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Twitter

Twitter, founded by Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams in March 2006 (launched publicly in July 2006), is a social networking and micro-blogging service that allows users to post their latest updates. An update is limited by 140 characters and can be posted through three methods: web form, text message, or instant message. The company has been busy adding features to the product like Gmail import and search. They recently launched a new site section called “Explore” for external and third party tools that interact with Twitter and a new visualization tool called Twitter Blocks.

The service was started by Obvious Corp, who also started Odeo.

In April 2008 Twitter launched Twitter Japan in partnership with Digital Garage.

Milestones

• 
  Twitter received $100M in Series D funding. (9/25/09)
  Posted 9/25/09 at 9:08am
• 
  Twitter received $35M in Series C funding. (2/13/09)
  Posted 2/13/09 at 11:42am
• 
  Twitter acquired Values of n. (11/24/08)
  Posted 11/24/08 at 5:04pm
• 
  Twitter acquired Summize. (7/15/08)
  Posted 7/15/08 at 8:36am
• 
  Twitter — Hires Rudy Winnacker and John Adams, two new Operation Engineers (6/23/08)
  Posted 6/23/08 at 9:52pm
• 
  Twitter — Survives iPhone 3G Stevenote (6/9/08)
  Posted 6/18/08 at 12:14am
• 
  Twitter — Twitter partners with Summize to cover Apple news. (6/9/08)
  Posted 6/22/08 at 11:10am
• 
  Twitter — Launches a status blog to communicate to users better about issues with the service. (5/28/08)
  Posted 6/22/08 at 11:15am
• 
  Twitter — Twitter Starts Blacklisting Spammers (5/7/08)
  Posted 6/22/08 at 11:15am
• 
  Twitter received $15M in Series B funding. (5/08)
  Posted 4/22/08 at 10:27pm
• 
  Twitter — VP Lee Mighdoll Leaves Twitter (4/24/08)
  Posted 6/22/08 at 11:17am
• 
  Twitter — Chief Architect Blaine Cook Leaves Twitter (4/23/08)
  Posted 6/22/08 at 11:19am
• 
  Twitter — Twitter Japan Launches (4/22/08)
  Posted 6/22/08 at 11:20am
• 
  Twitter — Twitter helps bust American man out of Egyptian jail (4/16/08)
  Posted 6/22/08 at 11:21am
• 
  Twitter received $5M in Series A funding. (7/1/07)
  Posted 7/30/07 at 1:56am
• 
  Twitter — Twitter Launches (7/15/06)
  Posted 8/6/08 at 11:43am

Videos

Screenshots

Above: Twitter Home Page July 2009
Uploaded: 7/25/09

Above: Twitter Homepage as of July 28, 2009
Uploaded: 7/29/09

Above: Twitter search results page as of July 28, 2009
Uploaded: 7/29/09

Products

Twicco

edit

Website	twicco.jp
Blog	twitter.com/blog
Stage	Live
Launch Date	November 4, 2008
Deadpool Date	July 1, 2009

Twicco.jp is a group and community feature for Twitter (currently available only in Japan). In Loic Le Meur’s demo video you can see it lets users create and follow a group instead of an individual account. Twitter Japan, a joint venture with Digital Garage, was already differentiating itself from the US version with ads in the feeds and therefor a monetization option right from the beginning.

Above: Twicco Homepage
Uploaded: 11/5/08

Videos

Above:

Loic Le Meur demo’s Twicco

Twitter

Website	twitter.com
Blog	twitter.com/blog
Stage	Live
Launch Date	March 1, 2006
Tags	twitter, communication, text, messages, microblogging

Twitter allows users to post text updates via SMS, instant messaging, email, Twitter’s website and third party applications. Users have their own profile page that displays their latest updates. In addition, users can become “friends” with one another, or simply be a “follower.” Other than reading another person’s profile page, a user can also receive others’ updates through text messages, RSS or third party applications.

Twitter itself is a free service, though users may have to pay text messaging charges to the phone carriers.

Above: Twitter Screenshot -- #1
Uploaded: 2/5/08

Above: Twitter Screenshot -- #2
Uploaded: 2/5/08

Twitter Blocks

edit

Website	twitter.com
Blog	blog.twitter.com
Tags	socialnetworking

Twitter Blocks is a real-time visualization tool for recent updates from a user’s friends and their friends’ network of friends (and their friends’ friends’ network of friends, etc.).

Above: Twitter Blocks Screenshot -- #1
Uploaded: 2/5/08

Traffic Analytics

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Sources

1. Values of n Blog (valuesofn.com) []
2. Confirmed: Twitter Acquires Summize Search Engine (techcrunch.com) []
3. More Information On That Secretive Twitter Financing (techcrunch.com) []
4. Twitter Announces Their Funding, Calls Itself A Communication Utility (techcrunch.com) []
5. Twitter Raises $35 Million Series C From Benchmark and IVP, Others (techcrunch.com) []
6. Twitter (blog.twitter.com) []
7. Twitter Fails To Fail, Community Rejoices (techcrunch.com) []
8. Twitter Partners With Summize to Cover Apple News (techcrunch.com) []
9. What's Going On? (blog.twitter.com) []
10. Twitter Starts Blacklisting Spammers (techcrunch.com) []
11. VP Lee Mighdoll Out At Twitter, Business Plan Still MIA (techcrunch.com) []
12. Amateur Hour Over At Twitter? (techcrunch.com) []
13. Twitter! Japan! Ads! (techcrunch.com) []
14. Twitter Saves Man From Egyptian Justice (techcrunch.com) []
15. Introducing John Adams and Rudy (blog.twitter.com) []
16. Odeo Releases Twttr (techcrunch.com) []
17. twitter.com []