Twitter cuts staff, kills off Vine app amid pressure to grow
NEW YORK — Twitter, seemingly unable to find a buyer and losing money, is cutting about 9 per cent of its employees worldwide.
It is also killing off Vine, a mobile video app where people share short video clips that play in a loop. While beloved by users and a pioneer in its own right, Vine, which launched in 2013, never took off with the masses and has lost its lustre as of late.
Twitter has failed to keep pace with rivals Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram and in recent months, rumours abounded that it would be acquired. In a conference call with analysts on Thursday, CEO Jack Dorsey quickly brushed aside what he called “recent market speculation.” He said the company is committed to growing long-term shareholder value, and that he doesn’t plan to comment “any further on this topic.”
Shares of Twitter, which have tumbled 27 per cent in the past month as possible suitors have wandered away, rose 34 cents, or 2 per cent, to $17.63 in afternoon trading on Thursday.