Twitter has acquired newsletter publishing platform Revue

Since its inception, Twitter has become a place where people can see and talk about what is happening in the world. It offers users a platform where they can spark conversations and debates, share their work and gain a following. However, with its character limitations on posts it has always kept their users messages short and sweet. 

That is about to change.

Recently, Twitter announced that it has acquired Revue, a long-form newsletter service that allows anyone to start and publish their own editorial newsletters. This acquisition will allow Twitter to get their feet wet with long-form content and subscription-based services.  

What we know about Twitter’s Revue acquisition

Not all the details of the acquisition have been disclosed but according to Crunchbase, Revue is a five-year-old Dutch company with only six employees. Twitter plans on retaining all employees and then expanding.

Revue currently offers free and paid options. The free membership allows writers to share with up to 50 readers while the paid version lets them email up to 40,000. Revue then takes a 6% cut of the newsletter revenue but Twitter plans on knocking this down to 5%. 

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Twitter will also be creating new features like allowing a user to subscribe to someone they follow on Twitter and giving writers the ability to host conversations with their followers which will make it easier than ever for writers to connect with their readers directly. 

Revue will remain its own brand with Twitter’s backing. Twitter will focus on empowering and supporting the writers to grow their paid subscriber lists by providing compensation incentives based on the number of converted subscribers.

Why should this matter to you? 

Revue’s goal is to support and boost writers across America and that could mean you! Having Twitter in their corner jumpstarts this effort. Kayvon Beykpour, product lead at Twitter and Mike Park, VP of publisher products writes:

“Many established writers and publishers have built their brand on Twitter, amassing an audience that’s hungry for the next article or perspective they Tweet. Our goal is to make it easy for them to connect with their subscribers, while also helping readers better discover writers and their content.”

As publishing space becomes more and more crowded, it will be beneficial for writers to attach themselves to a reputable service that makes it easy for them to get their writing out into the world and monetize their efforts. 

Looking to the future

Even though digital and online publishing has been steadily increasing over the years, it is no surprise that 2020 saw an even greater push for publishers to move online. 

With the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic closing many brick and mortar establishments, it is more important than ever for writers and publishers to get involved in the digital marketplace. 

This partnership between Revue and Twitter may just be the right balance of publishing service and social media platform to get you there.