Topline
Paris Hilton and X, formerly known as Twitter, announced a partnership Monday to make original content promoting X live shopping and live video features, multiple outlets are reporting—the latest move by billionaire Elon Musk’s company to inch X closer to becoming an “everything app,” following reported revenue issues at the social media company.
Paris Hilton and X — formerly known as Twitter — announced a partnership on Monday. (Photo by Mike … [+]
Key Facts
X CEO Linda Yaccarino announced the partnership with Hilton and her media company, 11:11, on the platform Monday, tweeting “together we’re going to create a launchpad for new initiatives in video and live video, live commerce, Spaces, and so much more.”
Hilton and X will create four “video content programs” annually that include live shopping, along with “a host of new activations across all surfaces of X,” a spokesperson told The Verge, which also reported the partnership is for two years.
The deal comes months after X announced it would begin paying some users for ads served in their replies—and less than a month after X announced it was stopping one of its oldest forms of advertising to redirect advertisers to other promotions—in an effort to improve the platform’s dwindling ad revenue.
Part of the deal is a revenue-sharing agreement an X spokesperson told Variety “is attractive to both parties.”
Big Number
16.6 million. That’s how many followers Hilton has on X.
Key Background
Since Musk’s takeover almost one year ago, X has struggled with revenue, and leadership has tried a handful of things to address it—including charging for verification and offering a match on ad spending. Prior to his purchase of Twitter, the New York Times reported advertisements accounted for nearly 90% of Twitter’s revenue. After his purchase, there were reports that more than half of Twitter’s top advertisers stopped spending on the platform, in part due to weakened content moderation and a slew of controversial policies enacted by Musk. For one five-week period in the spring, U.S. ad sales were down 59% year-over-year, the Times reported. While trying to bring in revenue, Musk has also been attempting to make X an “everything app,” which was his goal when he purchased it. Musk has indicated he hopes to transform X into a wide-ranging service like China’s WeChat, saying he wants his app “to become the biggest financial institution in the world.” He has said he wants it to be a peer-to-peer mobile payment platform and include a broad range of services, including ride-hailing, food delivery and shopping—which is what Hilton will be promoting.
Forbes Valuation
Forbes estimates Musk to be worth $252.4 billion as of Monday afternoon, making him the wealthiest person in the world.
Surprising Fact
Yaccarino may have foreshadowed the partnership between X and Hilton back in July when she posted a picture of the pair with the caption: “We work. We sliv. We X. @ParisHilton.” “Sliv” is one of Hilton’s catchphrases and is a combination of “slaying mixed with living my best life,” according to Gawker.