A Tale of “Brand Safety” Turning into a Clash
The conflict originated from Musk’s decisions after his acquisition of Twitter in 2022. He scaled back moderation, reinstated banned accounts, and altered the rules regarding sensitive content. This alarmed some brands, which preferred not to display their ads next to potentially controversial content. This is where the World Federation of Advertisers comes into play, an organization that advocates for advertisers’ interests and leads the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), an initiative meant to ensure a “clean” advertising environment.
The problem, according to X, is that the WFA and GARM allegedly pressured brands to slash their advertising budgets on the platform, aiming to compel Musk to adopt stricter policies. This sort of disguised boycott reportedly deprived X of billions in advertising revenue.
X Seeks Redress and Takes Legal Action
Understandably, Musk was not pleased. Not only did he publicly criticize the brands that withdrew, but he also initiated legal action. His claim: while advertisers have the right to decide where to spend their money, coordinating to penalize a platform amounts to antitrust behavior. In essence, X accuses the involved companies of manipulating the market by forming a sort of advertising cartel. Quite a claim indeed.
X is demanding compensation for damages and aims to prevent such practices in the future. Meanwhile, some brands are gradually returning to X, such as Amazon, which has resumed its investments, and even Apple, which is reconsidering its investment returns on X. Interestingly, this comes as Musk grows closer to the Trump administration, which could influence major companies’ decisions.
What Now?
For now, the WFA defends itself by stating that GARM never intended to sabotage X and was merely looking to protect the brands’ images. Moreover, the initiative was discontinued shortly after the first lawsuit was filed. The targeted companies have yet to publicly respond, but this legal battle could drag on for a while.
It remains to be seen whether Musk will prevail or if X will continue to struggle with reduced advertising. In the meantime, the tension between Musk and the advertisers shows no signs of easing.