Twitter reported another gloomy quarter last week; narrowing losses, but shedding 2 million customers with no turn to profitability in sight. 2015 fourth quarter sales were up by 48% to $710 million over the same period in the previous year- a record quarter for the company, and a strong showing for their advertising model.
Driven by the strong ad sales, Twitter's losses narrowed in quarter, with the company reporting losses of $90 million, down from $125 million in Q4, 2014.
2 Million Users Exit
However, despite those bright spots for Twitter, the company saw an outflow of two million customers in the final quarter of 2015, dropping from 307 million users to 305 million. At the same time, rival service Instagram reported strong user growth, adding more than 100 million users between December 2014 and September 2015.
To combat the outflow of customers, Twitter's senior management has been touting changes to the core of the service, and they have been reported to be considering dropping the 140 character limit for tweets. As well, the company has added apps such as Periscope, which allows users to live stream video via Twitter and the company is testing a new algorithm that will add a more robust chronology to better oganize Twitter feeds.
“We're going to refine our core service and make everything more intuitive," Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said in a Periscope chat with analysts on Wednesday. “There's an opportunity to fix broken windows and confusing aspects that are inhibiting growth. We think timeline is a big part of that."
The earnings report comes against the backdrop of turmoil in Twitter's management team with four senior executives, including the company's heads of engineering, media, product and human resources exiting the company late last month.
Driven by the strong ad sales, Twitter's losses narrowed in quarter, with the company reporting losses of $90 million, down from $125 million in Q4, 2014.
2 Million Users Exit
However, despite those bright spots for Twitter, the company saw an outflow of two million customers in the final quarter of 2015, dropping from 307 million users to 305 million. At the same time, rival service Instagram reported strong user growth, adding more than 100 million users between December 2014 and September 2015.
To combat the outflow of customers, Twitter's senior management has been touting changes to the core of the service, and they have been reported to be considering dropping the 140 character limit for tweets. As well, the company has added apps such as Periscope, which allows users to live stream video via Twitter and the company is testing a new algorithm that will add a more robust chronology to better oganize Twitter feeds.
“We're going to refine our core service and make everything more intuitive," Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said in a Periscope chat with analysts on Wednesday. “There's an opportunity to fix broken windows and confusing aspects that are inhibiting growth. We think timeline is a big part of that."
The earnings report comes against the backdrop of turmoil in Twitter's management team with four senior executives, including the company's heads of engineering, media, product and human resources exiting the company late last month.
