X may lose up to US$75 million of ad revenue by end 2023

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X, which was previously known as Twitter, could reportedly lose as much as US$75 million in advertising revenue by the end of 2023, according to The New York Times.

At least a dozen major brands, including IBM, Apple and Disney, have reportedly paused advertising on X, following a report published by media watchdog group Media Matters. The report said that ads for major brands had appeared next to pro-Nazi content.

In response, X sued Media Matters for defamation, claiming that the watchdog group manipulated the social media platform by following major brands or users known to produce fringe content, and resorted to endlessly scrolling and refreshing the feed until it found ads of major brands next to extremist posts, according to Reuters.

Other brands that have stopped or are considering pausing their ads on X include Airbnb, Amazon, Coca-Cola and Microsoft, said The New York Times in a report.

Don't miss: New algorithm to amplify small creators on X, says Musk

X said that US$11 million in revenue was at risk and that the exact figure will fluctuate as some advertisers return to the platform, while others increased spending, according to the report.

Unfortunately, X has been struggling with advertising revenue since Musk bought it over. The social media company's revenue went down by 50% in July this year due to the launch of competitor platform, Meta's Threads.

The platform's reduced content moderation also resulted in a rise in hate speech on the site, causing advertisers to flee too. X tried to draw advertisers back by signing a new brand safety tech deal with global media measurement and optimisation platform Integral Ad Science (IAS) earlier this year.

The exclusive partnership was revealed by IAS in a statement and will provide advertisers with its pre-bid brand safety and suitability product across the social media platform.

“At X, balancing free expression and platform safety is our number one priority – and we are proving these two things are not at odds,” said Linda Yaccarino, CEO of X. “Growing our partnership with IAS offers brands a new level of protection and transparency as they continue to grow on X.”

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