Elon Musk’s Social Media Venture Faces Potential $75 Million Loss in Advertising Revenue

Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, is reportedly at risk of losing up to $75 million in advertising revenue by the year-end as numerous major brands suspend their marketing campaigns, as per a report by the New York Times on Friday.

The catalyst for this downturn was Musk endorsing an antisemitic post on the platform last week, prompting several major companies, including Walt Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery, to halt their advertisements on the platform, formerly known as Twitter.

In response, X has taken legal action against media watchdog group Media Matters, accusing the organization of defamation through a report alleging that ads for prominent brands, including Apple and Oracle, appeared alongside posts promoting Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party.

Internal documents reviewed by The New York Times reveal a list of over 200 ad units from companies like Airbnb, Amazon, Coca-Cola, and Microsoft. Many of these companies have either paused their ads on the social network or are contemplating doing so.

X disclosed on Friday that it faces a potential revenue loss of $11 million, with the exact figure fluctuating as some advertisers return to the platform and others adjust their spending, according to the report. The company has yet to respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Since Musk’s acquisition of X in October 2022, advertisers have been withdrawing from the platform due to reduced content moderation, leading to a surge in hate speech, according to civil rights groups. The platform’s US ad revenue has reportedly seen a decline of at least 55 percent year-over-year each month since Musk took over, as previously reported by Reuters.