26, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
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Twitter Shares Take Wing on Subscription Platform Plan

FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed logo for Twitter is seen in this picture illustration on January 26, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed logo for Twitter is seen in this picture illustration on January 26, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

Twitter shares closed the formal trading day up more than 7 percent after word spread of a team codenamed "Gryphon" working on a subscription platform.

Shares in the social network were up nearly 7.4 percent at the close of the New York Stock Exchange, and rose more than a percent more in after-market trades.

The free one-to-many messaging service has become a seemingly indispensable online venue for the latest news or commentary, with US President Donald Trump among those who post frequently.

A subscription platform could be a way for Twitter to overcome challenges making money.

A Twitter job posting said the San Francisco-based company is looking for a senior software engineer to lead payment and subscription work as part of a new "Gryphon" team.

"This is a first for Twitter," the job posting read.

"We are building a subscription platform, one that can be reused by other teams in the future."

The Gryphon engineer is to collaborate with the team handling Twitter.com, according to the posting.

Twitter confirmed the job posting, but declined to comment further.

Twitter swung to an $8 million loss in the first quarter of this year as the global pandemic hit, even as revenues edged up three percent to $808 million and its user base increased 24 percent.

Chief executive Jack Dorsey during an earnings call that the platform was working to be a useful resource for people during the pandemic.

He said Twitter's goal is to "serve the global conversation" and that the platform is "helping the world stay informed, and providing a unique way for people to come together to help or simply entertain and remind one another of our connections."

Twitter's preferred measure -- "monetizable" daily active users -- hit 166 million, a leap of 24 percent from a year ago.



Huawei's Meng Wanzhou Takes Over as Rotating Chairperson

FILE PHOTO: Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's rotating chairperson and chief financial officer, speaks at the Mobile World Congress in Shanghai, China June 28, 2023. REUTERS/Nicoco Chan/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's rotating chairperson and chief financial officer, speaks at the Mobile World Congress in Shanghai, China June 28, 2023. REUTERS/Nicoco Chan/File Photo
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Huawei's Meng Wanzhou Takes Over as Rotating Chairperson

FILE PHOTO: Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's rotating chairperson and chief financial officer, speaks at the Mobile World Congress in Shanghai, China June 28, 2023. REUTERS/Nicoco Chan/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's rotating chairperson and chief financial officer, speaks at the Mobile World Congress in Shanghai, China June 28, 2023. REUTERS/Nicoco Chan/File Photo

Meng Wanzhou on Tuesday took over from Eric Xu as the rotating chairperson of China's Huawei Technologies for the next six months, the Shenzhen-based telecoms giant and smartphone maker said.
Meng, who is also the daughter of Huawei's founder Ren Zhengfei, will also continue to serve as the company's chief financial officer concurrently, Reuters reported.
The 52-year-old is taking the reins at a time when Huawei is going head-to-head with rival Apple over smartphone sales. Both companies launched their latest devices on the same day in September, with Huawei rolling out a premium tri-fold phone that costs $2,800.
Meng, described as the "Princess of Huawei" by Chinese media, was caught up in an extradition drama several years ago.
She was detained in Vancouver in December 2018 after a New York court issued an arrest warrant, saying Meng had tried to cover up attempts by Huawei-linked companies to sell equipment to Iran in breach of US sanctions.
Meng was allowed to return to China in September 2021 after reaching an agreement with US prosecutors to end a bank fraud case against her.