Twitter's Rebranding To "X" Sparks Mixed Reactions And Legal Concerns

Twitter's iconic blue bird logo has given way to a fresh and distinct 'X' logo on the platform's website, in a notable rebranding move previously announced by Elon Musk.

Elon Musk, who took over Twitter in October, had unveiled the new logo as part of his vision to transform the social media giant into an "everything app." The logo change has sparked mixed reactions among users, and marketing experts raise concerns about potentially eroding Twitter's long-established brand recognition. With the transition now underway, the platform faces both excitement and challenges in its quest to evolve into a multifunctional digital ecosystem.

The transition to the "X" brand was evident on Twitter's website, where the new logo was prominently displayed. However, the mobile app still retained the iconic blue bird, the symbol that had come to represent the platform's broadcasting of ideas to the world.

Since Musk took over Twitter in October, he has been vocal about his ambitious plans for the platform, seeking to emulate the diverse functionalities of China's popular WeChat app. The rebranding decision was met with mixed reactions from users and industry experts, with some expressing confusion about what tweets would now be called and others criticising the new logo.

On the platform itself, "#GoodbyeTwitter" trended on Monday, with some users expressing fondness for the old logo and expressing their dissatisfaction with the new one.

Elon Musk took to Twitter on Saturday, hinting at a gradual shift away from the Twitter brand and its avian-themed identity. Musk's historical connection to the letter X, as demonstrated by his co-founding of x.com, which eventually became PayPal, lent weight to his choice for the new branding. The domain x.com now redirects to Twitter.

While Musk's vision of transforming Twitter into a multifunctional "X" app may be ambitious, it is not without challenges. Since his takeover, the company has faced a series of difficulties, including layoffs, a decline in advertisers, and increased competition from Threads, Meta's response to Twitter.

The rebranding also raises legal concerns, as the letter X is already widely used and cited in trademarks by various companies, including Meta and Microsoft. This could potentially lead to complications in obtaining exclusive intellectual property rights for the new branding.

Twitter's new CEO, Linda Yaccarino, who previously served as the advertising chief at NBCUniversal, addressed employees in a memo on Monday, expressing her belief that "X" would propel the platform to transform the global town square. The memo outlined plans for the development of new features in audio, video, messaging, payments, and banking.